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Purpose: To evaluate the relationships between chronic kidney disease (CKD) with retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) and ganglion cell-inner plexiform layer (GCIPL) thickness profiles of eyes in Asian and White populations. Design: Cross-sectional analysis. Participants: A total of 5066 Asian participants (1367 Malays, 1772 Indians, and 1927 Chinese) from the Singapore Epidemiology of Eye Diseases Study (SEED) were included, consisting of 9594 eyes for peripapillary RNFL analysis and 8661 eyes for GCIPL analysis. Additionally, 45 064 White participants (87 649 eyes) from the United Kingdom Biobank (UKBB) were included for both macular RNFL analysis and GCIPL analysis. Methods: Nonglaucoma participants aged ≥ 40 years with complete data for estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) were included from both SEED and UKBB. In SEED, peripapillary RNFL and GCIPL thickness were measured by Cirrus HD-OCT 4000. In UKBB, macular RNFL and GCIPL were measured by Topcon 3D-OCT 1000 Mark II. Chronic kidney disease was defined as eGFR < 60 ml/min/1.73 m2 in both data sets. To evaluate the associations between kidney function status with RNFL and GCIPL thickness profiles, multivariable linear regression with generalized estimating equation models were performed in SEED and UKBB data sets separately. Main Outcome Measures: Average peripapillary and macular RNFL thickness and macular GCIPL thickness. Results: In SEED, after adjusting for age, gender, ethnicity, systolic blood pressure, antihypertensive medication, diabetes, hyperlipidemia, body mass index, smoking status, and intraocular pressure, presence of CKD (β = −1.31; 95% confidence interval [CI], −2.37 to −0.26; P = 0.015) and reduced eGFR (per 10 ml/min/1.73 m2; β = −0.32; 95% CI, −0.50 to −0.13; P = 0.001) were associated with thinner average peripapillary RNFL. Presence of CKD (β = −1.63; 95% CI, −2.42 to −0.84) and reduced eGFR (per 10 ml/min/1.73 m2; β = −0.30; 95% CI, −0.44 to −0.16) were consistently associated with thinner GCIPL in SEED (all P < 0.001). In UKBB, after adjusting for the above-mentioned covariates (except ethnicity), reduced eGFR (per 10 ml/min/1.73 m2; β = −0.06; 95% CI, −0.10 to −0.01; P = 0.008) was associated with thinner macular RNFL and CKD (β = −0.62; 95% CI, −1.16 to −0.08; P = 0.024) was associated with thinner average GCIPL. Conclusion: We consistently observed associations between CKD and thinning of RNFL and GCIPL across Asian and White populations' eyes. These findings further suggest that compromised kidney function is associated with RNFL and GCIPL thinning. Financial Disclosure(s): The author(s) have no proprietary or commercial interest in any materials discussed in this article.

Ethnopharmacological Relevance: Murraya koenigii commonly known as curry leaf, is traditionally used in India to manage various ailments including diabetes mellitus. Curry leaves are well documented in Indian Ayurvedic system of medicine for beneficial effects in skin eruptions, dysentery, emesis, poisonous bites and bruises. The anti-hyperglycemic and anti-hyperlipidemic effects of curry leaf extracts have been demonstrated through several in vitro and in vivo experiments previously., Aim of the Study: To prepare an alkaloid enriched fraction (AEF) from M. koenigii and its evaluation on i) in vitro adipogenesis process and ii) in vivo high fat diet-induced obesity in C57BL/6J mice., Materials and Methods: MKME and AEF were prepared from M. koenigii leaves. The four carbazole alkaloids (bioactive markers) isolated from AEF were quantitatively determined in the leaves by RP-HPLC method. MKME and AEF were studied for anti-obesogenic activity in adipocytes in vitro and in HFD-induced C57BL/6J obese mice in vivo. At the termination of the in vivo study, lipid profile, hepatic and renal injury and glucose levels were analyzed in the blood samples. Animal tissues were examined histopathologically to determine any signs of damage. Repeated dose oral toxicity study for 28 days on Sprague-Dawley rats was also performed to determine the safety profile of AEF., Results: Both MKME and AEF displayed anti-obesogenic activity at 25 μg/ml concentration in vitro and showed 54.06 ± 3.86% and 37.46 ± 3.17% lipid accumulation, respectively compared to control. Further, supplementation of AEF and MKME in HFD-fed C57BL/6J mice helped in controlling weight gain, improved dyslipidemia and glucose intolerance significantly. AEF showed better anti-obesity activity than MKME both in vitro and in vivo study. Repeated administration of AEF up to 1 g/kg dose for 28 days showed no pathological tissue damage. Both MKME and AEF were standardized using a simple and validated RP-HPLC method., Conclusion: Present study was aimed at preparation of a novel alkaloid-enriched fraction from methanolic extract of M. koenigii leaf and its evaluation for anti-diabesity effect. Our results demonstrated AEF to be a promising plant-based therapy for ameliorating obesity and related metabolic complications in HFD-fed C57BL/6J mice., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

