Low-temperature synthesis of high-entropy amorphous metal oxides (HEOs) for enhanced oxygen evolution performance.

The rational design of multiple metal ions into high-entropy oxide electrode material via a single-step hydrothermal process is applicable to the evolution of oxygen molecules (O2) through simple water electrolysis. Their cost-effectiveness, high performance, and durable nature are the key factors of non-precious high-entropy multiple metal-based electrocatalysts, which can be used as replaceable catalysts instead of precious ones. This article reports a low-temperature synthesis of the cauliflower-type morphology of high-entropy amorphous metal oxides, and their electrochemical performances towards the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) are investigated. The multiple metal ion (Mn2+, Fe3+, Co2+, Ni2+, Cu2+) oxide electrode material shows an acceptable oxygen evolution reaction (OER) with an overpotential of 290 mV at a current density of 10 mA cm-2 and a lower Tafel slope value of 85 mV dec-1, respectively. Moreover, the 20 h durability test with negligible change in overpotential shows the efficacy of the modified electrode material in harsh alkaline media. The observed electrochemical results towards the OER correspond to the amorphous nature of the active material that displayed a cauliflower-type morphology, having a large specific surface area (240 m2 g-1) and providing higher electrochemical active sites as well. Consequently, post-stability characterization studies (such as PXRD, FESEM, TEM, and XPS) provide more information for understanding the post-structural and morphological results of the high-entropy amorphous metal oxide.

Synthesis, characterization and anticonvulsant activity evaluation of some 1,4-dihydropyridines and 3,5-(substituted)oxycarbonyl-1,4-dihydro-2,6-dimethyl-N-[2-(4-sulfamoylphenylamino)-acetyl]-4-(substituted)pyridines.

A series of 3,5-(substituted)oxycarbonyl-1,4-dihydro-2,6-dimethyl-4-(substituted)pyridines (1a-j) were synthesized by Hantzsch method for pyridine synthesis. Treatment with chloroacetyl chloride produced N-(2-chloroacetyl)-3,5-(substituted)oxycarbonyl-1,4-dihydro-2,6-dimethyl-4-(substituted)pyridines (2a-e), which on further treatment with sulfanilamide resulted in 3,5-(substituted)oxycarbonyl-1,4-dihydro-2,6-dimethyl-N-[2-(4-sulfamoylphenylamino)-acetyl]-4-(substituted)pyridines (3a-e). The structures has been established on the basis of spectral (IR, 1H-NMR, mass) and elemental analysis. Compounds 1a-j and 3a-e (5 mg/kg and 10 mg/kg) were evaluated for their anticonvulsant effect against pentylenetetrazole-induced convulsions with diazepam (4 mg/kg) as the reference. Compounds 3a-e exhibited significant (p<0.01) anticonvulsant activity compared to the control.

Synthesis, partition coefficients and antibacterial activity of 3'-phenyl (substituted)-6'-aryl-2' (1H)-cis-3',3'a-dihydrospiro [3-H-indole-3,5'-pyrazolo (3',4'-d)-thiazolo-2-(1H)-ones].

Condensation of isatin with primary aryl amines gave a series of Schiff bases (1) which on reaction with thioglycolic acid in 1,4-dioxane afforded the formation of the corresponding 4- thiazolidinones (2). Compound 2 on condensation with substituted benzaldehydes in anhydrous sodium acetate furnished 3-aryl -5'-phenyl (substituted) spiro [3H-indole-3,2'-thiazolidines]-2-(1H), 4'(5'H)-diones (3). The latter (3) on reaction with hydrazine hydrochloride in anhydrous sodium acetate gave 3'-phenyl (substituted) -6'-aryl-2'(1H)-cis-3',3'a-dihydrospiro [3H-indole-3,5'-pyrazolo (3',4'-d)-thiazolo-2-(1H)-ones] (4). The structure has been established on the basis of spectral data. The partition coefficient for n-octanol/water solvent system and in vitro antibacterial activity of the 2'(1H)-cis-3',3'a-dihydrospiro [3H-indole-3,5'-pyrazolo (3',4'-d)-thiazolo-2-(1H)-one] derivatives have been evaluated.

