A simple and rapid spectrophotometric method for the determination of trans-chalcone in raw-materialand topical formulation / Método espectrofotométrico simples e rápido paradeterminação de trans-chalcona em matéria-primae em formulação tópica

Trans-chalcone (TC) is a flavonoid precursor characterized by a wide spectrum of action, with anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects. However, no validated methods are available in official compendia for the analysis of this substance. Thus, the aim of this work was to develop and validate a simple, fast, and reproducible spectrophotometric method for the analysis of TC in raw material, and in topical pharmaceutical formulation containing TC. The established conditions were: methanol as extracting solvent, and detection wavelength of 309 nm by UV spectrophotometer. All tests followed the rules of Resolution RDC 166, 2017. The proposed method was selective. Linearity was demonstrated in the concentration range of 1 to 8 µg/mL (r = 0.999). Repeatability and intermediate precision were confirmed by low relative standard deviation values of 1.53% and 2.70% for TC, and of 1.73% and 2.91% for formulation containing TC. Accuracy, evaluated through recovery test, was adequate, with minimum of 98.24% and maximum of 100.23% of recovery. It was observed that the small deliberate modifications done did not interfere with the results, demonstrating the method is robust. The results showed that the method was considered suitable for the intended purpose, inexpensive, easy to apply, selective, linear, precise, accurate, and robust for the determination TC, and pharmaceutical formulation containing TC. Thus, the method developed satisfies the need for an analytical method for the determination of TC, and topical formulation containing TC, being effective, innovative and able to aid in the development of the pharmaceutical field.

Trans-chalcona (TC) é um precursor de flavonoides caracterizado por um amplo espectro de ação, como efeitos anti-inflamatórios e antioxidantes. No entanto, não há método validado disponível em compêndio oficial para análise deste composto. Então, o objetivo deste trabalho foi desenvolver e validar um método espectrofotométrico, simples, rápido e reprodutível para análise de TC em matéria-prima, e em formulação farmacêutica tópica contendo TC. As condições estabelecidas foram: metanol como o solvente de extração, e detecção no comprimento de onda de 309 nm por espectrofotometria no UV. Todos os testes seguiram as normas da RDC 166, 2017. O método proposto foi seletivo. A linearidade foi demonstrada na faixa de concentração de 1 a 8 µg/mL (r = 0.999). A repetibilidade e a precisão intermediária foram confirmadas pelos valores baixos de desvio padrão relativo de 1,53% e 2,70% para a TC, e de 1,73% e 2,91% para a formulação contendo TC. A exatidão, avaliada por meio de testes de recuperação, foi adequada, com mínimo de 98,24% e máximo de 100,04% de recuperação. Observou-se que pequenas modificações no método não interferiram nos resultados, demonstrando que o método é robusto. Os resultados demonstraram que o método foi adequado para a finalidade pretendida, barato, de fácil aplicação, seletivo, linear, preciso, exato e robusto para determinação de TC, e de formulação contendo TC. Então o método desenvolvido satisfaz as necessidades de um método analítico para determinação de TC, e de formulação tópica contendo TC, e é eficaz, inovador e pode contribuir para o desenvolvimento da área farmacêutica.

Principle and Application of Ultraviolet Crosslinking Immunoprecipitation Technology / 生物化学与生物物理进展

The UV cross-linking immunoprecipitation (CLIP) technique was first established in 2003. Sequences of target RNAs and binding sites of specific RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) were identified within the entire transcriptome by UV cross-linking, immunoprecipitation, reverse transcription, and subsequent high-throughput sequencing. Over the last 20 years, CLIP has been continuously modified and improved. Advanced operability and accuracy have extended its application category. Currently, the widely used CLIP technologies include high-throughput sequencing with crosslinking-immunoprecipitation (HITS-CLIP), photoactivatable-ribonucleoside-enhanced CLIP (PAR-CLIP), individual nucleotide resolution CLIP (iCLIP), enhanced CLIP (eCLIP), infrared-CLIP (irCLIP), etc. HITS-CLIP combines high-throughput sequencing with UV cross-linking immunoprecipitation. The 254 nm UV cross-linking and RNAase digestion steps allow the technology to capture transient intracellular RBP-RNA interactions. However, there are limitations in the efficiency of UV cross-linking, with low resolution and high intrinsic background noise. For PAR-CLIP, photoactivatable ribonucleoside was incorporated into RNA molecules, and RBP cross-linked with RNA by 365 nm UV light to improve cross-linking efficiency and resolution. Cross-linking mediated single-base mutations provide more accurate binding site information and reduce interference from background sequences. Long-term alternative nucleotide incorporation, on the other hand, can be cytotoxic and may skew experimental results. iCLIP can identify RBP-RNA cross-linking sites at the single nucleotide level through cDNA circularization and subsequent re-linearization steps, but it has more experimental procedures, and partial cDNAs lost in the circularization step are inevitable. eCLIP discards the radioisotope labeling procedure and reduces RNA loss by ligating adaptors in two separate steps, greatly improving the library-building efficiency, and reducing bias associated with PCR amplification; however, the efficiency of immunoprecipitation cannot be visually assessed at the early stage of the experiment. The irCLIP technique replaces radioisotopes with infrared dyes and greatly reduces the initial number of cells required for the experiment; however, an infrared imaging scanner is essential for the irCLIP application. To address more particular scientific issues, derivative CLIP-related techniques such as PAPERCLIP, cTag-PAPERCLIP, hiCLIP, and tiCLIP have also been developed in recent years. In practice, the aforementioned CLIP approaches have their advantages and disadvantages. When deciding on a technical strategy, we should take into account our experimental objectives and conditions, such as whether we need to precisely define the RNA site for binding to RBP; whether we have the necessary experimental conditions for working with radioisotopes or performing infrared imaging; the amount of initial sample size, and so on. In addition, the CLIP technique has a relatively large number of procedures and can be divided into several successive experimental modules. We can try to combine modules from different mainstream CLIP technologies to meet our experimental requirements, which also gives us more opportunities to improve and refine them and to build more targeted derivative CLIP technologies according to our research objectives.

