Serologic Evidence of Severe Fever with Thrombocytopenia Syndrome Virus and Related Viruses in Pakistan.

We describe the seroprevalence of severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus (SFTSV) and the association of antibody occurrence with location, sex, and age among the human population in Pakistan. Our results indicate substantial activity of SFTSV and SFTSV-related viruses in this country.

Sustainable development of three distinct starch based bio-composites reinforced with the cotton spinning waste collected from fiber preparation stage.

Composites are new materials that combine two or more distinct components with diverse properties to create a new material with improved properties. The goal of this endeavor was to use fiber preparation wastes, or waste from cotton spinning mill blow room and carding, to produce bio composites based on starch. The matrix was prepared using the starches of potatoes, maize, and arrowroot, and any remaining reinforcing material was used. A hand layup technique was used to make the bio-composites. Tensile, bending, density, water absorbency, and SEM testing were among the studies used to illustrate the starch-based biodegradable materials. The maximum tensile strength of 0.49 MPa is displayed by sample AB. The resistive bending force of 3.71 MPa is greatest in Sample AB. The most uniform combination of reinforcing material (wastage cotton) and matrix is seen in PB's SEM picture. Among the samples, AB had the greatest density value, measuring 0.35 g/cm3. The sample PC had the highest absorption findings in both water and the 5 % HCl combination because carding waste had more fiber than blow room and fiber absorbs more water. The resultant bio-composites made of starch had the potential to replace Styrofoam.

Synthesis, characterization, and cytotoxicity studies of nanocellulose extracted from okra (Abelmoschus Esculentus) fiber.

Nanocellulose, especially originating from a natural source, has already shown immense potential to be considered in various fields, namely packaging, papermaking, composites, biomedical engineering, flame retardant, and thermal insulating materials, etc. due to its environmental friendliness and novel functionalities. Thus, a thorough characterization of nanocellulose is a hot research topic of research communities in a view to judge its suitability to be used in a specific area. In this work, a kind of green and environment-friendly nanocellulose was successfully prepared from okra fiber through a series of multi-step chemical treatments, specifically, scouring, alkali treatment, sodium chlorite bleaching, and sulfuric acid hydrolysis. Several characterization techniques were adopted to understand the morphology, structure, thermal behavior, crystallinity, and toxicological effects of prepared nanocellulose. Obtained data revealed the formation of rod-shaped nanocellulose and compared to raw okra fiber, their size distributions were significantly smaller. X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns displayed that compared to the crystalline region, the amorphous region in raw fiber is notably larger, and in obtained nanocellulose, the crystallinity index increased significantly. Moreover, variations in the Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) peaks depicted the successful removal of amorphous regions, namely, lignin and hemicelluloses from the surface of fiber. Thermostability of synthesized nanocellulose was confirmed by both Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) analysis, and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). Cytotoxicity assessment showed that the okra fiber-derived nanocellulose exhibited lower to moderate cellular toxicity in a dose-dependent manner where the LD50 value was 60.60 µg/ml.

Extraction and characterization of a newly developed cellulose enriched sustainable natural fiber from the epidermis of Mikania micrantha.

Riding on the journey of a sustainable world it is very crucial to extend the usage of natural cellulosic fiber from renewable sources. Due to their numerous applications and eco-friendly behavior, natural cellulosic fibers are in greater demand every day. In this article a new natural fiber extracted from the creepers of Mikania micrantha with the help of 5% NaOH retting process. Previously no research work have been done with this fiber. The fiber was characterized by following ASTM D1909, ASTM D 2654, ASTM D1445, TAPPI standard for determination of moisture regain and content, bundle fiber strength and chemical composition respectively. XRD, SEM, FTIR and TGA analysis were also done for the identification of crystallinity, fiber morphology, functional group and thermal behavior. The tests results showed that it is a cellulose enriched textile fiber having 56.42% cellulose. The average moisture regain and content % were 9.17% and 8.4% respectively analyzed from the five samples. The average tenacity was determined 38.6 gm/tex with 1.8% elongation and the crystallinity of the tested fiber was 72%. The maximum degradation temperature for this fiber was 477 °C. The application of this noble fiber can be for making fiber reinforced composites, cellulose nanomaterials, biomaterials etc.

Effect of fibre loading on mechanical properties of jute fibre bundle reinforced gypsum composites.

Gypsum plasterboards are widely used in interior decoration like false ceilings, wall partitioning etc. The main component of this plasterboard is gypsum, which is a mineral material. These boards contain poor mechanical strength with lower durability. The addition of natural fibres in these plasterboards can be useful to achieve better mechanical properties. Since Jute fibre is abundant in Bangladesh and its usability in reinforced composites is well established, for this reason, jute fibre was selected to do the research. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of jute fibre on the mechanical properties of the gypsum plasterboard. To make this board, Plaster of Paris and water were thoroughly mixed to make a suspension first. Different fibre loadings of 2, 4, 6, and 8% were incorporated into gypsum composites. Reinforcement of 6% fibre provided the highest tensile properties, but 8% fibre loading showed inferior tensile and flexural properties. Impact test results showed a gradually improving nature with fibre loading, and hardness values showed a decreasing trend in hardness with higher fibre loading. FTIR results and SEM images confirmed that no significant chemical bonding took place in the composites, instead, the composite depended mainly on the mechanical bonding among the reins crystals and between the fibre and gypsum matrix.