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Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic has led to increased interest in herbal supplements and nutraceuticals as alternative treatments. This review looks at the evidence on their use to prevent and treat COVID-19 variants. It talks about their possible pros and cons and stresses the need for more research in this area to fully understand how well they work against the virus. Methods: In order to conduct this review, a comprehensive search of relevant literature was performed. Studies examining the efficacy of herbal supplements and nutraceuticals in preventing and treating COVID-19 variants were included. The data from these studies was analyzed to determine the potential benefits and limitations of these alternative treatments. Additionally, the review also considered any potential side effects or interactions with other medications. Results: The review found that while some herbal supplements and nutraceuticals have potential for preventing and treating COVID-19 variants, their effectiveness is uncertain. Vitamin C and zinc may boost the immune system, but their effectiveness in combating the virus is uncertain. The research explores the potential benefits of TCM in treating and preventing COVIR-19 variants. Some supplements may interact with certain medications, highlighting the need for consultation with healthcare professionals. Further research is needed to fully understand the efficacy and safety of these alternative treatments. The study also explores the potential benefits of traditional Chinese medicine. Discussion: The COVID-19 pandemic has sparked a debate on alternative treatments, with some suggesting supplements can boost the immune system and combat the virus, while others call for more research. Safety concerns and potential interactions between supplements and medications also arise. A comprehensive understanding of these treatments is crucial for optimal care during the pandemic. Healthcare professionals should stay updated on research and evidence, allowing informed discussions with patients about benefits and risks. A balanced approach considering individual patient needs is essential. Conclusions: Healthcare professionals play a crucial role in guiding patients in making informed decisions about alternative treatments and supplements, ensuring they are not used as substitutes. They should help patients understand the benefits and risks of these treatments, adopting a balanced approach that considers both traditional and alternative treatments. This holistic approach is essential in the current pandemic situation and promotes overall patient well-being.

The microbial fuel cells (MFCs) which demonstrates simultaneous production of electricity and wastewater treatment have been considered as one of the potential and greener energy production technology among the available bioelectrochemical systems. The air-cathode MFCs have gained additional benefits due to using air and avoiding any chemical substances as catholyte in the cathode chamber. The sluggish oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) kinetics at the cathode is one of the main obstacles to achieve high microbial fuel cell (MFC) performances. Platinum (Pt) is one of the most widely used efficient ORR electrocatalysts due to its high efficient and more stable in acidic media. Because of the high cost and easily poisoned nature of Pt, several attempts, such as a combination of Pt with other materials, and using non-precious metals and non-metals based electrocatalysts has been demonstrated. However, the efficient practical application of the MFC technology is not yet achieved mainly due to the slow ORR. Therefore, the review which draws attention to develop and choosing the suitable cathode materials should be urgent for the practical applications of the MFCs. In this review article, we present an overview of the present MFC technology, then some significant advancements of ORR electrocatalysts such as precious metals-based catalysts (very briefly), non-precious metals-based, non-metals and carbon-based, and biocatalysts with some significant remarks on the corresponding results for the MFC applications. Lastly, we also discussed the challenges and prospects of ORR electrocatalysts for the practical application of MFCs.

Biochar is a carbon-rich product obtained from the thermochemical conversion of biomass. Utilizing biochar is essential for enhancing economic viability and maintaining the ecology effectively. This work reviews the techniques for producing biochar from various lignocellulosic biomass sources. Pyrolysis technology for converting lignocellulosic biomass into biochar has emerged as a frontier research domain for pollutants removal. The effects of biomass feedstock parameters, production techniques, reaction conditions (temperature, heating rate, etc.), activation, and functional group modification are compared on biochar's physical and chemical properties. This review also focused on environmental applications in several domains, such as agriculture and wastewater treatment. Considering the extensive availability of feedstock, excellent physical/chemical surface properties, and inexpensive cost, biochar has a remarkable potential for removing water pollutants efficiently. Studying the evolution properties of biochar by in-situ or post-modification is of great significance for improving the utilization value of lignocellulosic biomass. Biochar is a valuable resource, yet its application necessitates additional research into its properties and structure, as well as the development of techniques to modify those factors.