Bioremediation of tannery wastewater using UV-treated bacteria in the free and immobilized form

Aims@#Heavy metals are significant environmental pollutants and toxic to life and chromium (Cr) (VI) is one of them being discharged in the environment due to many human activities. The leather industry uses Cr(VI) salt in the tanning process, which is discharged untreated and becomes a source of many diseases. The use of microbes to remove metals is a cost-effective and clean method. The present study aims to isolate local and native microbes for Cr(VI) removal from tannery wastewater and enhance their capacity to bioremediate the tannery wastewater. Further, efficiency in free and immobilized forms was also checked.@*Methodology and results@#Microbes were isolated from a local tannery wastewater outlet and after many rounds of minimum inhibitory concentration, and concentration of 500 µg/mL was found to be that concentration at which microbes could survive, above which they died. The sequencing of 16S rRNA and its analysis showed that it was closely related to Staphylococcus saprophyticus and in the given study, it was named B6. At 37 °C, pH 7.5 and 120 h of incubation, it removed 77% Cr(VI) from the reaction mixture. B6 was exposed to UV to obtain mutant. Exposure of 15 min to a UV lamp gave mutant MB6, which showed a removal capacity of 77% after 72 h only. Cr(VI) removal capacity of the mutant was then analyzed in the free and attached form where coal and sodium alginate were used as solid surfaces. Mutants immobilized on coal showed 91% Cr(VI) removal after 96 h, while sodium alginate showed 58% Cr(VI) removal in 120 h, thus showing coal as a more effective surface for adsorption.@*Conclusion, significance and impact of study@#Our present study shows the use of cheap and environmentally friendly methods to remediate tannery wastewater, which is a big problem in a country like Pakistan. Pakistan is the second largest producer of leather but lacks a wastewater treatment facility. So, this method offers in-situ wastewater treatment, which can be further enhanced in different ways.

Poly-ε-caprolactone based nanoparticles for delivery of genistein in melanoma treatment

We developed poly-ε-caprolactone (PCL)-based nanoparticles containing D-α-tocopherol polyethylene glycol-1000 succinate (TPGS) or Poloxamer 407 as stabilizers to efficiently encapsulate genistein (GN). Two formulations, referred to as PNTPGS and PNPol, were prepared using nanoprecipitation. They were characterized by size and PDI distribution, zeta potential, nanoparticle tracking analysis (NTA), GN association (AE%), infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). PNTPGS-GN exhibited a particle size of 141.2 nm, a PDI of 0.189, a zeta potential of -32.9 mV, and an AE% of 77.95%. PNPol-GN had a size of 146.3 nm, a better PDI than PNTPGS-GN (0.150), a less negative zeta potential (-21.0 mV), and an AE% of 68.73%. Thermal and spectrometric analyses indicated that no new compounds were formed, and there was no incompatibility detected in the formulations. Cellular studies revealed that Poloxamer 407 conferred less toxicity to PCL nanoparticles. However, the percentage of uptake decreased compared to the use of TPGS, which exhibited almost 80% cellular uptake. This study contributes to the investigation of stabilizers capable of conferring stability to PCL nanoparticles efficiently encapsulating GN. Thus, the PCL nanoparticle proposed here is an innovative nanomedicine for melanoma therapy and represents a strong candidate for specific pre-clinical and in vivo studie

Providing inoculum for Didymella bryoniae studies: the effect of light spectrum and storing at low temperature / Fornecendo inóculo para estudos de Didymella bryoniae: o efeito do espectro de luz e armazenamento em baixa temperatura

Abstract The in vitro sporulation of Didymella bryoniae is of great importance for studies that require pure inoculum and in large quantities. Thus, the objectives of this study were to identify the best condition for D. bryoniae sporulation combining different light spectra (UV-A or UV-B light, white light, and continuous dark), with distinct culture media (PDA, V8, ML, and PDAB) and, to evaluate fungus' survivability stored at -20°C over time. The fungus samples were only able to sporulate when subjected to the UV-B light treatment, regardless of the culture medium. The highest appearance of spores conidium type was observed in the PDAB medium, and the lowest production occurred in the ML medium. Reproductive structures, such as perithecia and pycnidia, were observed in all culture media. However, there was considerable variation in the amount of each structure between the different culture media. The ML and V8 media showed a greater number of perithecia and the PDA and PDAB media presented a greater proportion of pycnidia compared to perithecia. The storage duration at -20°C did not affect mycelial growth or mycelial growth rate. In conclusion, the UV-B light is essential for D. bryoniae in vitro sporulation. Moreover, the culture medium composition influences the type of fungal structure produced, as well as spores' size and quantity. Freezing at -20°C is an efficient technique that can be used to store D. bryoniae for at least five months without loss of viability.

