TiO2-guanine as a new amalgamation compound for fabrication of a disposable biosensor with high sensitivity and rapid detection of H1N1 swine flu virus.

A TiO2-guanine nanocomposite (TG NC)-based electrochemical biosensor was immobilized with hemagglutinin (HA) gene specific probe with 5' NH2 group on screen-printed gold electrode (probe(ss)DNA-TG-SPGE). The modified biosensor was examined for H1N1 swine flu virus. TG NCs along with precursors were characterized spectroscopically and morphologically by employing several approaches. Electrochemical investigations were performed with the help of cyclic voltammetric (CV) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) in 0.1 M phosphate buffer saline (PBS; pH 7.4) with 1 µM methylene blue (MB) redox indicator. For better detection of single-stranded virus DNA, the modified electrode was optimized at various concentrations, pH, and scan rates. The modified biosensor showed high sensitivity (40.32 µA/ng.cm2), low LOD (0.00024 ng/6 µL), and broad linear range 0.0002-20 ng/6µL with coefficient of determination of R2=0.9981 for H1N1 virus detection. The HA gene-modified biosensor presented decent stability and specificity against different infectious pathogens including H3N2 virus and human DNA with negative response. Furthermore, the modified biosensor also responded well for real sample target DNA detection with a recovery of >96%. The simply designed HA gene-modified biosensor transduces decreased current response towards target-specific (ss)DNA binding and could be used as a rapid detection tool for H1N1 swine flu virus diagnosis.

Ppy/TiO2-SiO2 nanohybrid series: synthesis, characterization, photocatalytic activity, and antimicrobial potentiality.

A series of polypyrrole doped TiO2-SiO2 nanohybrids (Ppy/TS NHs) were synthesized thru in-situ oxidation polymerization by varying weight ratio of pyrrole. The structural analysis of NHs were characterized by X-ray Diffraction (XRD) spectra, UV-visible (UV-Vis) spectra and X-ray Photoelectron spectra (XPS) confirmed synthesis of nanomaterials. Surface and morphological study done by adopting, Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS), Transmittance Electron Microscopy (TEM) and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) analysis confirmed the homogenous distribution, nano range size formation and mesoporous nature of nanohybrids. Further, electrochemical behavior of synthesized NHs investigated by adopting Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS) showed good kinetic behaviour and electron transport tendency. The nanohybrids and precursors were examined for photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue (MB) dye and revealed enhanced degradation tendency for the NHs series photocatalysts. It was found that variation of pyrrole (0.1 to 0.3 g) to TS nanocomposites (TS Nc) increased the photocatalytic potential of TS Nc. The maximum photodegradation efficacy was found to be 90.48% in 120 min for Ppy/TS0.2 NHs under direct solar light. Additionally, Ppy/TS0.2 NHs performed appreciably towards antibacterial studies against some Gram-positive and Gram-negative deleterious bacteria, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Staphylococcus aureus, Shigella flexneri microbes.

An eco-friendly corrosion inhibitor Cuscuta reflexa extract and PEG400 for mild steel inhibition in acidic medium: computational and experimental investigations.

Herein, the mechanism of corrosion prevention of mild steel (MS) by extract of Cuscuta reflexa/Amarbel (AME) as green inhibitor is explained by gravitational, electrochemical measurements. The viability of neat extract and after adding an intensifier was investigated as corrosion inhibitor for MS in hydrochloric acid. The presence of electron-rich moieties in AME was characterized through Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). Furthermore, polarization measurements showed that AME acted as a mixed type inhibitor against corrosion. The formulation of 100 ppm AME with 50 ppm polyethylene glycol 400 (PEG400) as an intensifier showed inhibition efficiency of 97.51% for MS in 0.5 M HCl. The protection of MS in (AME + PEG) formulation was also assessed through the Langmuir, Freundlich, and Flory-Huggins adsorption isotherm model. The surface studies of the MS were examined by atomic force microscopy (AFM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) that indicated a smoothened surface of the metal in the presence of the studied compounds. XPS study was executed to analyze the interaction of the inhibitor with the metal surface. In addition, computational quantum study provides the molecular structural relationship with corrosion inhibitive competence of the extract.