High-altitude (HA) environment presents immense physiological adversities for humans that have been overcome by supplementing bio-active phytochemicals from functional foods that support and accelerate acclimatization under these extreme environmental conditions. Several agricultural interventions have been investigated to enhance the phytochemical content in vegetables however; these studies have been limited to low-altitude (LA) regions only. In view of an existing knowledge gap, current work is designed to compare the phytochemical compositions of HA and LA-grown Brassicaceae vegetables (cabbage, cauliflower, knol-khol, and radish) using organic treatments via farm yard manure (FYM) and Azotobacter. The open field study was conducted as a two-factorial randomized block design. The first factor was treatment (T 1 -FYM, T 2 -Azotobacter, T 3 -FYM + Azotobacter, and T 4 -control) while the second was locations (HA and LA). Among all these treatments, the application of treatment T 3 in HA-grown cabbage showed the highest total phenolic content (TPC; 9.56 μg/mg), total flavonoids content (TFC; 14.48 μg/mg), and antioxidant potential using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH; 85.97%) and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP; 30.77 μg/mg) compared to LA grown samples. Reverse Phase high performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC) analysis showed that treatment T 3 at HA led to significantly high kaempferol (0.92 μg/mg) and sulforaphane (8.94 μg/mg) contents in cabbage whereas, indole-3-carbinol (1.31 μg/mg) was higher in HA grown cauliflower. The present study provides scientific evidence for the enrichment of health-promoting phytochemical compounds in Brassicaceae vegetables grown with T 3 treatment specifically at HA., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Mineral composition in milk can affect its nutritional as well as physio-chemical properties of milk and is considered an important trait in the evaluation of milk quality. The composition and concentration of milk minerals could be altered with natural source of variation including nutrition and genetics. The effect of diet on milk minerals is well studied. However, genetic effects on the milk minerals have recently gained the attention. This review provides an overview of the genetic variation of milk minerals, and the genomic regions associated with mineral concentration in the milk are also discussed. The difference of milk minerals between breeds and the genetic parameters including heritability estimates and correlation among minerals indicates that milk minerals are under strong genetic control. Recently, the genome-wide association study (GWAS) has explored several regions associated with milk minerals and thus provides a new genetic source for improving the milk quality through genomics-assisted breeding. Hence, a combination of the qualitative and molecular approaches can be exploited to improving the nutritional quality of cattle milk in terms of its mineral composition., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Institute of Plant Genetics Polish Academy of Sciences.)

Dissolved oxygen (DO) is an important parameter in assessing water quality. The reduction in DO concentration is the result of eutrophication, which degrades the quality of water. Aeration is the best way to enhance the DO concentration. In the current study, the aeration efficiency (E 20 ) of various numbers of circular jets in an open channel was experimentally investigated for different channel angle of inclination (θ), discharge (Q), number of jets (J n ), Froude number (Fr), and hydraulic radius of each jet (HR Jn ). The statistical results show that jets from 8 to 64 significantly provide aeration in the open channel. The aeration efficiency and input parameters are modelled into a linear relationship. Additionally, utilizing WEKA software, three soft computing models for predicting aeration efficiency were created with Artificial Neural Network (ANN), M5P, and Random Forest (RF). Performance evaluation results and box plot have shown that ANN is the outperforming model with correlation coefficient (CC) = 0.9823, mean absolute error (MAE) = 0.0098, and root mean square error (RMSE) = 0.0123 during the testing stage. In order to assess the influence of different input factors on the E 20 of jets, a sensitivity analysis was conducted using the most effective model, i.e., ANN. The sensitivity analysis results indicate that the angle of inclination is the most influential input variable in predicting E 20 , followed by discharge and the number of jets., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Zero liquid discharge (ZLD) technology emerges as a transformative solution for sustainable wastewater management in the textile industry, emphasizing water recycling and discharge minimization. This review comprehensively explores ZLD's pivotal role in reshaping wastewater management practices within the textile sector. With a primary focus on water recycling and minimized discharge, the review thoroughly examines the economic and environmental dimensions of ZLD. Additionally, it includes a comparative cost analysis against conventional wastewater treatment methods and offers a comprehensive outlook on the global ZLD market. Presently valued at US $0.71 billion, the market is anticipated to reach US $1.76 billion by 2026, reflecting a robust annual growth rate of 12.6%. Despite ZLD's efficiency in wastewater recovery, environmental challenges, such as heightened greenhouse gas emissions, increased carbon footprint, elevated energy consumption, and chemical usage, are discussed. Methodologies employed in this review involve an extensive analysis of existing literature, empirical data, and case studies on ZLD implementation in the textile industry worldwide. While acknowledging existing adoption barriers, the review underscores ZLD's potential to guide the textile industry toward a more sustainable and environmentally responsible future., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