Resumo A esporulação de Didymella bryoniae in vitro é de grande importância para estudos que requerem inóculo puro e em grandes quantidades. Assim, os objetivos deste estudo foram identificar a melhor condição para esporulação de D. bryoniae combinando diferentes espectros de luz (luz UV-A ou UV-B, luz branca e escuro contínuo) com distintos meios de cultura (PDA, V8, ML e PDAB) e, avaliar a sobrevivência do fungo armazenado a -20°C ao longo do tempo. As amostras de fungo só esporularam quando submetidas ao tratamento com luz UV-B, independentemente do meio de cultura. Maior aparecimento de esporos do tipo conídio foi observado no meio PDAB, e a menor produção ocorreu no meio ML. Estruturas reprodutivas, como peritécios e picnídeos, foram observadas em todos os meios de cultura. No entanto, houve uma variação considerável na quantidade de cada estrutura entre os diferentes meios de cultura. Os meios ML e V8 apresentaram maior número de peritécios e os meios PDA e PDAB apresentaram maior proporção de picnídeos em relação aos peritécios. A duração do armazenamento a -20°C não afetou o crescimento micelial ou a taxa de crescimento micelial. Em conclusão, a luz UV-B é essencial para a esporulação de D. bryoniae in vitro. Além disso, a composição do meio de cultura influencia o tipo de estrutura fúngica produzida, bem como o tamanho e a quantidade dos esporos. O congelamento a -20°C é uma técnica eficiente que pode ser usada para armazenar D. bryoniae por pelo menos cinco meses sem perda de viabilidade

Providing inoculum for Didymella bryoniae studies: the effect of light spectrum and storing at low temperature

Abstract The in vitro sporulation of Didymella bryoniae is of great importance for studies that require pure inoculum and in large quantities. Thus, the objectives of this study were to identify the best condition for D. bryoniae sporulation combining different light spectra (UV-A or UV-B light, white light, and continuous dark), with distinct culture media (PDA, V8, ML, and PDAB) and, to evaluate fungus survivability stored at -20°C over time. The fungus samples were only able to sporulate when subjected to the UV-B light treatment, regardless of the culture medium. The highest appearance of spores conidium type was observed in the PDAB medium, and the lowest production occurred in the ML medium. Reproductive structures, such as perithecia and pycnidia, were observed in all culture media. However, there was considerable variation in the amount of each structure between the different culture media. The ML and V8 media showed a greater number of perithecia and the PDA and PDAB media presented a greater proportion of pycnidia compared to perithecia. The storage duration at -20°C did not affect mycelial growth or mycelial growth rate. In conclusion, the UV-B light is essential for D. bryoniae in vitro sporulation. Moreover, the culture medium composition influences the type of fungal structure produced, as well as spores size and quantity. Freezing at -20°C is an efficient technique that can be used to store D. bryoniae for at least five months without loss of viability.

Resumo A esporulação de Didymella bryoniae in vitro é de grande importância para estudos que requerem inóculo puro e em grandes quantidades. Assim, os objetivos deste estudo foram identificar a melhor condição para esporulação de D. bryoniae combinando diferentes espectros de luz (luz UV-A ou UV-B, luz branca e escuro contínuo) com distintos meios de cultura (PDA, V8, ML e PDAB) e, avaliar a sobrevivência do fungo armazenado a -20°C ao longo do tempo. As amostras de fungo só esporularam quando submetidas ao tratamento com luz UV-B, independentemente do meio de cultura. Maior aparecimento de esporos do tipo conídio foi observado no meio PDAB, e a menor produção ocorreu no meio ML. Estruturas reprodutivas, como peritécios e picnídeos, foram observadas em todos os meios de cultura. No entanto, houve uma variação considerável na quantidade de cada estrutura entre os diferentes meios de cultura. Os meios ML e V8 apresentaram maior número de peritécios e os meios PDA e PDAB apresentaram maior proporção de picnídeos em relação aos peritécios. A duração do armazenamento a -20°C não afetou o crescimento micelial ou a taxa de crescimento micelial. Em conclusão, a luz UV-B é essencial para a esporulação de D. bryoniae in vitro. Além disso, a composição do meio de cultura influencia o tipo de estrutura fúngica produzida, bem como o tamanho e a quantidade dos esporos. O congelamento a -20°C é uma técnica eficiente que pode ser usada para armazenar D. bryoniae por pelo menos cinco meses sem perda de viabilidade