Polyvinylpyrrolidone/TiO2 composites' preparation via sol-gel procedure furthered with non-enzymatic glucose sensing and antibacterial effectiveness.

An amperometric non-enzymatic glucose sensing based on polyvinylpyrrolidone and titanium dioxide nanocomposites (PVP-TiO2 NCs) fabricated over stainless-steel (SS) electrode was experimented. The electrode was fabricated of PVP-TiO2 NCs onto SS surface through drop casting coating. The NCs and the electrode were analyzed using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and UV-visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction spectra (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectra (XPS), particle analyzer, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), EDS and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) analysis for surface. For electrochemical investigation, cyclic voltammetry, electrochemical impedance spectra, including Nyquist plots and Bode plots, and chronoamperometry were adopted. PVP-TiO2/SS-modified electrode manifested high sensitivity of 360.13 µA/mM.cm2, lower detection limit of 756.8 µM and 0 to 13 mM linear range with regression coefficient of R2 = 0.992. The electrode exhibited high stability with good anti-interference tendency against fructose, uric acid, ascorbic acid and sucrose. The modified electrode also performed well in real sample glucose detection. Further, PVP-TiO2 NCs performed appreciably toward antibacterial studies against some Gram-positive and Gram-negative deleterious bacteria, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Staphylococcus aureus, Shigella flexneri microbes.

Evaluation of TiO2 Nanoparticles Physicochemical Parameters Associated with their Antimicrobial Applications.

Titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO2NPs) usage is increasing in everyday consumer products, hence, assessing their toxic impacts on living organisms and environment is essential. Various studies have revealed the significant role of TiO2NPs physicochemical properties on their toxicity. However, TiO2NPs are still poorly characterized with respect to their physicochemical properties, and environmental factors influencing their toxicity are either ignored or are too complex to be assessed under laboratory conditions. The outcomes of these studies are diverse and inconsistent due to lack of standard protocols. TiO2NPs toxicity also differs for in vivo and in vitro systems, which must also be considered during standardization of protocols to maintain uniformity and reproducibility of results. This review critically evaluates impact of different physicochemical parameters of TiO2NPs and other experimental conditions, employed in different laboratories in determining their toxicity towards bacteria. These important observations may be helpful in evaluation of environmental risks posed by these nanoparticles and this can further assist regulatory bodies in policymaking.

A method and its application to determine the amount of cannabinoids in sewage sludge and biosolids.

Xenobiotic cannabinoids (phyto and synthetic) are highly lipophilic compounds and have been shown to accumulate within the particulate fraction of wastewater. Limited research has been conducted to investigate the occurrence of cannabinoids in sewage sludge and/or biosolids. The analysis of excreted cannabinoids from sewage sludge or biosolids can provide information about community health, as well as potentially long-term environmental impacts. In this study, a liquid-liquid extraction method was developed for the extraction and detection method for 50 cannabinoids by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry, including the cannabis urinary biomarker 11-nor-9-carboxy-Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC-COOH), Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), cannabidiol (CBD), and a variety of different generation synthetic cannabinoids and their respective metabolites. Method validation assessed criteria including linearity, selectivity, recovery, and matrix effects. The method was applied to samples collected from a conventional activated sludge reactor treatment facility from various stages of the treatment process. Three cannabinoids were abundant in primary sludge including THC, THC-COOH, and CBD, where THC was the most ubiquitous with concentrations up to 3200 µg kg-1. Only THC and THC-COOH were detectable in aged biosolids. The detection of some cannabinoids in biosolids demonstrated that these compounds are stable throughout the treatment process.

Importance of Zebrafish as an Efficient Research Model for the Screening of Novel Therapeutics in Neurological Disorders.