Background: Murraya koenigii (L.) Spreng. (family: Rutaceae), commonly known as curry leaf or sweet neem, is a tropical plant native to India and Southeast Asia. It is highly valued in Ayurveda for its medicinal properties. Almost every part (fresh leaves, fruits, bark, and roots) of this plant is used to treat various ailments. Its fresh leaves are considered to have numerous medicinal properties for various diseases, including piles, inflammation, itching, fresh cuts, dysentery, and edema. A combination of curry leaf and buttermilk is used to treat diseases, such as amoebiasis, diabetes, and hepatitis. Its leaves are also believed to possess antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antimicrobial properties. The bark has been traditionally used for treating snakebites. Its roots are utilized in Ayurveda for the treatment of body aches. Being a storehouse of carbazole alkaloids, M. koenigii has been reported to show anti-obesity and anti-diabetic activity in in vitro and in vivo studies. The review aimed to appraise the role of M. koenigii leaf in the prevention of diabesity., Methods: We performed a literature search with the keywords "diabesity", "obesity", "diabetes", "adipose tissue", and "carbazole alkaloids" on Google Scholar, PubMed, and ScienceDirect databases. Several in vitro and in vivo studies conducted on cell lines and animals for anti-diabetic/anti-hyperglycemic and antihyperlipidemic activities have been included and appraised in the article, providing supporting evidence for the ethnomedicinal claims., Results and Conclusion: This review has been an attempt to summarize comprehensively the overall research done on M. koenigii with regard to obesity and diabetes. The studies on anti-diabetic/anti-hyperglycemic and anti-hyperlipidemic activities of the plant have ranged from studies on crude extracts to isolated compounds. However, some of the studies require further in-depth analysis and validation of obtained results., (Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.net.)

Since soft computing has gained a lot of attention in hydrological studies, this study focuses on predicting aeration efficiency ( E 20 ) using circular plunging jets employing soft computing techniques such as reduced error pruning tree (REPTree), random forest (RF), and M5P. The study undertaken required the development and validation of models, which were achieved using 63 experimental data values with input variables, such as angle of inclination of tilt channel (α), number of plunging jets ( J N ), discharge of each jet ( Q ), hydraulic radius of each jet (HR), and Froude number (Fr. No), to evaluate the aeration efficiency ( E 20 ), which served as the output variable. To evaluate the effectiveness of the developed models, three different statistical indices were used such as the coefficient of correlation (CC), root-mean-square error (RMSE), and mean absolute error (MAE), and it was found that all of the applied techniques possessed good forecasting ability since their correlation coefficient values were greater than 0.8. Upon testing, it was discovered that the M5P model outperformed other soft computing-based models in its ability to predict E 20 , as demonstrated by its correlation coefficient value of 0.9564 and notably low values of MAE (0.0143) and RMSE (0.0193)., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing financial interest., (© 2023 The Authors. Published by American Chemical Society.)

Milk fat composition is an important trait for the dairy industry as it directly influences the nutritional and technological properties of milk and other dairy products. The synthesis of milk fat is a complex process regulated by a network of genes. Thus, understanding the genetic variation and molecular mechanisms regulating milk fat synthesis will help to improve the nutritional quality of dairy products. In this review, we provide an overview of milk fat synthesis in bovines along with the candidate genes involved in the pathway. We also discuss de novo synthesis of fatty acids (ACSS, ACACA, FASN), uptake of FAs (FATP, FAT, LPL), intracellular activation and channelling of FAs (ACSL, FABP), elongation (EVOLV6), desaturation (SCD, FADS), formation of triglycerides (GPAM, AGPAT, LIPIN, DGAT), and milk lipid secretion (BTN1A1, XDH, PLIN2). The genetic variability of individual fatty acids will help to develop selection strategies for obtaining a healthier milk fat profile in bovines. Thus, this review will offer a potential understanding of the molecular mechanisms that regulate milk fat synthesis in bovines., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature B.V.)

Jet aeration is a commonly used technique for introducing air into water during wastewater treatment. In this investigation, the efficacy of different soft computing models, namely, Random Forest, Reduced Error Pruning Tree, Artificial Neural Network (ANN), Gaussian Process, and Support Vector Machine, was examined in predicting the aeration efficiency (E 20 ) of circular and square jet configurations in an open channel flow. A total of 126 experimental data points were utilized to develop and validate these models. To assess the models' performance, three goodness-of-fit parameters were employed: correlation coefficient (CC), root-mean-square error (RMSE), and mean absolute error (MAE). The analysis revealed that all of the developed models exhibited predictive capabilities, with CC values surpassing 0.8. Nonetheless, when it comes to predicting E 20 , the ANN model outperformed other soft computing models, achieving a CC of 0.9748, MAE of 0.0164, and RMSE of 0.0211. A sensitivity analysis emphasized that the angle of inclination exerted the most significant influence on the aeration in an open channel. Furthermore, the results demonstrated that square jets delivered superior aeration compared to that of circular jets under identical operating conditions., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing financial interest., (© 2023 The Authors. Published by American Chemical Society.)

