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Amylases are one of the biotechnologically important enzymes that have multiple applications in the food, pharmaceutical, cosmetics, textile, detergent, paper and pulp, bioremediation and nano-biotechnology industries. Amylases can be isolated from animals, plants and microbial regions, but nowadays enzymes from prokaryotic species have gained more importance. Among the microbes, amylases from Bacillus cereus have gained considerable demand in various industrial sectors. Growing industrial demand for enzymes compels the availability of enzymes in large quantities that can only be achieved by employing efficient fermentation techniques. Therefore, the current study is aimed at the statistical optimisation of the production conditions for extracellular amylase production from Bacillus strain AS2. In a recent study, the optimum amylase producing AS2 strain was identified on a molecular level, and it was found that it has close relation with the already reported strains of Bacillus cereus. The further enzyme production was optimised by using a statistical optimisation tool. A full-factorial central composite design (CCD) consisting of 53 experiments was designed using six significant variables (incubation period, pH, temperature, carbon and nitrogen source and metal ion). The analysis revealed that the optimal media concentrations were 54.34 g·L-1 starch, 0.63 g·L-1 CaCl2, 1 g·L-1 glycine, pH 7.0, 76 h, and 40 °C, respectively. A 1.23-fold increase in the enzyme yield (1 050 IU·mL-1·min-1) was noticed as compared to the original production level. The statistical optimisation approach gives the exact variables that influence the enzyme production and, hence, offers the best way to optimise the bioprocess. The optimised enzyme can be used in industries for various purposes such as de-sizing, de-inking, hydrolysing starch residues, etc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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R&D spending upsurges technological advancement and innovation which results in lowering energy consumption and environmental degradation. The current study investigates the asymmetrical impact of R&D spending on CO2 emissions in China via employing annual data from 1980 to 2021 and the NARDL model for empirical analysis. The estimated results of the NARDL model confirmed that there are asymmetries in positive and negative coefficients of R&D spending in China. The results depict that the positive shock in R&D spending exerts a negative and statistically significant impact on CO2 emissions in both runs implying that an increase in R&D spending lowers CO2 emissions. However, the negative coefficient of R&D spending yields a positive and statistically significant impact on CO2 emissions revealing the fact that a negative shock in R&D spending results in the upsurge of CO2 emissions in China. According to these findings, the impact of positive and negative shocks in R&D spending on CO2 emissions is asymmetric. The findings also show that the impact of a negative shock in R&D spending is greater than the impact of a positive shock on CO2 emissions. In addition to the negative shock in R&D spending, increases in energy consumption, economic growth, and FDI inflows also contribute to an upsurge in CO2 emissions in China. The robustness of the estimated results is assessed using standard fully modified ordinary least square (FMOLS) and dynamic ordinary least square (DOLS) models. The FMOLS and DOLS results have been confirmed to be sound and consistent with the results of the NARDL model. The study suggests that the economic strategies should aim at investing in R&D spending to foster environment-friendly technological innovations and to lower environmental degradation in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Botanical surveys in all parts of Pakistan are mainly focused on ethnomedicinal uses of plants, and very little attention has been paid to documenting edible wild fruit species (EWFs). Multiple methodologies and tools were used for data collection. In a recent survey 74 EWF species belonging to 29 families were documented, including their medicinal uses for the treatment of various diseases. The most cited (23%) preparation method was raw, fresh parts. The UV and RFC of EWF species ranged from 0.08 to 0.4 and from 0.02 to 0.18, respectively. In terms of specific disease treatments and their consensus, the ICF ranged from 0 to 0.38. Sexual, gastrointestinal, and respiratory disorders had the highest use reports, and 11 species of plants had the highest FL of 100%. On the basis of uses reported by the inhabitants of seven districts of Southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province, the CSI ranged from the lowest 1.3 to the highest 41. It is concluded that the traditional uses of EWF species depend mainly on socio-economic factors rather than climatic conditions or the number of species. However, there is a gradual loss of traditional knowledge among the younger generations. The