Carotenoids from marine bacteria: A natural antioxidant and UV protectant

For the cosmetics and pharmaceutical sectors, marine resources are a promising supply of organic substances. Marine organisms have evolved particular metabolites to combat threats to their survival, reproduction, and the easier storage, movement, and turnover of essential biological materials in habitats with extreme conditions like high salinity, low temperature, or intense pressure.Several newly conducted research studies on pigments, such as violacein, astaxanthin, canthaxanthin, zeaxanthin, rubrolone, and carotenoid derivatives of bacteria from marine sources, confirm their effective radical scavenging activity. Carotenoids are tetraterpene, lipophilic bioactive pigments synthesized by archaea, algae, photosynthetic bacteria, and plants. Carotenoids are divided into two categories, oxygenated carotenoids (xanthophylls) having oxygen as a functional group, and hydrocarbon carotenoids (carotene) made of carbon and hydrogen atoms Carotenoids are important because of their functional properties, which include their usage in the food industry as color additives and natural antioxidants, as well as chemotaxonomic markers and pharmaceuticals. The present review aims to describe 1) carotenoids from marine bacteria 2) the antioxidant properties of carotenoids 3) the Exposure consequences of ultraviolet radiation 4) the protective role of carotenoids. Photoaging, sunburn, and skin cancer are all possible side effects of excessive UV exposure. Carotenoids have potential use in the pharmaceuticals and cosmetic industry as anti-aging, photoprotective, skin-whitening, anticancer, and immunity boosters because of their antioxidant and UV protection properties.

Feasibility in the use of the UV-Visible region for the characterization of glucose in deionized water using Arduino 1 / Viabilidad en el uso de la región UV-Visible para la caracterización de glucosa en agua desionizada mediante Arduino 1

ABSTRACT With an estimated approximately 2 million deaths per year, diabetes is one of the top 5 deadliest noncommunicable diseases globally. Although this disease is not fatal, the degradation of the patient's health due to a bad plan to control their glucose levels can have a fatal outcome. In order to lay the foundations for the development of a device that allows estimating glucose levels in some body fluid, we present the results obtained not only for the estimation of glucose in deionized water, but also describe the development and configuration of the created device. After analyzing 50 signals obtained from 5 different glucose concentrations, the feasibility of using the developed device for the analysis is evident, since, considering the K-Nearest Neighbors (KNN) algorithm, all the signals were associated correctly to the glucose group to which they belong.

RESUMEN Con un estimado de aproximadamente 2 millones de muertes por año, la diabetes es una de las 5 enfermedades no transmisibles más mortales a nivel mundial. Aunque esta enfermedad no es mortal, el deterioro de la salud del paciente por un mal plan para controlar sus niveles de glucosa puede tener un desenlace fatal. Con el fin de sentar las bases para el desarrollo de un dispositivo que permita estimar los niveles de glucosa en algún fluido corporal, presentamos los resultados obtenidos no solo para la estimación de glucosa en agua desionizada, sino que también describimos el desarrollo y configuración del dispositivo creado. Luego de analizar 50 señales obtenidos a partir de 5 concentraciones de glucosa diferentes, se evidencia la factibilidad de utilizar el dispositivo desarrollado para el análisis, ya que, considerando el algoritmo K-Nearest Neighbors (KNN), todas las señales se asociaron correctamente al grupo de glucosa al que pertenecen.

Knowledge regarding reverse osmosis (R.O) waste water utilization among general public in urban areas

Introduction: Reverse osmosis (RO) is a water purification process that uses a partial permeable membrane to remove ions, unwanted molecules and larger particles from drinking water. In reverse osmosis, an applied pressure is used to overcome osmotic pressure, a colligative property that is driven by chemical potential differences of the solvent, a thermodynamic parameter. In the process of reverse osmosis the amount of water that is drained is a concern area for the people using the R.O. filtration device in their household because it wasted about 70% of the water to purify just one liter of water. This R.O. waste water can be utilized for various purposes such as washing vehicle like car bike etc, cleaning toilet this study is aimed to assess the knowledge reverse osmosis waste water utilization among general public at Indore. Objectives: 1. To assess the pretest knowledge regarding reverse osmosis (R.O) waste water utilization among general public. 2. To assess the posttest knowledge regarding reverse osmosis waste water utilization among general public. 3. To evaluate the effectiveness of structured teaching program on reverse osmosis (R.O) waste water utilization among general public. Hypothesis: H1- there will be significant difference between pretest and posttest knowledge who received structured teaching program regarding the utilization of waste R.O water. Materials and Methods: Quantitative, pre-experimental, one group pretest posttest design was adopted for the study. Total of 60 general public selected by using simple randomized sampling technique was used. Description of Tools: Structured knowledge questionnaire. Result: Data was analyzes using descriptive and inferential statistics. Major Finding: In the pre-test majority of the sample (44 out of 60, 73.3%) had inadequate knowledge and in the post-test, majority (54 out of 60, 90%) had adequate knowledge regarding reverse osmosis. A paired‘t’ test was done and it showed a‘t’ value of 22.34 at 0.05 level of significance, this indicates the effectiveness of structured teaching programme in enhancing the knowledge of the general public. There was no association found between the mean pre-test knowledge of the general public. There was no association found between the mean pre-test knowledge scorer with the selected socio-demographic variable such as age (?2 = 8.643), gender (?2 = 4.455), education qualification (?2 = 4.706), Occupation (?2 = 2.531), number of family member (?2 = 5.653) and previous knowledge about reverse osmosis filter water (?2 =0.393). Conclusion: There is a significant difference between the mean pre-test and post-test knowledge score among general public regarding reverse osmosis waste water utilization.

