Green synthesis of metalloid nanoparticles and its biological applications: A review.

Synthesis of metalloid nanoparticles using biological-based fabrication has become an efficient alternative surpassing the existing physical and chemical approaches because there is a need for developing safer, more reliable, cleaner, and more eco-friendly methods for their preparation. Over the last few years, the biosynthesis of metalloid nanoparticles using biological materials has received increased attention due to its pharmaceutical, biomedical, and environmental applications. Biosynthesis using bacterial, fungal, and plant agents has appeared as a faster developing domain in bio-based nanotechnology globally along with other biological entities, thus posing as an option for conventional physical as well as chemical methods. These agents can efficiently produce environment-friendly nanoparticles with the desired composition, morphology (shape as well as size), and stability, along with homogeneity. Besides this, metalloid nanoparticles possess various applications like antibacterial by damaging bacterial cell membranes, anticancer due to damaging tumour sites, targeted drug delivery, drug testing, and diagnostic roles. This review summarizes the various studies associated with the biosynthesis of metalloid particles, namely, tellurium, arsenic, silicon, boron, and antimony, along with their therapeutic, pharmaceutical and environmental applications.

Is health care a luxury or necessity good? Evidence from Asian countries.

This study investigates long run relationship between health care expenditure and real income in fifteen selected Asian countries over the period 1995-2014 using the panel cointegration tests and controlling for cross-sectional dependence through unobserved common correlated factors (UCFs). The results show that health care expenditure and income are cointegrated. It is found that the income elasticity scales down when UCFs are controlled, which implies that ignoring UCFs produces biased and inconsistent estimates. The Mean Group and Common Correlated Effects Mean Group estimates reveal that long run income elasticity of health care is less than unity for the entire panel, indicating that health care is a necessity good in Asian countries. Within the sample, income elasticity for South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation countries and Association of Southeast Asian Nations countries is also less than unity. However, many of the previous studies report income elasticity greater than unity. The difference between the results we found in our study compared to previous work could be attributed to the use of estimation methodology and the sample analyzed. Overall, health care has been found a necessity good in Asian countries in the long run.