Backyard poultry farming contributes to food security, nutrition, and the regular income of rural farmers in India. Their products have a niche market here and fetch higher prices than those of commercial poultry. Improved varieties are being developed to overcome the slow growth, late sexual maturity, and low production of indigenous breeds, while retaining their positive attributes. A comprehensive study was conducted to analyze the functional attributes of meat from the Jabalpur color (JBC), a colored, improved dual-purpose synthetic line, developed by Nanaji Deshmukh Veterinary Science University, Jabalpur, India. The birds were managed in a deep litter system under a backyard type of housing (night shelter and free range). Primal meat cuts (breast and thigh) of the male birds ( n = 20/group) were evaluated at the age of marketing. The corresponding attributes were compared with the results obtained for commercial Cobb (400) broilers. The protein concentration of JBC breast (25.65 ± 0.39 g/100 g of tissue) and thigh (19.04 ± 0.23 g/100 g of tissue) meat was superior ( p ≤ 0.05) to that of Cobb broilers. Established assays (in vitro) identified a better ( p ≤ 0.05) antioxidation capacity in the JBC meat. High-performance liquid chromatography confirmed a considerable quantity of functional biomolecules (carnosine, anserine, and creatine) in the JBC breast and thigh meat extracts. The average carnosine concentration (mg/g of tissue) was 2.66 ± 0.09 and 1.11 ± 0.04 in the JBC breast and thigh meat, respectively. The mRNA expression was quantified by qRT-PCR for the carnosine-related genes: β-alanine transporter ( SLC36A1 ), carnosine-synthesizing enzyme ( CARNS1 ), and carnosine-degrading enzyme ( CNDP2 ); this explained the comparable carnosine in the JBC and Cobb meat. Meat extracts from both genetic groups (JBC and Cobb) had high anti-glycation potential. Higher protein content and antioxidant capacity, along with the bioactive dipeptides in the JBC meat, herald exciting research opportunities for its use in improving the traditional backyard poultry farming system.

This paper contemplates the review of aeration efficiency with commonly used different aeration systems such as Venturi flumes, Weirs, Conduits, Stepped channels, In Venturi Aeration, the SAE value grows fast with the number of air holes. In Weir Aeration, it was found that among all the different labyrinth weir structure, triangular notch weirs are known for the optimum results for air entrainment. The ANN model was developed with parameters discharge (Q) and tail water depth (T w ) which showed that Q is more influential parameter than T w . In conduits structure, it was found that circular high head gated conduits have better aeration performance than other conduits. Aeration efficiency in Stepped channels cascades may range from 30% to 70%. The sensitivity analysis with ANN model showed that discharge (Q) followed by number of steps (N) was the most influential parameter in E 20 . Bubble size was the important parameter to undertake when using bubble diffuser. The oxygen transfer efficiency (OTE) in jet diffusers was predicted developing an ANN model. It was found in sensitivity analysis that the input of 'velocity' is highly sensitive to OTE. According to literature, jets can provide OTE in the range of 1.91- 21.53kgO 2 /kW-hr., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2023 Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Diabetes is a major public health concern and natural easy-going remedies are being searched. Since Cinnamomum zeylanicum Blume has a low coumarin concentration and possible insulin-enhancing properties, it is preferred over all other cinnamon species. Although similar research has been done on humans, there have been very few studies on this particular species, and none among South Asians. Moreover, no human trial that properly described their intervening agent ( C. zeylanicum ) and checked its efficacy at the molecular level along with clinical variables was conducted. Therefore, the current research aimed to explore the effects of C. zeylanicum on the glycemic index, lipid profile, and expression of the protein tyrosine phosphatase 1 B (PTP1B) enzyme in the peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) in type 2 diabetes. We examined the presence of bioactive compounds in young C. zeylanicum bark (Alba grade) from native Sri Lanka using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, high-performance thin-layer chromatography, and thin-layer chromatography before introducing it in the clinical study where trans-Cinnamaldehyde was found to be a major chemical constituent (>60%). Then, from January 2020 to March 2022, a randomized double-blinded placebo-controlled trial was carried out in the Diabetic Clinic at AIIMS Rishikesh. A total of 154 diabetic patients were enrolled and were taken either cinnamon or placebo capsules (1.5 g/day) for 120 days on an empty stomach with warm water along with their conventional treatment. Reduction in fasting blood glucose levels in the cinnamon group was found -35.50% (95% CI, -173 to 58.4), whereas in the placebo group change was 5.00% (95% CI, -165 to 224). For glycosylated hemoglobin, it differed -0.85% (95% CI, -8.2 to 1.6) in the cinnamon group compared to the placebo where it was found 0.15% (95% CI, -6.1 to 5.5). PTP1B expression in PBMC was determined from pre- and post-trial blood samples using the Western Blot, and significant inhibition was also observed (p=0.039). The study result depicts, C. zeylanicum is emerging as a beneficial plant for type 2 diabetes in Northern India and could be used as an adjunctive treatment rather than as a standalone managerial remedy., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright © 2023, Mandal et al.)

