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The risks and challenges of the NEOM project on water bodies can be somehow resolved by using Cystoseria sp., a brown-green macroalga, and natural renewable resource species, which are appealing due to their sustainability, cost-effectiveness, and eco-friendliness. Lipid was extracted from Cystoseria sp. collected from Sharma beach, Neom, Tabuk, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It was treated with different solvents, petroleum ether, methanol, and petroleum ether:methanol (1:1), to obtain biofuel. Petroleum ether and methanol were the most significant solvents for extractions of six different hydrocarbon compounds, followed by methanol. Tetrahydradecane 5-methyl 60.03% in petroleum ether, 59.51% in methanol, and 51.39% in petroleum ether:methanol is obtained. Removal of 10 mg·L−1 methylene blue (MB) by alga using 0.2 g·L−1 of Cystoseria sp. and its residues after methanol extract was achieved in 120 min. Zeta potential analysis of alga confirms that different negative charges on adsorbent surfaces undergo conformational change with different solvents and adsorb the positively charged MB via electrostatic interaction force. The production of bioethanol efficiency percentage from Cystoseria sp. ranges from 5% to 68.97%. Hence, Cystoseria sp. can be a renewable resource to yield biodiesel and bioethanol and eliminate MB from wastewater, maintaining environmental sustenance and economic development.

This study showcases a promising approach to sustainably unlocking plant biomass residues by combining biodegradation with artificial intelligence to optimize the process. Specifically, we utilized the definitive screening design (DSD) and artificial neural networks (ANNs) to optimize the degradation of common bean biomass by the endophytic fungus Trichoderma asperellum WNZ-21. The optimized process yielded a fungal hydrolysate rich in 12 essential and non-essential amino acids, totaling 18,298.14 μg/g biomass. GC-MS analysis revealed four potential novel components not previously reported in microbial filtrates or plants and seven components exclusive to plant sources but not reported in microbial filtrates. The hydrolysate contained phenolic, flavonoid, and tannin compounds, as confirmed by FT-IR analysis. High-resolution transmission electron microscopy depicted structures resembling amino acid micelles and potential protein aggregates. The hydrolysate exhibited antioxidant, antibacterial, and anticancer properties and innovatively induced apoptotic modulation in the MCF7 cancer cell line. These findings underscore the potential of ANN-optimized fermentation for various applications, particularly in anticancer medicine due to its unique composition and bioactivities. The integration of the DSD and ANNs presents a novel technique for biomass biodegradation, warranting the valorization of plant biomass and suggesting a further exploration of the new components in the fungal hydrolysate. This approach represents the basic concept for exploring other biomass sources and in vivo studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder with unmet medical need, and is the leading cause of age-related dementia affecting millions of people worldwide. This work aims at developing small, high-drug loading capacity (DL) and -entrapment efficiency (EE) memantine hydrochloride (MEM)/chitosan nanocrystals (CS-NCs) to treat moderate to severe dementia associated with AD. MEM-loaded chitosan nanocrystals (MEM/CS-NCs, further abbreviated as MEM-NCs) were prepared by the ionic gelation method. Different formulations were prepared by varying the concentrations of CS and sodium tripolyphosphate (STPP). The prepared MEM-NCs formulations (n = 8) were evaluated for their particle size (PS), polydispersibility index (PDI), zeta potential (ZP), DL, EE and characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Furthermore, in vitro (i.e., release behavior, cytotoxicity) and ex vivo studies (i.e., histopathology) studies were carried out. The results show that the DL was over 92% and the EE was higher than 73%, while the particles were relatively small with nanometric PS (152.63 ± 12.95 to 310.23 ± 10.49 nm), uniform with acceptable PDI (0.336 ± 0.05 to 0.534 ± 0.02), and stable with positive ZP (23.8 ± 0.4 mV to 54.0 ± 0.5 mV). The optimal formulation (MEM-NC3) was selected mainly based on the PS (152.63 ± 12.95 nm), DL (98.44 ± 3.31%), and EE (78.7 ± 3.11%). Interestingly, it does not elicit any cytotoxic and tissue damage when examining at goat nasal mucosa. The selected formulation was subjected to surface morphological studies such as transmission electron microscopy (TEM), which revealed that the NCs were spherical in shape and small (100 nm). Interestingly, the selected formulation was able to sustain the drug release for up to 24 h with an initial burst release (86.51 %). We conclude that the prepared MEM-NCs represent a promising drug formulation for further in vivo studies (in animal models and in a clinical setting) to prevent and treat AD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chamuangone is an exotic medicinal compound isolated from Garcinia cowa leaves. It shows great potential against inflammation, neurodegeneration, and oxidation. Through green extraction method, chamuangone-rich