Over the previous years, the use of an animal model has become very common for the screening of novel drugs. Animal model represents the complex problems of humans into the simplest forms, so these can be extended further to be included in the experimental procedure. The most successful models in neuroscience, rats and mice, are undoubtedly considered as one of the best models to understand the psychology of the mammalian brain and its associated functions involved in behavioral repertoire. Moreover, recently researchers in behavioral neuroscience are focusing more on the use of aquatic animals, especially fish, as model species due to their simplicity and cost-effectiveness. Zebrafish (Danio rerio) is a tropical fish from the minnow family, a genetic structure surprisingly 84% similar to humans. It is gaining popularity as a model to study the mechanism in behavioral neuropharmacology. Moreover, zebrafish has numerous advantages over other rodent models like the ease in maintenance due to their small size, more breeding power, transparency of embryos, overall reduced cost of experimentation, and many more. Nowadays, it is considered an ideal model to study the neurobehavioral aspects with relevance to humans. It is also used in a variety of scientific studies like genetics, neuroscience, pharmacology, and toxicology. In this manuscript, we have described the feasibility and importance of zebrafish as a model for the screening of novel drugs for different neurological disorders.

Aquatic Phytotoxicity to Lemna minor of Three Commonly Used Drugs of Addiction in Australia.

The manufacturing and consumption of drugs of addiction has increased globally and their widespread occurrence in the environment is an emerging concern. This study evaluated the phytotoxicity of three compounds: methamphetamine, codeine and morphine; commonly reported in Australian urban water, to the aquatic plant Lemna minor under controlled conditions. L. minor was sensitive to lower drug concentrations when administered in multi-compound mixtures (100-500 µg L-1) than when applied individually (range 600-2500 µg L-1), while no adverse effects were observed at environmentally-relevant concentrations (1-5 µg L-1) detected in wastewater effluent. In conclusion, the results show that the concentrations of these compounds discharged into the environment are unlikely to pose adverse phytotoxic effects. These three compounds are known to be the most stable of their group under such conditions indicating that with this respect it is safe to use recycled water for existing regulated reclaimed purposes including agricultural or parklands irrigation or replenishing surface and groundwater. However, more research on the analysis of methamphetamines and opiates in municipal effluents is needed to reassure the likely environmental hazard of these neuroactive drug classes to aquatic organisms. Given the ever-growing production and aquatic disposal of discharge wastewater globally, this study provides timely and valuable insights into the likely drug-related impacts of effluent disposal on aquatic plants in receiving environments.

Removal of emerging drugs of addiction by wastewater treatment and water recycling processes and impacts on effluent-associated environmental risk.

Drugs of addiction, have been recognized as potential contaminants of concern to the environment. Effluent wastewater discharge is a major source of contamination to aquatic receiving environments. A year-long monitoring program was undertaken in Australia to characterise the fate of four emerging drugs of addiction: methamphetamine; MDMA; pharmaceutical opioids: codeine and morphine and a metabolite: benzoylecgonine in four wastewater treatment plants operating with different secondary treatment technologies: conventional activated sludge (CAS), membrane bioreactors (MBR), integrated fixed-film AS (IFAS) and sequencing batch reactor (SBR). The effect of subsequent tertiary treatment (coagulation/flocculation) on the removal efficiency was also assessed. Drugs were detected in influent and effluent samples (mean concentration ranged from 43-4777 and 17-1721 ng/L, respectively). Treated effluents had noticeably lower levels compared to raw influents. Removal efficiency of compounds depended on the secondary treatment employed, with IFAS and MBR performing the best with significant removal of compounds (≈90%) followed by CAS (54-96%) and lastly SBR (42-83%). Despite the low levels of drugs measured after the secondary treatment, near complete removal after tertiary treatment (≈99%) was recorded, which demonstrated the effectiveness of using the coagulation/flocculation process as an effective step for enhancing the removal efficiency. The levels of drugs were at a low level in the effluents released into the environment and used for recycling and all posed a low environmental risk in urban water courses based on the risk assessment. The information given here provides new and useful information to the water industry and regulators on the efficiency of drug removal in a range of wastewater treatment configurations.

Occurrence, removal and environmental risk of markers of five drugs of abuse in urban wastewater systems in South Australia.