Evaluation of effects of riboflavin and/or ultraviolet-A on survival of rat limbal epithelial stem cells in ex-vivo

Purpose: To investigate the effects of riboflavin and/or ultraviolet?A (UV?A) irradiation on the cell viability of ex?vivo?cultured rat limbal stem cells (LSCs). Methods: LSCs of male Wistar rats (N = 12 eyes) were cultured, and immunofluorescence staining was performed to evaluate them. After characterization, these cells were assigned to four groups of control (C), a group that was exposed to UV?A radiation (UV), a group that was treated with riboflavin (R), and a group that cotreated with both UV?A and riboflavin (UV+R). To determine the cell viability of LSCs, these cells were subjected to MTT assay on days 1, 3, and 7 after exposure to UV?A and/or riboflavin. The duration of exposure to UV?A and riboflavin was similar to levels used during the conventional corneal collagen cross?linking procedure. Results: Compared with the viable cells in the control group, there was a significant decrease (P < 0.0001) in the number of LSCs in the UV group during all study days. In the R group, the level of viable LSCs was as same as the level of viable LSCs in the C group. Combined treatment with UV?A plus riboflavin significantly decreased the survival of LSCs on days 1 and 3 (P < 0.0001, P < 0.001, respectively) compared with the control group. Interestingly, in the UV+R group, the photosensitizing effect of riboflavin significantly decreased the cytotoxic effect of UV irradiation 7 days after exposure. Conclusion: These results suggest that the administered UV energy in the presence or absence of riboflavin can damage LSCs. Likewise, riboflavin could decrease the toxic effect of UVA on LSCs

Qualitative and quantitative study of constituents in Lysionoti Herba based on UHPLC-Q-Exactive Orbitrap HRMS and HPLC-UV / 中国中药杂志

Ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole-Exactive Orbitrap high resolution mass spectrometry(UHPLC-Q-Exactive Orbitrap HRMS) was employed to systematically analyze the chemical constituents in Lysionoti Herba, and high perfor-mance liquid chromatography-ultraviolet(HPLC-UV) to determine the content of main compounds. A Synergi~(TM) Hydro-RP 100 Å colu-mn(2 mm×100 mm, 2.5 μm) was used for gradient elution with acetonitrile-0.1% aqueous formic acid as the mobile phase at a flow rate of 0.2 mL·min~(-1) and a column temperature of 40 ℃. MS and MS/MS were conducted with electrospray ionization(ESI) in both positive and negative modes. The chemical components in Lysionoti Herba were identified by comparison with the retention time and mass spectra of reference compounds and the relevant mass spectral data reported in MS databases and relevant literature. Furthermore, the content of five constituents(neochlorogenic acid, chlorogenic acid, forsythoside B, acteoside, and nevadensin) in different Lysiono-ti Herba samples was simultaneously determined by HPLC-UV at the wavelength of 330 nm. A total of 84 compounds were identified in Lysionoti Herba, including 27 flavonoids, 20 phenylethanoid glycosides, 5 amino acids, 18 organic acids, 1 alkaloid, 6 nucleosides, and 7 others. The content of neochlorogenic acid, chlorogenic acid, forsythoside B, acteoside, and nevadensin showed good linear relationship(r>0.999) with the peak area within certain concentration ranges, which were 3.22-102.90, 12.84-410.82, 31.63-1 012.01, 25.00-800.11, and 4.08-130.51 μg·mL~(-1), respectively. The instrument precision, method repeatability, and solution stability all met requirement, and the average recovery rate was 97.31%-100.2%, with RSD ranging from 0.95% to 2.4%. The content of the five components varied among different Lysionoti Herba samples collected from different regions of Guizhou, and the average content of forsythoside B was the highest. The established qualitative method can rapidly and efficiently identify the chemical components of Lysionoti Herba, and the developed HPLC-UV method can simultaneously determine the content of five components in a simple, ra-pid, and accurate manner, providing a scientific basis for the quality evaluation of Lysionoti Herba.

Design of medical UV lamp control system based on development board / 医疗卫生装备

Objective To design a medical ultraviolet lamp control system based on a development board to achieve remote control and usage time recording of medical UV lamps.Methods The system was composed of a WeMos D1 mini development board,a 1-way relay module,an OLED display,a RCWL-0516 microwave radar sensor and an ACS712 current monitoring module,which had its control program written by integrated development environment(Arduino IDE).Results Tests proved the system developed functioned well in timed disinfection,manual disinfection and system timing;the ACS712 current monitoring module could detect the lamp failure and current failure;the system could immediately turn off the ultraviolet lamp when persons entered the space to be disinfected;the medical staff could be prompted to replace the lamp when it's about to run out of expiration date.Conclusion The medical UV lamp control system developed gains advantages in easy operation and low cost,and realizes remote control and usage time recording of medical UV lamps.