Pavement design is a long-term structural analysis that is required to distribute traffic loads throughout all road levels. To construct roads for rising traffic volumes while preserving natural resources and materials, a better knowledge of road paving materials is required. The current study focused on the prediction of Marshall stability of asphalt mixes constituted of glass, carbon, and glass-carbon combination fibers to exploit the best potential of the hybrid asphalt mix by applying five machine learning models, i.e., artificial neural networks, Gaussian processes, M5P, random tree, and multiple linear regression model and further determined the optimum model suitable for prediction of the Marshall stability in hybrid asphalt mixes. It was equally important to determine the suitability of each mix for flexible pavements. Five types of asphalt mixes, i.e., glass fiber asphalt mix, carbon fiber asphalt mix, and three modified asphalt mixes of glass-carbon fiber combination in the proportions of 75:25, 50:50, and 25:75 were utilized in the investigation. To measure the efficiency of the applied models, five statistical indices, i.e., coefficient of correlation, mean absolute error, root mean square error, relative absolute error, and root relative squared error were used in machine learning models. The results indicated that the artificial neural network outperformed other models in predicting the Marshall stability of modified asphalt mix with a higher value of the coefficient of correlation (0.8392), R 2 (0.7042), a lower mean absolute error value (1.4996), and root mean square error value (1.8315) in the testing stage with small error band and provided the best optimal fit. Results of the feature importance analysis showed that the first five input variables, i.e., carbon fiber diameter, bitumen content, hybrid asphalt mix of glass-carbon fiber at 75:25 percent, carbon fiber content, and hybrid asphalt mix of glass-carbon fiber at 50:50 percent, are highly sensitive parameters which influence the Marshall strength of the modified asphalt mixes to a greater extent.

The purpose of the research is to predict the compressive and flexural strengths of the concrete mix by using waste marble powder as a partial replacement of cement and sand, based on the experimental data that was acquired from the laboratory tests. In order to accomplish the goal, the models of Support vector machines, Support vector machines with bagging and Stochastic, Linear regression, and Gaussian processes were applied to the experimental data for predicting the compressive and flexural strength of concrete. The effectiveness of models was also evaluated by using statistical criteria. Therefore, it can be inferred that the gaussian process and support vector machine methods can be used to predict the respective outputs, i.e., flexural and compressive strength. The Gaussian process and Support vector machines Stochastic predicts better outcomes for flexural and compressive strength because it has a higher coefficient of correlation (0.8235 and 0.9462), lower mean absolute and root mean squared error values as (2.2808 and 1.8104) and (2.8527 and 2.3430), respectively. Results suggest that all applied techniques are reliable for predicting the compressive and flexural strength of concrete and are able to reduce the experimental work time. In comparison to input factors for this data set, the number of curing days followed by the CA, C, FA, w, and MP is essential in predicting the flexural and compressive strength of a concrete mix for this data set.

Kadaknath, the only black chicken indigenous to India, faces the threat of extinction due to declining numbers. Its meat is used in tribal medicine for invigorating and health-promoting properties. Expectations of immune-boosting and therapeutic properties in its meat are creating a buzz these days. Thus, Kadaknath meat was explored and further compared with the commercial Cobb 400 broiler (Cobb) for the functional traits that might be contributing towards proclaimed pharmacological benefits. Birds (n = 20/ group) were raised under similar management conditions and the two primal chicken meat cuts (breast and thigh) were collected at the marketing age. Kadaknath meat was found to be an enriched source of functional biomolecules (carnosine, anserine, creatine). Its breast meat carnosine content was more than double of the Cobb broiler, 6.10 ± 0.13 and 2.73 ± 0.1 mg/ g of wet tissue, respectively. Similarly, the thigh meat of Kadaknath was a significantly (P < 0.05) richer source of carnosine. The genetic background was a key determinant for muscle carnosine content as a significant abundance of CARNS1 and SLC36A1 expression was identified in the Kadaknath breast. The superior functional property of Kadaknath meat was established by the antioxidant capacity established by the Oxygen radical absorbance capacity assay and a stronger ability to inhibit the formation of advanced glycation end products (AGEs). The identification of fairly unknown nutritional and functional advantages of Kadaknath meat could potentially change the paradigm with its meat consumption. It will help in developing a brand name for Kadaknath products that will propel an increase in its market share and ultimately conservation of this unique but endangered poultry germplasm., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