present survey is the first baseline study about the socio-economic dimension of local communities regarding the use of EWF species for food as well as medicine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: Sea buckthorn (SBT) (Hippophae rhamnoides L.), a shrub rich with a huge variety of vitamins, antioxidants and other biologically active constituents with pharmacological and cosmaceutical applications. OBJECTIVE: The current review aims to compile the recent reported data on the ethnobotany, phytochemistry, biological activities and cosmaceutical uses of SBT plant from different regions of the world. METHODS: A wide-ranging inquiry on SBT was done electronically on the basis of articles and abstracts published in peer-reviewed journals, issued in conference proceedings, government reports, books, Master's and Ph.D. theses, etc. The research was carried out in different international scientific databases like Academic Search, Biological Abstracts, BIOSIS, BioOne Previews, CabDirect, Cochrane Library, Pubmed/Medline, GeoRef, Google Scholar, JSTOR, Journal Citation Reports, Mendeley, Publons, Researchgate, Scopus, SciELO, Springer Link, Science Direct, Web of Science, Taylor and Francis with particular keywords. RESULTS: A total of 185 published papers were assessed through the search approach and 162 papers were included published on SBT. It was evident from the literature search that the uses of SBT as traditional medicine so far against nearly 50 health related complications in more than 18 regions of the world are still a common practice where the decoction of leaves and juice/paste from berries/fruits of SBT were the common administration modes. Data on the phytochemical profile of SBT revealed more than 50 diverse reported groups of compounds with remarkable antioxidant activity against reactive oxygen species (ROS) using DPPH, FRAP and ABTS as common methods. Moreover to-date, the reported antimicrobial activity of SBT uncovered that the extracts from SBT were examined in contradiction of 32 strains of bacteria and 15 strains of fungus with significant inhibitory actions against the bacterial and fungal strains. The SBT extracts actions reported so far on different viral disease categories displayed active inhibition of the growth of nearly 15 different viral strains. The reported anticancer activity of compounds in SBT extracts to date evidenced remarkable results against more than 20 different cancer cell lines/types. Moreover, SBT oil containing fatty acids, tocopherols and carotenoids is effectively used with cosmetic applications for skin care. CONCLUSIONS: Conclusively, SBT is rich with several remarkable phytochemicals that may have diverse biological actions and for that reason reassure the use of decoctions and/or infusions of SBT as folk traditional medicine around the world. Conversely, it is essential to explore the molecular mechanisms of compounds responsible for biological activities of SBT and to advance in the research of clinical uses and development of SBT based therapeutic and cosmetic products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Antibiotic resistance is considered as a global emergency due to its aggressive progression. Many factors contributing to this rise and one of the major factor in developing countries is indiscriminate use of antibiotics in clinics. Gram negative bacteria adding significant burden to clinical infections in native populations and therefore important to constantly monitor resistance pattern against different antibiotics. This study envisages to estimate the minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) for native prevalent multi drug resistance gram negative bacteria. Gram-negative bacteria were collected from different clinical labs situated in Karachi. Of these 83 isolates, 99% were found resistant against one or more of the following antibiotics: ampicillin, co-amoxiclav, gentamycin, neomycin, streptomycin and tetracycline. Most of the isolates were multi-drug resistant (MDR) having resistance to three or more antibiotics at a time. For ampicillin, 4.8% of the isolates were found Susceptible, 3.6% were Intermediate while 91.5% were found Resistant. For co-amoxiclav, 1.2% of the isolates were found Susceptible, 6% were Intermediate while 92.7% were found Resistant. For gentamicin, 3.6% of the isolates were found Susceptible, 10.8% were Intermediate while 86.7% were found Resistant. For neomycin, 21.6% of the isolates were found Susceptible, 40.9% were Intermediate while 43.4% were found Resistant. For streptomycin, 1.2% of the isolates were found Susceptible, 18% were Intermediate while 91.6% were found Resistant. For tetracycline, 15.7% of the isolates were found Susceptible, 45.7% were Intermediate while 53% were found Resistant. The study confirmed the presence of multidrug resistance in indigenous clinical gram-negative bacteria which is an alarming situation and needs development of effective alternative strategies for the treatment of infections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]