The use of biosynthesized silver nanoparticles from Klebsiella pneumonia as antioxidants and anti-bacterial agents

Aims@#This study was aimed at the biosynthesis of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) from Klebsiella pneumonia and the evaluation of their anti-bacterial and antioxidant activities. @*Methodology and results@#Silver nitrate was used for the biosynthesis of silver-nanoparticles, and UV-visible spectrophotometer, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscope and Fourier transforms infrared spectroscopy were used for the characterization of AgNPs. Results showed colour changes of bacterial supernatant from pale yellow to dark brown, indicating the biosynthesis of AgNPs. The biosynthesis of AgNPs was confirmed using UV-visible spectrophotometry, which shows a strong peak at 420 nm. Infrared spectroscopy was also used, which revealed that the carboxyl and phenolic groups were coated on the surface of AgNPs. The results of the electron microscope scanning showed that AgNPs are spherical and have a size range from 35-100 nm. On the other hand, the antioxidant activity of AgNPs was done in vitro by adding the nanoparticles to the 1,1-Diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) solution. The absorbance was measured at 517 nm after 30 min in dark conditions. The results revealed a significant increase (P<0.05) in free radicals reduction at five concentrations of AgNPs (30, 60, 120, 240 and 480 µg/mL). Finally, the antibacterial activity of AgNPs against Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa was studied. The results revealed a significant increase (P<0.05) in the diameter of the inhibition zone of bacterial growth at 200 µg/mL AgNPs compared to the inhibition zone at 50 and 100 µg/mL AgNPs. The minimum inhibitory concentration of AgNPs was determined. It was 30 µg/mL of P. aeruginosa and 16 µg/mL of E. coli.@*Conclusion, significance and impact of study@#The preliminary study results suggest that AgNPs have anti-bacterial activity as well as the ability to inhibit free radicals, making them a potential antioxidant source. However, further research is required.

Chemical and nutrient differences between medicinal material, residues, and residue compost of Moutan Cortex / 中国中药杂志

Moutan Cortex(MC) residues produced after the extraction of MC can be re-extracted for active components and used to produce organic fertilizer and animal feed. However, they are currently disposed as domestic waste, which pollutes the environment. This study analyzed the chemical composition of the medicinal material, residues, and residue compost of MC by UPLC-UV-Q-TOF-MS. Furthermore, the nutrient composition of MC residues and the residue compost was analyzed. The results showed that:(1)MC residues had lower content of chemicals than the medicinal material, and content of paeonol, gallic acid, and galloylglucose in MC residues were about 1/3 of that in the medicinal material. The content of chemicals were further reduced after residue composting, and the quantitative compounds were all below the limits of detection.(2)Compared with MC residues, the residue compost showed the total nitrogen, total phosphorus, total potassium, and organic matter content increasing by 122.67%, 31.32%, 120.39%, and 32.06%, respectively. Therefore, we concluded that the MC residues can be used to re-extract active compounds such as paeonol, gallic acid, and galloylglucose. The MC residue compost is a high-quality organic fertilizer containing minimal content of chemicals and can be widely used in the cultivation of Chinese medicinal herbs.

Preservation of phenolic compounds on dried leaf infusion of Bauhinia forficata Link

Abstract Bauhinia forficata Link aqueous extract is usually recommended as a phytomedicine to reduce blood glucose levels and its biological activity has been linked to the presence of phenolic compounds from B. forficata preparations. Several drying processes are used in the production of dry herbal extracts, which may influence the chemical composition and efficacy of final herbal medicines. Due to significant chemical changes, defining appropriate drying processes is essential for phytopharmaceutical drug development. In view of this, we analyzed dried B. forficata leaf infusion (BFLI) extracts by HPLC-UV-MSn, followed by molecular networking analysis to evaluate the chemical profiles from dried extracts yielded by freeze-and spray-drying processes. The main metabolites detected included 11 ferulic/isoferulic acid derivatives and 13 glycosylated flavonoids. The qualitative chemical profiles were alike for both drying processes, whereas the relative abundance of some flavonoids was higher using spray-drying. Taken together, our results showed that freeze-and spray-drying preserved the phenolic profile of BFLI and suggested that spray-drying may be the most suitable to obtain its dried products. Along with studying the chemical profiles of dried herbal extracts, evaluating the influence of drying processes on the quality and chemical profiles of final products is pivotal and may benefit future research.