This study reports the selection of DNA aptamer for the detection of 20 Methyl Spirolide G (SPXG). After 10 rounds of selection, theenriched pool of aptamers specific to SPXGwas cloned, sequenced and clustered into seven families based onsimilarity. Three sequences SPX1, SPX2 and SPX7, each belonging to different clades were further evaluated for their binding affinity. Surface plasmonresonancestudies determined the highest affinity K D of 0.0345x10 -8 M for aptamer SPX7. A label-free microscale thermophoresis-based aptasensing using SPX7 with highest affinity, indicated a linear detection range from 1.9 to 125000 pg/mL (LOD = 0.39 pg/mL; LOQ = 1.17 pg/mL). Spiking studies in simulated contaminated samples of mussel and scallop indicated recoveries in the range of 86 to 108%. Results of this study indicate the successful development of an aptamer for detection of SPXG at picogram levels. It also opens up avenues to develop other sensing platforms for detection of SPXG using the reported aptamer., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Background: Medicinal plants are the fundamental unit of traditional medicine system in Nepal. Nepalese people are rich in traditional medicine especially in folk medicine (ethnomedicine), and this system is gaining much attention after 1995. The use of medicinal plants has increased during the COVID-19 pandemic as a private behavior (not under the control of government). A lot of misinterpretations of the use of medicinal plants to treat or prevent COVID-19 have been spreading throughout Nepal which need to be managed proactively. In this context, a research was needed to document medicinal plants used, their priority of use in society, their cultivation status, and the source of information people follow to use them. This study aimed to document the present status of medicinal plant use and make important suggestion to the concerned authorities., Methods: This study used a web-based survey to collect primary data related to medicinal plants used during COVID-19. A total of 774 respondents took part in the survey. The study calculated the relative frequencies of citation (RFC) for the recorded medicinal plants. The relationship between plants recorded and different covariates (age, gender education, occupation, living place, and treatment methods) was assessed using Kruskal-Wallis test and Wilcoxon test. The relationship between the information sources people follow and the respondent characteristics was assessed using chi-square test., Results: The study found that the use of medicinal plants has increased during COVID-19 and most of the respondents recommended medicinal plants to prevent COVID-19. This study recorded a total of 60 plants belonging to 36 families. The leaves of the plants were the most frequently used. The Zingiber officinale was the most cited species with the frequency of citation 0.398. Most of the people (45.61%) were getting medicinal plants from their home garden. The medicinal plants recorded were significantly associated with the education level, location of home, primary treatment mode, gender, and age class. The information source of plants was significantly associated with the education, gender, method of treatment, occupation, living with family, and location of home during the lockdown caused by COVID-19., Conclusions: People were using more medicinal plants during COVID-19 claiming that they can prevent or cure COVID-19. This should be taken seriously by concerned authorities. The authorities should test the validity of these medicinal plants and control the flow of false information spread through research and awareness programs.

Medicinal plants have been the basis for discovery of various important marketed drugs. Xanthine is one such lead molecule. Xanthines in various forms (caffeine, theophylline, theobromine, etc) are abode in tea, coffee, cocoa, chocolate etc. giving them popular recognition. These compounds are best known for their diverse pharmaceutical applications as cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterase inhibition, antagonization of adenosine receptor, anti-inflammatory, anti-microbial, anti-oxidant and anti-tumor activities. These properties incentivize to use xanthine as scaffold to develop new derivatives. Chemical synthesis contributes greater diversity in xanthine based derivatisation. With highlighting the existing challenges in chemical synthesis, the present review focuses the probable solution to fill existing lacuna. The review summarizes the available knowledge of xanthine based drugs development along with exploring new xanthine led chemical synthesis path for bringing diversification in xanthine based research. The main objective of this review is to explore the immense potential of xanthine as scaffold in drug development.

The potential of 2-aminoquinazolin-4(3H)-one as an organocatalyst for the activation of aldehydes via noncovalent interaction for the synthesis of tertiary amines using formic acid as a reducing agent is reported for the first time. The developed protocol demonstrated a dilated substrate scope for aromatic and aliphatic amines with aromatic and aliphatic aldehydes. Furthermore, the current method was also fruitful for the derivatization of ciprofloxacin and its derivative in good to excellent yields.

We report herein a highly efficient, tin(ii)/PMHS catalyzed reductive N-alkylation of arylamines with ketones affording tertiary arylamines. A very wide substrate scope was observed for the current catalytic method as all six permutations of ketones/aldehydes/heterocyclic carbonyls and primary/secondary/heterocyclic amines were well tolerated, enabling access to secondary, tertiary and heterocyclic amines. The method is also convenient for the synthesis of N-substituted isoindolinones and phthalazinones via a tandem amination-amidation sequence. Mechanistic investigations revealed a carbocationic pathway instead of an ordinary direct reductive amination pathway.