rice bran oil (CRBO) containing 1.97 mg/mL of chamuangone was obtained. This research study investigates the therapeutic effects of CRBO on D-galactose- and aluminum chloride (AlCl3)-induced Alzheimer's disease in rat model. In all, 30 rats were divided into six groups and treated for 42 days as follows: control group (vehicle), disease control group (AlCl3 150 mg/kg + D-galactose 150 mg/kg p.o.), standard group (rivastigmine 3 mg/kg p.o.), and CRBO treatment groups with doses of 2.5, 5.0, and 7.5 mg/kg p.o. Neurobehavioral studies were performed on completion of 42 days. Furthermore, biochemical, neurochemical, and histopathological analyses were performed. CRBO treatment mitigated impairment in neuromuscular coordination, mentation and cognition in behavioral tasks. It potentially recovered (p < 0.001) the declined level of catalase, superoxide dismutase, reduced glutathione and lipid peroxidation. Neurochemical analysis revealed the restoration of serotonin, noradrenaline, and dopamine concentration in the brain after CRBO treatment. Histopathological examination of vital organs revealed recovery in CRBO-treated rats in a dose-dependent manner. Owing to neurotoxic effects of inducing agents, the level of acetylcholinesterase decreased in disease control group; however, CRBO treatment recovered the declined activity of this enzyme. Therefore, it is concluded that CRBO significantly recovered the neurodegenerative effects through multiple pathways, such as amelioration of oxidative stress and neuronal plasticity. Therefore, this innovative green remedy can be considered as a natural alternative for treating neurodegenerative disorders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work investigated the antioxidant and hepatoprotective activities of lemongrass extract and its effects on rat hepatotoxicity. The lemongrass extract (LGE) contains bioactive components such as phenolic acids, flavonoid components, vitamin C, fibers, and tannins. The LGE had high phenolic content (397 mg/100g) and flavonoids (164 mg/100g), influencing its antioxidant activity of 91.25%. Additionally, it inhibited 81% of breast cancer, also, inhibited the growth of pathogenic bacteria and Candida at a concentration of 20-40 µg/mL. Additionally, it inhibited SARS-Cov-2 by 75%; however, increasing the activity of Cas-3. Quercetin-3-rhamnoside was the main phenolic compound in the HPLC profile; the phenolic compounds may be attributable to the beneficial effects of LGE. In this study, the CCl4-challenged rats delivered two levels of LGE (100 and 300 mg/kg BW). LGE reduced ALT, AST, creatinine and urea by 50 and 37%, respectively. Generally, LGE mitigated the oxidative stress induced by CCl4, which is evident in the histology of liver and kidney tissues, where significant improvement, with no cytoplasmic degradation in undamaged liver hepatocytes, improved kidney performance and shape. It can be concluded that polyphenolic-rich LGE can mitigate the oxidative stress induced by CCl4 and other parameters while enhancing kidney and liver performance.

The present study aimed to identify and characterize new sources of salt tolerance among 94 rice varieties from varied geographic origins. The genotypes were divided into five groups based on their morphological characteristics at both vegetative and reproductive stages using salinity scores from the Standard Evaluation System (SES). The experiment was designed as per CRD (Completely Randomized Design) with 2 sets of salinity treatments for 8 dS/meter and 12 dS/meter, respectively compared with one non-salinized control set. Using a Soil Plant Analysis Development (SPAD) meter, assessments of the apparent chlorophyll content (greenness) of the genotypes were done to comprehend the mechanism underlying their salt tolerance.  To evaluate molecular genetic diversity, a panel of 1 K RiCA SNP markers was employed. Utilizing TASSEL 5.0 software, 598 filtered SNPs were used for molecular analysis. Whole-genome association studies (GWAS) were also used to investigate panicle number per plant (pn, tiller number per plant (till), SPAD value (spad), sterility (percent) (str), plant height (ph) and panicle length (pl. It is noteworthy that these characteristics oversee conveying the visible signs of salt damage in rice. Based on genotype data, diversity analysis divided the germplasm groups into four distinct clusters (I, II, III and IV). For the traits studied, thirteen significant marker-trait associations were discovered. According to the phenotypic screening, seven germplasm genotypes namely Koijuri, Asha, Kajal, Kaliboro, Hanumanjata, Akundi and Dular, are highly tolerant to salinity stress. The greenness of these genotypes was found to be more stable over time, indicating that these genotypes are more resistant to stress. Regarding their tolerance levels, the GWAS analysis produced comparable results, supporting that salinity-tolerant genotypes having minor alleles in significant SNP positions showed more greenness during the stress period. The Manhattan plot demonstrated that at the designated significant SNP position, the highly tolerant genotypes shared common alleles. These genotypes could therefore be seen as important genomic resources for accelerating the development and release of rice varieties that are tolerant to salinity.