The occurrence and fate of five drugs of abuse in raw influent and treated effluent wastewater were investigated over a period of 1 year in the Adelaide region of South Australia. Four wastewater treatment plants were chosen for this study and monitored for five drugs which included cocaine in the form of its metabolite benzoylecgonine (BE), methamphetamine, 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) and two opioids (codeine and morphine) during the period April 2016 to February 2017. Alongside concentrations in raw sewage, the levels of drugs in the treated effluent were assessed and removal efficiencies were calculated. Drug concentrations were measured by mixed-mode solid phase extraction and liquid chromatography coupled to a quadrupole mass spectrometer. Drug concentrations detected in the raw wastewater ranged from 7 to 6510 ng/L and < LOD to 4264 ng/L in treated effluent samples. Drug removal rates varied seasonally and spatially. The mass loads of drugs discharged into the environment were in descending order: codeine > methamphetamine > morphine > MDMA > BE. Results showed that all the targeted drugs were on average incompletely removed by wastewater treatment, with removal performance highest for morphine (94%) and lowest for MDMA (58%). A screening-level environmental risk assessment was subsequently performed for the drugs based on effluent wastewater concentrations. Based on calculated risk quotients, overall environmental risk for these compounds appears low, with codeine and methamphetamine likely to pose the greatest potential risk to receiving environments. Given the recognised limitations of current ecotoxicological models and risk assessment methods for these and other pharmaceutical drugs, the potential for environmental impacts associated with the continuous discharge of these compounds in wastewater effluents should not be overlooked.

Design, Synthesis, Anticonvulsant Activity, Preclinical Study and Pharmacokinetic Performance of N-{[3-(4-chlorophenyl)-4-oxo-3, 4-dihydroquinazolin- 2-yl] methyl}, 2-[(2-isopropyl-5-methyl) 1-cyclo Hexylidene] Hydrazinecarboxamide.

BACKGROUND: N-{[3-(4-chlorophenyl)-4-oxo-3, 4-dihydroquinazolin-2-yl] methyl}, 2-[(2- isopropyl-5-methyl) 1-cyclohexylidene] hydrazinecarboxamide QS11 was designed by computational study. It possessed essential pharmacophoric features for anticonvulsant activity and showed good docking with iGluRs (Kainate) glutamate receptor. METHODS: QSAR and ADMET screening results suggested that QS11 would possess good potency for anticonvulsant activity. QS11 was synthesised and evaluated for its anticonvulsant activity and neurotoxicity. QS11 showed protection in strychnine, thiosemicarbazide, 4-aminopyridine and scPTZ induced seizure models and MES seizure model. QS11 showed higher ED50, TD50 and PI values as compared to the standard drugs in both MES and scPTZ screen. A high safety profile (HD50/ED50 values) was noted and hypnosis, analgesia, and anaesthesia were only observed at higher doses. No considerable increase or decrease in the concentration of liver enzymes was observed. Optimized QS11 was subjected to preclinical (in-vivo) studies and the pharmacokinetic performance of the sample was investigated. The result revealed that the pharmacokinetic performance of QS11 achieved maximum plasma concentrations (Cmax) of 0.315 ± 0.011 µg/mL at Tmax of 2.0 ± 0.13 h, area under the curve (AUC0-∞) value 4.591 ± 0.163 µg/ml x h, elimination half-life (T1/2) 6.28 ± 0.71 h and elimination rate constant was found 0.110 ± 0.013 h-1 . RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: Above evidences indicate that QS11 could serve as a lead for development of new antiepileptic drugs.

Etiology of Noise-Induced Hearing Loss (NIHL) and its Symptomatic Correlation with Audiometry Observations in Type II Diabetes.