Plants with antioxidant activity and their potential use as sun protector agents in Costa Rica

SUMMARY Aims: To carry out a bibliographic review related to plants available in Costa Rica that have demonstrated antioxidant power and a sun protection factor (SPF) suitable to be used in sunscreen products. Methods: The bibliographic review was carried out using different descriptors and by consulting different databases. Results: Information about antioxidant power about acerola, avocado, carrots, passion fruit, moringa, banana, pumpkin and amaranth, guava, matico, ginkgo, blackberry, mango, coffee was obtained. The information obtained suggests that the mentioned plants could be used for the formulation of sunscreens. Conclusion: Sun protection products should be used every day to prevent skin damage; some sunscreens produce allergic reactions, so it is necessary to investigate natural options to be used in sun protection products. Some natural products exhibit SPF values that allow their incorporation as sun protection agents, adjuvants, or enhancers in sunscreens.

Objetivo: llevar a cabo una investigación bibliográfica sobre plantas disponibles en Costa Rica que han demostrado su poder antioxidante y un factor de protector solar (SPF) apto para ser utilizados en protectores solares. Métodos: la revisión bibliográfica se realizó utilizando diferentes descriptores y mediante la consulta en diferentes bases de datos. Resultados: se obtuvo información sobre el poder antioxidante de las plantas: acerola, aguacate, zanahoria, maracuyá, moringa, banano, calabaza y amaranto, guayaba, matico, ginkgo, mora, mango, café. La información obtenida sugiere que las plantas mencionadas podrían ser utilizadas para la formulación de protectores solares. Conclusiones: los protectores solares deben ser utilizados diariamente para prevenir el daño sobre la piel. Algunos de estos productos generan reacciones alérgicas y por esta razón es necesario investigar posibles opciones naturales para ser incorporadas en bloqueadores solares. Algunos productos naturales exhiben valores de SPF que permiten su uso como agentes protectores solares, adyuvantes o potenciadores en los bloqueadores solares.

Objetivo: realizar uma pesquisa bibliográfica sobre plantas disponíveis na Costa Rica que demonstraram poder antioxidante e um fator de proteção solar (FPS) adequado para uso em protetores solares. Métodos: a revisão bibliográfica foi realizada usando diferentes descritores e consultando diferentes bases de dados. Resultados: foram obtidas informações sobre o poder antioxidante das plantas: acerola, abacate, cenoura, maracujá, moringa, banana, abóbora e amaranto, goiaba, matico, ginkgo, amora, manga, café. As informações sugerem que as referidas plantas poderiam ser utilizadas para a formulação de protetores solares. Conclusões: protetores solares devem ser usados diariamente para prevenir danos à pele. Alguns desses produtos geram reações alérgicas e por isso é necessário investigar possíveis opções naturais para serem incorporadas aos protetores solares. Alguns produtos naturais apresentam valores de FPS que permitem seu uso como protetores solares, adjuvantes ou potencializadores em protetores solares.

Etnofarmacología de plantas utilizadas por pacientes diabéticos tz'utujiles en Santiago Atitlán, Sololá, Guatemala / Ethnopharmacology of plants used by Tz'utujil diabetic patients in Santiago Atitlán, Sololá, Guatemala

La diabetes mellitus tipo 2 es una afección crónica con una elevada prevalencia en las comunidades rurales e indígenas de Guatemala, en las cuales se ha reportado el uso de plantas medicinales para su tratamiento. Con el propósito de conocer qué plantas son utilizadas en la población para esta afección, se realizó un estudio etnofarmacológico con 36 sujetos de la población tz'utujil de Santiago Atitlán, Sololá, por medio de un análisis antropológico y farmacológico-toxicológico de entrevistas semiestructuradas y cuestionarios abiertos. Se identificaron 19 plantas, y se calculó el índice de consenso de enfermedad (ICE) y el valor de uso (VU) para evaluar el conocimiento y la importancia relativa de cada especie; ambos valores ayudan a comprender la relevancia cultural, es decir, la importancia de las especies medicinales para la población. Las cinco plantas con mayor relevancia cultural fueron Neurolaena lobata R.Br. ex Cass. (ICE=0.4074, VU=0.0084), Artemisia absinthium L. (ICE=0.1481, VU=0.0027), Psidium guajava L. (ICE=0.1111, VU=0.0023), Tanacetum parthenium (L.) Sch.Bip. (ICE=0.0741, VU=0.0015) y Coffea arabica L. (ICE=0.0741, VU=0.0015). Se determinó que N. lobata y P. guajava tienen un alto potencial para tratar la diabetes, C. arabica y T. parthenium pueden provocar efectos adversos e interacciones con ciertos medicamentos y A. absinthium puede ser peligrosa para su consumo. No obstante, se requieren estudios de los metabolitos secundarios aislados responsables de la actividad antidiabética para establecer dosis seguras, efectos adversos, interacciones y toxicología.

