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The overconsumption of nonbiodegradable materials, particularly plastics, has had a significant and detrimental impact on the environment. Advancements in research sector have led to the development of biodegradable materials, namely starch‐based biodegradable films, which have the potential to reduce this environmental impact. Starch is a unique biopolymer with distinctive chemical, physical, mechanical, thermal, and optical properties that make it an attractive alternative to nonbiodegradable and harmful materials. This review paper comprehensively discusses the properties of starch and the techniques involved in transforming native starch into starch‐based films. Further a broad overview of recent research on combining starch with several composites to enhance the physicochemical properties has been discussed herein. In addition, this paper also discusses recent insights into the development of starch‐based composite films and their potential applications in food packaging systems. Future studies must focus on the development of starch composites that strike a balance between different versatile properties of the biopolymer. Additionally, a critical examination of the interactions at the molecular level will help to expand our understanding of this sustainable biopolymer. Ultimately, the findings of this review paper will provide valuable insights for researchers and industry professionals interested in the development and utilization of starch‐based biodegradable films. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Regular use of certain drugs and other antibiotics has led to the development of many side effects and drug resistance in the humans. But researchers have already started to find out various other alternatives to combat the negative effects. Among these, probiotics are being used up as an alternate and are consumed to great extent by humans in day to day life. Lactobacillus is the most common bacterial strain that is commercially used in various probiotic products. These LABs must bind to the human epithelial gut in order to perform their activity. For binding, mucin binding protein plays a major role by providing the attachment sites to the bacteria. In this paper we have analyzed the mucin-binding proteins in Lactobacillus plantarum using computational tools. L plantarum was chosen due to its ability to show strong binding towards epithelial surface. The FASTA sequences were extracted from UniProtkb database and were used for further comparison based on different parameters. Physicochemical analysis was done by ProtPARAM software, followed by secondary structure prediction (CFSSP software) and tertiary structure prediction (CASTp software). The MUBs motifs were also compared with the motifs of gut pathogens using TOMTOM tool. Moreover, the particular motifs responsible during adhesion were being searched in MUBs using Motif Finder. These motifs showed some similarity with the binding motifs of pathogens present in human gut. Physicochemical analysis showed that these mucin binding proteins are thermostable. GRAVY value indicates that these are soluble proteins which are hydrophilic in nature. These proteins do not have any effect of cellular proteases and hence are able to survive in the small intestine. These chosen strains have conserved sequences determined by their secondary structure analysis using the CFSSP server. Moreover, it was found that these mucin binding proteins has some of the motifs having the same sequences as present in that of pathogens. Hence, these are able to show the competitive adherence against the pathogens by blocking the binding sites for pathogens and resulting in their elimination. The study conducted showed the presence of MUBs in Lactobacillus plantarum and also same motifs were found in pathogen which proved the competitive adherence of L. plantarum against pathogens hence providing some light to the host-microbes interactions for other future studies too. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a growing public health threat caused by the widespread overuse of antibiotics. Bacteria with antibiotic resistance may acquire resistance genes from soil or water. Endogenous hydrogen sulfide (H 2 S) production in bacteria confers antibiotic tolerance in many, suggesting a universal defense mechanism against antibiotics. In this study, we isolated and identified soil-based antibiotic-resistant bacteria collected from contaminated areas. An antibiotic-resistant bacterium was identified as non-endogenous-H 2 S-producing, allowing us to examine the effect of exogenous H 2 S on its resistance mechanism. Therefore, we demonstrated that different classes of antibiotic resistance can be reverted by employing H 2 S with antibiotics like ampicillin and gentamicin. Methods like Kirby-Bauer Disk-Diffusion, Scanning Electron Microscopy, and Flow Cytometer analysis were performed to assess the antibacterial activity of H 2 S with ampicillin and gentamicin. The antioxidative efficiency of H 2 S was evaluated using the DCFH-DA (ROS) test, as well as lipid peroxidation, and LDH activity. These were further confirmed with enzymatic and non-enzymatic (SOD, CAT, GST, and GSH) antioxidant studies. These findings support H 2 S as an antibiotic-potentiator, causing bacterial membrane damage, oxidative stress, and disrupting DNA and proteins. Thus, supplying exogenous H 2 S can be a good agent for the reversal of Antibiotic resistance., Competing Interests: Declarations. Conflict of interest: No conflict of interest., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)