There is a rise of interest in various aspects of biochar derived from waste biomass to address the most pressing ecosystem challenges. This study contributes to understanding biochar's usage in the remediation of hazardous pollutants. The synthesis of biochar using a variety of different techniques has been explored. Numerous analysts have considered biochar as a strategy for enhancing their ability to remediate pollutants. Process factors are primarily responsible for determining biochar yield. Biochar-derived biomass is an exceptionally rich wellspring of carbon produced from biomass utilizing thermal combustion. Activating biochar is another field where biochar is increasingly used to remove specific contaminants. Closed-loop methods to produce biochar expand options. Distributed biochar manufacturing processes are an efficient method to develop businesses, manage waste, and increase resource proficiency in environmental applications. Additionally, this research discusses knowledge gaps and future directions in toxic pollutant remediation through biochar.

We report Ag nanoparticles infused with mesosphere TiO2/reduced graphene oxide (rGO) nanosheet (TiO2/rGO/Ag) hybrid nanostructures have been successfully fabricated using a series of solution process synthesis routes and an in-situ growth method. The prepared hybrid nanostructure is utilized for the fabrication of photovoltaic cells and the photocatalytic degradation of pollutants. The photovoltaic characteristics of a dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC) device with plasmonic hybrid nanostructure (TiO2/rGO/Ag) photoanode achieved a highest short-circuit current density (JSC) of 16.05 mA/cm2, an open circuit voltage (VOC) of 0.74 V and a fill factor (FF) of 62.5%. The fabricated plasmonic DSSC device exhibited a maximum power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 7.27%, which is almost 1.7 times higher than the TiO2-based DSSC (4.10%). For the photocatalytic degradation of pollutants, the prepared TiO2/rGO/Ag photocatalyst exhibited superior photodegradation of methylene blue (MB) dye molecules at around 93% and the mineralization of total organic compounds (TOC) by 80% in aqueous solution after 160 min under continuous irradiation with natural sunlight. Moreover, the enhanced performance of the DSSC device and the MB dye degradation exhibited by the hybrid nanostructures are more associated with their high surface area. Therefore, the proposed plasmonic hybrid nanostructure system is a further development for photovoltaics and environmental remediation applications.

Biomass can be a sustainable choice for bioenergy production worldwide. Biohydrogen production using fermentative conversion of biomass has gained great interest during the last decade. Besides being an efficient transportation fuel, biohydrogen can also be also be a low-carbon source of heat and electricity. Microbes assisted conversion (bioconversion) can be take place either in presence or absence of light. This is called photo-fermentation or dark-fermentation respectively. This review provides an overview of approaches of fermentative hydrogen production. This includes: dark, photo and integrated fermentative modes of hydrogen production; the molecular basis behind its production and diverse range of its applicability industrially. Mechanistic understanding of the metabolic pathways involved in biomass-based fermentative hydrogen production are also reviewed. Keywords: Hydrogen, Biomass, Fermentation, Dark and photo fermentation

The application of the xylose reductase (XR) enzyme in the development of biotechnology demands an efficient and large scale enzyme separation technique. The aim of this present work was to optimize xylose reductase (XR) purification process through ultrafiltration membrane (UF) technology using Central composite design (CCD) of response surface methods (RSM). The three effective parameters analyzed were filtration time (0–100), transmembrane pressure (TMP) (1–1.6 bar), cross flow velocity (CFV) (0.52–1.2 cm/s−1) and its combined effect to obtain high flux with less possibility of membrane fouling. Experimental studies revealed that the best range for optimization process for filtration time, operational transmembrane pressure and cross flow velocity was 30 min, 1.4 bars and 1.06 cm/s, respectively as these conditions yielded the highest membrane permeability (56.03 Lm-2h-1 bar−1) and xylitol content (15.49 g/l). According to the analysis of variance (ANOVA), the p-value (