Type 2 diabetes mellitus is a chronic disease with a high prevalence in rural and indigenous communities of Guatemala, in which the use of medicinal plants for its treatment has been reported. In order to know which plants are used by the population for this condition, an ethnopharmacological study was carried out with 36 individuals from the Tz'utujil population of Santiago Atitlán, Sololá, through an anthropological and pharmacological-toxicological analysis of semistructured interviews and open questionnaires. Nineteen plants were identified, and the disease consensus index (DCI) and the value in use (UV) were calculated to assess the knowledge and relative importance of each species; both values help to understand the cultural relevance, that is, the importance of medicinal species for the population. The five plants with the higher cultural relevance were Neurolaena lobata R.Br. ex Cass. (DCI = 0.4074, UV = 0.0084), Artemisia absinthium L. (DCI = 0.1481, UV = 0.0027), Psidium guajava L. (DCI = 0.1111, UV = 0.0023), Tanacetum parthenium (L.) Sch.Bip. (DCI = 0.0741, UV = 0.0015) and Coffea arabica L. (DCI = 0.0741, UV = 0.0015). It was determined that N. lobata and P. guajava have a high potential to treat diabetes, C. arabica and T. parthenium can cause adverse effects and interactions with certain medications, and A. absinthium can be dangerous if consumed. However, further studies of the isolated secondary metabolites responsible for antidiabetic activity are required to establish safe doses, adverse effects, interactions and toxicology

Mosquito larvicidal potential of Solanum xanthocarpum leaf extract derived silver nanoparticles and its bio-toxicity on non-target aquatic organism

Background & objectives: Mosquitoes are insects of public health importance that act as a vector to transmit various vector-borne diseases in humans including dengue, malaria, filariasis and yellow fever. The continually employed synthetic insecticides have developed resistance in mosquitoes. Nano-based botanical insecticides can be considered as the best alternative due to several advantages like being simple, non-pathogenic, biodegradable and safe to the environment. The present work reported the maximum larvicidal potential of green synthesized silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) derived from the leaf extract of Solanum xanthoearpum against the third instar larvae of Anopheles stephensi, Aedes aegypti, and Culex quinquefasciatus over its crude leaf extract. Methods: The synthesis of AgNPs was done by adding leaf extract into silver nitrate solution in a conical flask. The characterization of AgNPs was done using different techniques such as UV-Vis, SEM, TEM, XRD, DLS and SAED. FT-IR analysis was done to find out the compound responsible for bio-reduction of silver nitrate. Larvicidal activity of AgNPs was checked against An. stephensi, Ae. aegypti, and Cx. quinquefasciatus according to WHO standard protocol and toxicity was evaluated against Poecilia reticulate. Results: A change in colour was observed indicating the synthesis of AgNPs which was further confirmed by a strong surface plasmon resonance peak at 421nm under the UV-Vis spectrum. SEM and TEM micrographs exhibited that the most common shape of AgNPs was spherical. XRD spectrum showed crystalline nature of silver nanoparticles. FT-IR spectrum showed the presence of various functional groups such as carboxyl and hydroxyl which might be responsible for bio-reduction and capping of silver nanoparticles. Further, silver nanoparticles were very effective against An. stephensi, Ae. aegypti, and Cx. quinquefasciatus with LC50 and LC90 values of 1.90, 2.36, 2.93, 3.82, 4.31 and 7.63 ppm, respectively, as compared to aqueous leaf extract after 72 h of exposure and were non-toxic against non-target organism P. retieulata. Interpretation & eonelusion: From the above finding, it can be concluded that fabricated AgNPs can be promising eco-friendly tools for controlling mosquito vectors.

Photocatalytic destruction of Escherichia coli in water over rGO/TiO2 nanocomposites

In the present study, Graphene-TiO2 catalysts are prepared by solvothermal method with varied graphene concentrations (1%, 2.5% and 5%). The prepared nanocomposites were characterized by FTIR, Raman and TEM. The photocatalytic activity towards the destruction of Escherichia coli in water under UV and UV-visible irradiations were studied. Graphene-TiO2 nano composite destructs the bacteria significantly at higher rates than unmodified TiO2 and graphene. The results indicates that, at the beginning, the inactivation of E. coli cells is more due to the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) like, OH, H2O2, and O2– . Among all samples, the nano composite containing 2.5 wt.% of graphene exhibits a complete E. coli destruction in a minimum irradiation time of 15 and 20 min under UV–Visible and UV light irradiation respectively. The high photocatalytic activity is achieved with the optimum loading concentration of 2.5 wt. % graphene on titania

Investigation of the influence of clathrate hydrate crystals on the structuring of homeopathic high dilutions

High dilutions (HD) of drugs used in homeopathy are mostly too dilute to contain original drug molecules. But evidences support their specific biological and therapeutic effects. The reason behind this is thought to be water structure characteristic of the original drug. Spectroscopic studies indicate that the specific water structure in HDs can be resolved into free water molecules, hydrogen bonding strength of water hydroxyl, number of hydrogen bonds and clathrate hydrate crystals (CHC). HDs are prepared in EtOH water solution by serial dilution and mechanical agitation, and are called potencies. The objective of the present study is to further confirm the presence of CHCs in the two potencies of three drugs. Electronic spectra of the HDs of the potencies indicate two broad peaks and marked difference in intensities of absorption. Furior Transform Infrared (FT-IR) spectra of the test potencies and their control show difference in intensity shift and contour shape of OH stretching and bending bands. All the experimental data indicate the presence of CHCs in varying amounts in the test potencies.