This study investigates the hazardous effects of lead on the histological and genotoxic parameters of the fish, Oreochromis niloticus. Present work was conducted in a series of three steps. In first step, acute toxicity, LC50 and lethal lead concentration were measured using Probit analysis method. LC50 value and lethal concentration for O. niloticus was measured as 77.673 mgL-1 and 150.924 mgL-1, respectively. In second step, histological changes were assessed by preparing slides of tissues of the gills, liver and kidney of both control and Pb-stressed O. niloticus and examining the respective tissues under the light microscope. The inferences showed significant histological alterations (p<0.05) in the gills of Pb-exposed fish including necrosis, edema, vascular congestion, shortening and curling and lifting of the epithelium of secondary lamella in gills. The cellular degeneration and dilation of sinusoids in liver and loss of hemopoietic tissue, necrosis and edema in kidney was observed. Histomorphometry of the liver showed a decrease in diameter of the central vein and hepatocyte along with an increase in width of sinusoids. The histomorphometry of kidney showed an increase in the diameter of renal corpuscle, glomerulus, proximal and distal convoluted tubules. The nuclear anomalies were studied in the RBCs of fish. Non-parametric Mann-Whitney U-test was conducted to compare nuclear abnormalities and the frequency of micronuclei among the control and lead-treated fish groups. Results declared an increased micronucleus, notched and de-shaped nuclei frequency, in RBCs of fish exposed to lead as compared to control group.

Background: Pseudomonas aeruginosa is incriminated in septicemia, significant economic losses in the poultry production sector, and severe respiratory infections in humans. This study aimed to investigate the occurrence, opr L sequencing, antimicrobial resistance patterns, virulence-determinant, Quorum sensing, and antibiotic resistance genes of P. aeruginosa retrieved from broiler chickens., Methods: Two hundred samples were collected from 120 broiler chickens from broiler farms at Ismailia Governorate, Egypt. Consequently, the bacteriological examination was conducted and the obtained P. aeruginosa strains were tested for opr L gene sequencing, antibiogram, and PCR screening of virulence, Quorum sensing, and antibiotic resistance genes., Results: The overall prevalence of P. aeruginosa in the examined birds was 28.3%. The opr L gene sequence analysis underlined that the tested strain expressed a notable genetic identity with various P. aeruginosa strains isolated from different geographical areas in the USA, India, China, Chile, and Ghana. PCR evidenced that the obtained P. aeruginosa strains, carrying virulence-related genes: opr L, tox A, apr A, phz M, and exo S in a prevalence of 100%, 100%, 42.5%, 33.3%, and 25.9%, respectively. Moreover, the recovered P. aeruginosa strains possessed the Quorum sensing genes: las I, las R, rhl I, and rhl R in a prevalence of 85.2%, 85.2%, 81.5%, and 81.5%, respectively. Furthermore, 40.7% of the isolated P. aeruginosa were XDR to seven antimicrobial classes, possessing sul 1, bla TEM , tet A, bla CTX-M , bla OXA-1 , and aad A1 genes., Conclusion: As we can tell, this is the first report emphasizing the evolution of XDR  P. aeruginosa  strains from broiler chicken in Egypt, which is supposed to be a serious threat to public health. The emerging XDR P. aeruginosa in poultry frequently harbored the opr L, tox A, and apr A virulence genes, the las I, las R, rhl I, and rhl R Quorum sensing genes, and the sul 1, bla TEM , tet A, bla CTXM , bla OXA-1 , and aad A1 resistance genes., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflicts of interest in this work., (© 2023 Algammal et al.)