Neuronal toxicity of biopolymer-template synthesized ZnO nanoparticles

A simple and "green" method was developed for preparing zinc oxide nanoparticles [ZnO-NPs] in aqueous starch solutions. Starch was used as a stabilizer to control of the mobility of zinc cations and then control growth of ZnO-NPs prepared via a sol-gel method. Because of the special structure of the starch, it permits termination of the particle growth. The dried gel was calcined at different temperatures of 400, 500, 600, and 700°C. The prepared ZnO-NPs were characterized by different techniques such as X-ray diffraction analysis [XRD], transmittance electron microscopy [TEM], and UV-Vis absorption. The XRD results displayed hexagonal [wurtzite] crystalline structure for prepared ZnO nanoparticles with mean sizes below than 50 nm. In vitro cytotoxicity studies on neuro 2A cells showed a dose dependent toxicity with non-toxic effect of concentration below 6 microg/mL. The results showed that starch is an eco-friendly material that can be used as a stabilizing agent in the sol-gel technique for preparing of ZnO-NPs in a large scale

Chemical composition, antimicrobial activity and antiviral activity of essential oil of Carum copticum from Iran

Evaluation of therapeutic effects of Carum copticum [C. copticum] has been the subject of several studies in recent years. Thymol the major component of C. copticum is a widely known antimicrobial agent. In this study, the antibacterial and anti viral activities of essential oil of C. copticum fruit were determined. Essential oil of C. copticum was analyzed by means of gas chromatographymass spectrometry [GC-MS]. The antimicrobial activity of the oil was evaluated against six Gram [+/-] bacteria and fungi, using the micro broth dilution technique. Antiviral activity of the essential oil was evaluated using a Bacillus phage CP51. From the ten identified constituents, representing 98.7% of the oil, thymol [72.3%], terpinolene [13.12%] and o-cymene [11.97%] were the major components. It was found that the oil exhibited strong antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus aureus [S. aureus] and Bacillus subtilis [B. subtilis] [MIC, 0.00025% v/v]. Furthermore, the antiviral activity of the oil was evaluated by plaque reduction assay. The essential oil showed an antiviral activity against phage when phage was pre-incubated with the essential oil prior to its exposure to B. cereus and without any pre-incubation with the phage, suggesting that the oil directly inactivated virus particles