Coffee processing industries generate caffeine-containing waste that needs to be treated and decaffeinated before being disposed. Five fungal isolates obtained on caffeine-containing mineral media were tested for their ability to utilize caffeine at high concentrations. An isolate identified as Fusarium solani could utilize caffeine as a sole source of carbon and nitrogen up to 5 g/l and could degrade it to an extent of 30-53 % in 120 h. Sucrose that was added as an auxiliary substrate (5 g/l) enhanced the biodecaffeination of caffeine to 88 % in 96 h. The addition of co- substrate (sucrose) not only resulted in higher biodecaffeination efficiency, but also reduced the incubation period from the initial 120 to 96 h. Theophylline and 3-methyl xanthine were obtained as the major metabolites of decaffeination at 96 and 120 h, respectively. Response surface methodology used to optimize the process parameters for maximum biodecaffeination as well as theophylline production showed that a pH of 5.8, temperature of 24 °C and inoculum size of 4.8 × 10(5) spores/ml have resulted in a complete biodecaffeination of caffeine as well as the production of theophylline with a yield of 33 % (w/w). Results thus show that a viable and sustainable process can be developed for the detoxification of caffeine along with the recovery of theophylline, a commercially important chemical.

Food safety and hazard analysis is a prime concern of human life, thus quality assessment of food and water is the need of the day. Recent advances in nano-biotechnology play a significant role in providing possible solutions for developing highly sensitive and affordable detection tools for food analysis. Nanomaterials based aptasensors hold great potential to overcome the drawbacks of conventional analytical techniques. Aptamers comprise a novel class of highly specific bio-recognition elements which are produced by SELEX (systematic evolution of ligands by exponential enrichment) process. They bind to target molecules by folding into 3D structures that can discriminate different chiral compounds. The flexibility in making modifications in aptamers contribute to the design of biosensors, enabling the generation of bio-recognition elements for a wide variety of target molecules. Nanomaterials such as metal nanoparticles, metal nanoclusters, metal oxide nanoparticles, metal and carbon quantum dots, graphene, carbon nanotubes and nanocomposites enable higher sensitivity by signal amplification and introduce several novel transduction principles such as enhanced chemiluminescence, fluorescence, Raman signals, electrochemical signals, enhanced catalytic activity, and super-paramagnetic properties to the biosensor. Although there are a few reviews published recently which deal with the potential of aptamers in various fields, none are devoted exclusively to the potential of aptasensors based on nanomaterials for the analysis of food contaminants. Hence, the current review discusses several transduction systems and their principles used in aptamer based nanosensors which have been developed in the past five years, the challenges faced in their designing, along with their strengths and limitations., (Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

A novel Pt-catalyzed rearrangement of oxaspirohexanes to 3-methylenetetrahydrofurans is reported. Mechanistic studies by (13)C-labeling experiments confirm oxidative addition of Pt(II) regioselectively to the least substituted carbon-carbon bond of the cyclopropane to form a platinacyclobutane intermediate. To our knowledge, this is the first alkoxy-substituted platinacyclobutane that has been observed spectroscopically. The scope and a proposed mechanism of this new Pt-catalyzed transformation are described.

Introduction: Pulpotomy technique basically consists of removing the coronal pulp and fixing the radicular pulp with a medicament. It is the most widely accepted clinical procedure for treating primary teeth with coronal pulp inflammation caused by caries with no involvement of the radicular pulp., Aim: To evaluate the success and efficacy of Mineral Trioxide Aggregate (MTA), Lasers and Biodentine as pulpotomy agents both clinically and radiographically., Materials and Methods: In the present study, 60 primary molars in children whose pulpal status warranted pulpotomy were selected and randomly assigned into three groups that included MTA, Laser and Biodentine allocating 20 teeth to each group. The pulpotomy procedure was then performed on all selected teeth followed by restoration with stainless steel crowns. Later the patients were recalled for 3 months and 6 months for clinical and radiographic evaluation., Results: Statistical analysis was done using Fisher exact test to determine pair wise comparison of three agents with respect to clinical and radiographic criteria. Kruskal-Wallis ANOVA, Mc Nemars test was applied to evaluate the efficacy of each agent between 3 months and 6 months. The results showed that maximum success rate was found in MTA group. However, the comparison between three groups was statistically not significant (p<0.05)., Conclusion: Pulpotomies performed with either MTA, Laser or Biodentine are equally efficient with similar clinical/radiographic success and hence can be considered as alternatives to Formocresol.

