Sunlight promoted self-fenton photodegradation and pathway of doxycycline: Interactive effects of nanomaterial on bean plant and its genotoxicity against Allium cepa.

Photocatalytic induction of electron/hole recombination, surface property and light response ability effectively enhance the photocatalytic activity of nanomaterial. In this work, the effective charge carrier separating Sn/Mn-ZnFe2O4-CdFe2O4-Ag3PO4 Quantum dots (M/SZFO-CFO-AP QDs) was fabricated for photocatalytic degradation of doxycycline (doxy) antibiotic. The result showed enhanced photocatalytic activity of doxy and the degradation efficiency of doxy was about 98.8% in short span of time. The calculated WH plot and urbach energy of prepared photocatalyst exhibited evidence for the prevalence of point defects and its contribution to efficient charge separation and transferability. The total organic carbon (TOC) removal was found to be 98.9%, which depicts the complete mineralization of doxy. The synergetic charge transfer of n-p-n heterojunction enables the effective removal of doxy under visible light irradiation. Further, the genotoxicity study was determined by interacting the SZFO-CFO-AP QDs with Allium Cepa. The results depict that SZFO-CFO-AP QDs show lower toxicity level and there were no trace of defective mitotic phases and micro nuclei. Further, the progression and development of bean plant was determined after treating with prepared nanomaterials and the result showed the enhanced growth in SZFO-CFO-AP QDs treated bean plant compared to the counterparts. Therefore, the prepared SZFO-CFO-AP QDs was can be used as an environmental friendly photocatalyst for effective treatment of antibiotic present in the water bodies.

Green synthesis of two-electron centre based ZnO/NiCo2S4 QDs-OVs using Punica granatum fruit peel extract for an exceptional visible light photocatalytic degradation of doxycycline and ciprofloxacin.

Biosynthesis of nanomaterials using plant extract makes them attractive in the field of photocatalysis as they are environmental friendly. The current study focused on the biosynthesis of ZnO/NiCo2S4 QDs (NCs) using Punica granatum fruit peel extract as the reducing agent. The nanomaterials were characterized with XRD, FTIR, Raman, SEM, TEM, UV-vis DRS, BET, PL, EIS, and ESR analysis and were used for photocatalytic degradation of doxycycline (DOX) and ciprofloxacin (CIP). The bandgap of ZnO is 3.2 eV, and the decoration of NiCo2S4 QDs aids in narrowing the bandgap (2.8 eV), making the NCs visible light active. The fabricated NCs achieved 99 and 89% degradation of DOX and CIP respectively. The photocatalytic efficiency of ZnO/NiCo2S4 QDs was much higher compared to individual ZnO and NiCo2S4 QDs. The half-life period of DOX and CIP were evaluated to be 58 and 152 min respectively. The percentage of TOC removal in the photodegraded product of DOX and CIP was estimated to be 99 and 89% respectively, indicating the mineralization of the compounds. The enhanced photocatalytic efficiency of the NCs was attributed to the narrowed visible light active bandgap, synergistic charge transfer across the interface, and lower charge recombination. The intermediates formed during the photocatalytic degradation of DOX and CIP were analyzed using GC-MS/MS analysis, and the photodegradation pathway was elucidated. Also, the toxicity of the intermediates was computationally analyzed using ECOSAR software. The fabricated ZnO/NiCo2S4 QDs have excellent stability and reusability, confirmed by XRD and XPS analysis. The reusable efficiency of the NCs for the photocatalytic degradation of DOX and CIP were 98.93, and 99.4% respectively. Thus, the biologically fabricated NCs are shown to be an excellent photocatalyst and have wide applications in environmental remediation.

Antibacterial and Antifungal Activity of the Extracts of Different Parts of Avicennia marina (Forssk.) Vierh.

Increased problems associated with side effects and bacterial resistance of chemical drugs has prompted the research focus on herbal medicines in the past few decades. In the present investigation, the antimicrobial activity of the various parts of Avicennia marina (AM), a mangrove plant, has been evaluated. The plants were collected from the Jazan area of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Primary extracts of roots, stem, leaves, fruits, and seeds were made in ethanol and fractioned in ethanol, ethyl acetate, petroleum ether, chloroform, and water. Minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimal bactericidal concentration (MBC) of the extracts were determined against Bacillussubtilis, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Staphylococcus aureus. It has been observed that the chloroform extract of roots of the AM exhibited inhibitory effects against both S. aureus (MIC = 1.5 ± 0.03 mg/mL) and E. coli (MIC = 1.7 ± 0.01 mg/mL). The ethanolic extract of the AM roots has shown antibacterial activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa (MIC = 10.8 ± 0.78 mg/mL), Bacillussubtilis (MIC = 6.1 ± 0.27 mg/mL), Staphylococcus aureus (MIC = 2.3 ± 0.08 mg/mL), and Escherichia coli (MIC = 6.3 ± 0.28 mg/mL). The leaf extract of the AM in ethyl acetate showed antibacterial activity against S. aureus and E. coli. Antifungal activity of these extracts was also investigated against Aspergillus fumigatus and Candida albicans. Ethanolic extract of roots and seeds of the AM has shown antifungal activity against Aspergillus fumigatus when applied individually. Ethanolic extract of the AM fruits has shown an inhibitory effect on the growth of Aspergillus fumigatus and Candida albicans. It is suggested that the plant extracts of AM have tremendous antimicrobial activity against a group of microbes, and this effect depends on both the plant part and the solvent used for extraction. Therefore, this plant can be considered to treat various diseases caused by antibiotic-resistant bacteria.