Response surface methodology (RSM) is widely applied to gathering knowledge on the interactions among parameters that require optimization during the treatment of wastewater. It can be used to optimize parameters during the process of treating wastewater, e.g., landfill leachate. The experimental design methods are useful to evaluate the parameters involved in a treatment with the minimum number of experiments. This will reduce the need for reagents and materials for experiments, which finally causes both time and expense to be increased. Anaerobic digestion of wastewater technologies escalated depending on the design configuration of the reactor. Several important parameters are taken into consideration in designing an anaerobic reactor such as operating conditions, seed sludge, wastewater composition and mixing. To construct a highly efficient degradation system, it is necessary to optimize such effective parameters. As a result, the advanced statistical design is used for process characterization, optimization and modelling. In this paper, the fundamentals of RSM and its application in the anaerobic treatment of wastewater was discussed in brief. The various works done in an anaerobic reactor using RSM for prediction and optimization are given.

In this study, the natural fibrous mats were developed using luffa fibrous materials and their sound absorption properties were investigated. Kapok/cotton web was used as middle layer in between two mats in order to improve the sound absorption efficiency. Four fibrous mats with different composition of layers were developed using thermal bonding. The developed mats were tested for Noise Reduction Coefficient (NRC) as per ASTM E 1050. The parameters influencing sound absorption properties of the developed mats such as addition of kapok/cotton web on the mats, thickness of mats and air gap maintained in the impedance tube during testing have been investigated. The sound absorption properties of developed mats improved due to the addition of kapok/cotton web and increased air gap. The increase in thickness of mats resulted in increase in sound absorption properties. Luffa mats having 4 layers had NRC value of 0.39 at the frequency range of 250 Hz to 2000 Hz which is comparable with commercially available glass fiber board.

The purposes of this study were to investigate the effects of operating parameters, such as electrode material, current density, percentage of hydrogen peroxide and amount of polialuminum chloride (PAC) on chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal of palm oil mill effluent (POME). The current density was varied between 30–80 mA cm−2, PAC (1–3 g L−1) as coagulant-aid and 1 and 2% of hydrogen peroxide as an oxidizing agent. As for the performance of electrode type, iron was more effective than aluminum. It appeared that the removal of COD increased with the increased of current density. When PAC and H2O2 increased, the percent of COD removal was increasing as well. The overall results demonstrate that electrocoagulation is very efficient and able to achieve more than 70% COD removal in 180 min at current density 30–80 mA cm−2 reliant upon the concentration of H2O2 and PAC.

A robust measurement system in the Taguchi Method as a testing method should be explained from the beginning of an experimental design until the application of the optimum condition. Measurement has always been described either by discussing the measurement concepts theoretically or demonstrating a case study on how the data measurement is being done practically. The distance between theory and practical case study that connects the test method used for measurement is always missing. In this paper, a case of T-peel test on strength measurement is used to reflect the robust measurement system, which includes the theory of experimental design together with methods to achieve the optimum condition. Seven control factors, two noise factors with one signal factor are used with orthogonal array L18. Not only the experiment results, but methodology on choosing the control, noise, and signal factors are described intensively. Therefore, the aims are to provide the procedure on evaluating optimum conditions, to analyze variability and optimization of T-peel test when measuring the strength, and to establish a mainstream flow to achieve high-quality experimental design for a robust measurement system. As a result, a robust measurement system that includes variation elimination is developed, which consists of four elements—F (function), N (noise), C (Control), and O (Optimization). The elements of the F-N-C-O system are connected to one another by the Plan-Do-Study-Act; P-D-S-A cycle. The results affect the existing measurement system by enlightening the black box of parameter design behind optimization results in Taguchi Method. Thus, the measurement is more convergent and obtain higher degree of confidence in parameter design.

