Optimised synthesis of ZnO-nano-fertiliser through green chemistry: boosted growth dynamics of economically important L. esculentum.

Mounting-up economic losses to annual crops yield due to micronutrient deficiency, fertiliser inefficiency and increasing microbial invasions (e.g. Xanthomonas cempestri attack on tomatoes) are needed to be solved via nano-biotechnology. So keeping this in view, the authors' current study presents the new horizon in the field of nano-fertiliser with highly nutritive and preservative effect of green fabricated zinc oxide-nanostructures (ZnO-NSs) during Lycopersicum esculentum (tomato) growth dynamics. ZnO-NS prepared via green chemistry possesses highly homogenous crystalline structures well-characterised through ultraviolet and visible spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscope. The ZnO-NS average size was found as small as 18 nm having a crystallite size of 5 nm. L. esculentum were grown in different concentrations of ZnO-NS to examine the different morphological parameters includes time of seed germination, germination percentage, the number of plant leaves, the height of the plant, average number of branches, days count for flowering and fruiting time period along with fruit quantity. Promising results clearly predict that bio-fabricated ZnO-NS at optimum concentration resulted as growth booster and dramatically triggered the plant yield.

Antimicrobial potential of green synthesized CeO2 nanoparticles from Olea europaea leaf extract.

This article reports the green fabrication of cerium oxide nanoparticles (CeO2 NPs) using Olea europaea leaf extract and their applications as effective antimicrobial agents. O. europaea leaf extract functions as a chelating agent for reduction of cerium nitrate. The resulting CeO2 NPs exhibit pure single-face cubic structure, which is examined by X-ray diffraction, with a uniform spherical shape and a mean size 24 nm observed through scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy. Ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy confirms the characteristic absorption peak of CeO2 NPs at 315 nm. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy reflects stretching frequencies at 459 cm-1, showing utilization of natural components for the production of NPs. Thermal gravimetric analysis predicts the successful capping of CeO2 NPs by bioactive molecules present in the plant extract. The antimicrobial studies show significant zone of inhibition against bacterial and fungal strains. The higher activities shown by the green synthesized NPs than the plant extract lead to the conclusion that they can be effectively used in biomedical application. Furthermore, reduction of cerium salt by plant extract will reduce environmental impact over chemical synthesis.

Enhanced production of α-amylase by Penicillium chrysogenum in liquid culture by modifying the process parameters.

In this paper, we have assessed the role of changing physicochemical parameters and substrate types on the production of α-amylase enzyme from Penicillium chrysogenum, with a view to determining the optimal conditions required for its maximum production. The findings of this research revealed that, at pH 6 using linseed oil cake as substratum, α-amylase enzyme production was maximum (550.0 U/mL), when the fungi was incubated for 6 days at 30 °C in 0.1 M acetate buffer. Further, reasonably good production of the α-amylase enzyme was also observed at pH 9 with all the experimented carbon sources as substrates. Moreover, statistical analysis, using analysis of variance (ANOVA) carried out to study the impact of different studied parameters on the α-amylase enzyme production revealed that incubation period of 6-18 days is highly significant (p = 0.01) factor in amylotic activity of the P. chrysogenum. Under the researched out optimal conditions, P. chrysogenum is an economically viable option for the industrial and biotechnological production of α-amylase enzyme.