Type II diabetic mellitus (DM) is a chronic metabolic disease that impairs normal insulin production and glucose transport to the liver and muscles. In the India, about 1-5% population suffer from diabetes or related complication. So there is need to cure this disease. DM chronic auditory complications may include spiral ganglia atrophy, degeneration of the vestibulocochlear nerve myelin sheath, reduction of the number of spiral lamina nerve fibres, and thickening of the capillary walls of the stria vascularis and small arteries. This study aims to know the incidence of common parameters, blood sugar levels, levels of lipids and the hearing thresholds of individuals. It is a Noise-Induced Hearing Loss research study featuring hearing impairment in transport workers diagnosed as type II diabetic. All individuals were interviewed by various questioners related to listening ability of subjects and underwent a physical examination, blood investigations and audiometry. Hearing impairment was more prevalent among adults with diabetes. Sensory neuron hearing loss is predominant in both study groups. Mixed Bilateral Hearing Loss showed significant p value in (>.001) by audiometry. The percentage of hearing loss in diabetes (ranges 5.3-28.1%) and in non-diabetics (ranges 3.4-24.1%) and risk factors in diabetes (ranges 22.8-35.1%) over nondiabetics (ranges 17.2-20.1%) which is eye opener. The correlation between type II diabetes and hearing impairment was independent of known risk factors for hearing impairment, such as noise exposure, build-up wax, ototoxic medication, smoking, tobacco chewing etc.

Occurrence of illicit drugs in water and wastewater and their removal during wastewater treatment.

This review critically evaluates the types and concentrations of key illicit drugs (cocaine, amphetamines, cannabinoids, opioids and their metabolites) found in wastewater, surface water and drinking water sources worldwide and what is known on the effectiveness of wastewater treatment in removing such compounds. It is also important to amass information on the trends in specific drug use as well as the sources of such compounds that enter the environment and we review current international knowledge on this. There are regional differences in the types and quantities of illicit drug consumption and this is reflected in the quantities detected in water. Generally, the levels of illicit drugs in wastewater effluents are lower than in raw influent, indicating that the majority of compounds can be at least partially removed by conventional treatment processes such as activated sludge or trickling filters. However, the literature also indicates that it is too simplistic to assume non-detection equates to drug removal and/or mitigation of associated risks, as there is evidence that some compounds may avoid detection via inadequate sampling and/or analysis protocols, or through conversion to transformation products. Partitioning of drugs from the water to the solids fraction (sludge/biosolids) may also simply shift the potential risk burden to a different environmental compartment and the review found no information on drug stability and persistence in biosolids. Generally speaking, activated sludge-type processes appear to offer better removal efficacy across a range of substances, but the lack of detail in many studies makes it difficult to comment on the most effective process configurations and operations. There is also a paucity of information on the removal effectiveness of alternative treatment processes. Research is also required on natural removal processes in both water and sediments that may over time facilitate further removal of these compounds in receiving environments.

Synthesis and in vitro antifungal efficacy of Cu-chitosan nanoparticles against pathogenic fungi of tomato.

Cu-chitosan nanoparticles were synthesized and evaluated for their growth promotory and antifungal efficacy in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum Mill). Physico-chemical characterization of the developed Cu-chitosan nanoparticles was carried out by DLS, FTIR, TEM, SEM-EDS and AAS. The study highlighted the stability and porous nature of Cu-chitosan nanoparticles. Laboratory synthesized nanoparticles showed substantial growth promotory effect on tomato seed germination, seedling length, fresh and dry weight at 0.08, 0.10 and 0.12% level. At 0.12% concentration these nanoparticles caused 70.5 and 73.5% inhibition of mycelia growth and 61.5 and 83.0% inhibition of spore germination in Alternaria solani and Fusarium oxysporum, respectively, in an in vitro model. In pot experiments, 0.12% concentration of Cu-chitosan nanoparticles was found most effective in percentage efficacy of disease control (PEDC) in tomato plants with the values of 87.7% in early blight and 61.1% in Fusarium wilt. The overall results confirm the significant growth promotory as well as antifungal capabilities of Cu-chitosan nanoparticles. Our model demonstrated the synthesis of Cu-chitosan nanoparticles and open up the possibility to use against fungal disease at field level. Further, developed porous nanomaterials could be exploited for delivery of agrochemicals.