Introduction: Myofunctional appliances are commonly used for correction of skeletal Class II malrelationship. These appliances influence craniofacial and nasopharyngeal dimensions. Objectives: The present study was done to evaluate changes in airway with twin block therapy. Materials and Methods: Cephalometric assessment of airway was done in 25 growing children in the age group of 11-13 years with Class II skeletal pattern. All the patients were treated with twin block appliance. Pre and post treatment lateral cephalograms were taken to evaluate the changes in different airway and craniofacial dimensions during the treatment period. The average treatment duration was 14.5 months. Results: Airway: A significant increase was observed in upper and lower pharyngeal width and area of bony nasopharynx. Craniofacial dimension: There was a significant increase in effective mandibular length, ramal length and mandibular plane angle. There was an increase in SNB angle, which resulted in decreased ANB angle. Conclusion: There was a definite improvement in airway dimension following twin block therapy

Introduction: A short clinical crown may lead to poor retention form thereby leading to improper tooth preparation. Surgical crown lengthening procedure is done to increase the clinical crown length without violating the biologic width. Several techniques have been proposed for clinical crown lengthening which includes gingivectomy, apically displaced flap with or without resective osseous surgery, and surgical extrusion using periotome. Objective: The aim of this paper is to compare clinically the three different surgical techniques of crown lengthening procedures. Materials and Methods: Fifteen patients who reported to the department of Periodontology, were included in the study. Patients were randomly divided into three groups, which include patients who underwent gingivectomy (Group A), apically repositioned flap (Group B) and surgical extrusion using periotome (Group C). Clinical measurements such as clinical crown length, gingival zenith, interdental papilla height were taken at baseline and at 3 rd month post-operatively. Results: Clinical and radiographic evaluation at 3 rd month suggest that surgical extrusion technique offers several advantages over the other conventional surgical techniques such as preservation of the interproximal papilla, gingival margin position and no marginal bone loss. Conclusions: This technique can be used to successfully treat a grossly damaged crown structure as a result of tooth fracture, dental caries and iatrogenic factors especially in the anterior region, where esthetics is of great concern.

Kidney failure is common in patients with Coronavirus Disease-19 (COVID-19), resulting in increased morbidity and mortality. In an international collaboration, 284 kidney biopsies were evaluated to improve understanding of kidney disease in COVID-19. Diagnoses were compared to five years of 63,575 native biopsies prior to the pandemic and 13,955 allograft biopsies to identify diseases that have increased in patients with COVID-19. Genotyping for APOL1 G1 and G2 alleles was performed in 107 African American and Hispanic patients. Immunohistochemistry for SARS-CoV-2 was utilized to assess direct viral infection in 273 cases along with clinical information at the time of biopsy. The leading indication for native biopsy was acute kidney injury (45.4%), followed by proteinuria with or without concurrent acute kidney injury (42.6%). There were more African American patients (44.6%) than patients of other ethnicities. The most common diagnosis in native biopsies was collapsing glomerulopathy (25.8%), which was associated with high-risk APOL1 genotypes in 91.7% of cases. Compared to the five-year biopsy database, the frequency of myoglobin cast nephropathy and proliferative glomerulonephritis with monoclonal IgG deposits was also increased in patients with COVID-19 (3.3% and 1.7%, respectively), while there was a reduced frequency of chronic conditions (including diabetes mellitus, IgA nephropathy, and arterionephrosclerosis) as the primary diagnosis. In transplants, the leading indication was acute kidney injury (86.4%), for which rejection was the predominant diagnosis (61.4%). Direct SARS-CoV-2 viral infection was not identified. Thus, our multi-center large case series identified kidney diseases that disproportionately affect patients with COVID-19 and demonstrated a high frequency of APOL1 high-risk genotypes within this group, with no evidence of direct viral infection within the kidney.