MaxMod: a hidden Markov model based novel interface to MODELLER for improved prediction of protein 3D models.

Modeling the three-dimensional (3D) structures of proteins assumes great significance because of its manifold applications in biomolecular research. Toward this goal, we present MaxMod, a graphical user interface (GUI) of the MODELLER program that combines profile hidden Markov model (profile HMM) method with Clustal Omega program to significantly improve the selection of homologous templates and target-template alignment for construction of accurate 3D protein models. MaxMod distinguishes itself from other existing GUIs of MODELLER software by implementing effortless modeling of proteins using templates that bear modified residues. Additionally, it provides various features such as loop optimization, express modeling (a feature where protein model can be generated directly from its sequence, without any further user intervention) and automatic update of PDB database, thus enhancing the user-friendly control of computational tasks. We find that HMM-based MaxMod performs better than other modeling packages in terms of execution time and model quality. MaxMod is freely available as a downloadable standalone tool for academic and non-commercial purpose at http://www.immt.res.in/maxmod/.

Microalga Scenedesmus sp.: A potential low-cost green machine for silver nanoparticle synthesis.

Bionanotechnology has revolutionized nanomaterial synthesis by providing a green synthetic platform using biological systems. Among such biological systems, microalgae have tremendous potential to take up metal ions and produce nanoparticles by a detoxification process. The present study explores the intracellular and extracellular biogenic syntheses of silver nanoparticles (SNPs) using the unicellular green microalga Scenedesmus sp. Biosynthesized SNPs were characterized by AAS, UV-Vis spectroscopy, TEM, XRD, FTIR, DLS, and TGA studies and finally checked for antibacterial activity. Intracellular nanoparticle biosynthesis was initiated by a high rate of Ag(+) ion accumulation in the microalgal biomass and subsequent formation of spherical crystalline SNPs (average size, 15-20 nm) due to the biochemical reduction of Ag(+) ions. The synthesized nanoparticles were intracellular, as confirmed by the UV-Vis spectra of the outside medium. Furthermore, extracellular synthesis using boiled extract showed the formation of well scattered, highly stable, spherical SNPs with an average size of 5-10 nm. The size and morphology of the nanoparticles were confirmed by TEM. The crystalline nature of the SNPs was evident from the diffraction peaks of XRD and bright circular ring pattern of SAED. FTIR and UV-Vis spectra showed that biomolecules, proteins and peptides, are mainly responsible for the formation and stabilization of SNPs. Furthermore, the synthesized nanoparticles exhibited high antimicrobial activity against pathogenic gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria. Use of such a microalgal system provides a simple, cost-effective alternative template for the biosynthesis of nanomaterials in a large-scale system that could be of great use in biomedical applications.

Maximizing biomass productivity and CO2 biofixation of microalga, Scenedesmus sp. by using sodium hydroxide.

A series of experiments were carried out with three native strains of microalgae to measure growth rates, biomass, and lipid productivities. Scenedesmus sp. IMMTCC-6 had better biomass growth rate and higher lipid production. The growth, lipid accumulation, and carbon dioxide (CO2) consumption rate of Scenedesmus sp. IMMTCC-6 were tested under different NaOH concentrations in modified BBM. The algal strain showed the maximum specific growth rate (0.474/day), biomass productivity (110.9 mg l(-1) d(-1)), and CO2 consumption rate (208.4 mg l(-1) d(-1)) with an NaOH concentration of 0.005 M on the 8(th) day of cultivation. These values were 2.03-, 6.89-, and 6.88-fold more than the algal cultures grown in control conditions (having no NaOH and CO2). The CO2 fixing efficiency of the microalga with other alternative carbon sources like Na2CO3 and NaHCO3 was also investigated and compared. The optimized experimental parameters at shake-flask scale were implemented for scaling up the process in a self-engineered photobioreactor. A significant increase in lipid accumulation (14.23% to 31.74%) by the algal strain from the logarithmic to stationary phases was obtained. The algal lipids were mainly composed of C16/C18 fatty acids, and are desirable for biodiesel production. The study suggests that microalga Scenedesmus sp. IMMTCC-6 is an efficient strain for biodiesel production and CO2 biofixation using stripping solution of NaOH in a cyclic process.