Aim: The aim was to study the polymorphism of exon 2 and exon 3 of growth hormone (GH) gene, to test the polymorphic variants for Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium and to investigate association of these polymorphisms with chest girth and paunch girth in Sirohi and Barbari breeds of goat., Materials and Methods: A total of 80 kids involving forty each of Sirohi and Barbari breeds of goat were included in the study. A good quality genomic DNA isolated from the whole blood using standard protocol were used for polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification and products obtained on restriction digestion of amplicon with enzyme HaeIII were separated on 2% agarose gel, and documented in a gel doc system. The chest girth and paunch girth of kids at birth and weekly intervals up to 4 weeks of age and subsequently at 2 months, 3 months and 6 months of age were recorded. Allele frequency and genotype distribution of polymorphism were tested for Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium by program me Genepop package. Association between different genetic variants on chest girth and paunch girth were analyzed by least squares analysis employing suitable statistical model., Results: The PCR product of genomic DNA isolated from kids of Sirohi and Barbari breeds of goat on digestion with the restriction enzyme HaeIII revealed two genotypic variants viz., AB and BB. None of the two breeds was in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium for these variants. The least squares analysis of variance revealed non-significant effect of GH genotype and breed × genotype interaction on chest girth and paunch girth from birth to 180 days of age. The effect of breed was highly significant (p<0.01) at all ages., Conclusion: The present study showed that both the breeds were polymorphic at the exon 2 and exon 3 loci of GH gene under study with respect to HaeIII restriction endonuclease. None of the breeds was in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium for this region of GH gene. In the present study, no significant association between GH genotype and chest girth and paunch girth could be established but comparatively higher chest girth and paunch girth were observed for AB genotype across the breeds.

Vitamin B12 is among the most essential biomolecules required for crucial metabolic processes in humans. Vitamin B12 was extracted from Chlorella vulgaris biomass under aqueous conditions, partially purified by passing the extract through amberlite XAD-2, Sep-Pak columns, and further purified by HPLC. The target peak eluent was subjected to characterisation by tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS), selected ion recording (SIR) and multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) and identified as methylcobalamin (Me-Cbl). Quantification of Me-Cbl was carried out by microbiological and chemiluminescence methods, and found to be 29.87±2 μg/100 g and 26.84±2 μg/100 g dry weight, respectively. The presence of Me-Cbl was further substantiated using gold nanoparticle (AuNPs) based aptamer analysis, and found to be 28.02±2 μg/100 g dry weight. Good similarity was observed among all the methods. Methylcobalamin, a form of vitamin B12 was identified in C. vulgaris and this finding enhances its use as a nutritional supplement., (Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Considering the fact that polyphenols have versatile activity in-vivo, its detection and quantification is very much important for a healthy diet. Laccase enzyme can convert polyphenols to yield mono/polyquinones which can quench Quantum dots fluorescence. This phenomenon of charge transfer from quinones to QDs was exploited as optical labels to detect polyphenols. CdTe QD may undergo dipolar interaction with quinones as a result of broad spectral absorption due to multiple excitonic states resulting from quantum confinement effects. Thus, "turn-off" fluorescence method was applied for ultrasensitive detection of polyphenols by using laccase. We observed proportionate quenching of QDs fluorescence with respect to polyphenol concentration in the range of 100 µg to 1 ng/mL. Also, quenching of the photoluminescence was highly efficient and stable and could detect individual and total polyphenols with high sensitivity (LOD-1 ng/mL). Moreover, proposed method was highly efficient than any other reported methods in terms of sensitivity, specificity and selectivity. Therefore, a novel optical sensor was developed for the detection of polyphenols at a sensitive level based on the charge transfer mechanism., (Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Structural studies of ternary complexes of CD1d/glycosyl ceramides/iNKT cells and CD1d/sulfatide/sulfatide reactive Type II NKT cells have shown how the polar moieties on the glycolipids interact with both the antigen presenting protein (CD1d) and the T cell receptors. However, these structures alone do not reveal the relative importance of these interactions. This study focuses on the synthesis of the previously unknown 2"-deoxy-β-galactosyl ceramide 2. This glycolipid is also evaluated for its ability to stimulate iNKT cells and sulfatide-reactive Type II NKT cells.

The nucleotide degradation pathway in somatic cells leads to the accumulation of products such as hypoxanthine and inosine, which are commonly used as fish and meat freshness indicators. Assays based on these molecules cannot differentiate the postmortem time over a short period of time (5-10 h). Further, quantification of these degradation products is cumbersome, costly and time-consuming. For the proposed assay, optimal concentrations of 30 and 2 mM, respectively, for the ATPase inhibitors sodium orthovanadate and EDTA were found. Further, it was observed that a firefly luciferase based assay could enhance the sensitivity levels up to 165-fold at 30 °C. In addition, it was observed that the sensitivity for ATP assay was enhanced up to 60-fold even after 12 h. The limit of detection for the ATP assay was 1 pM, unlike other conventional methods, which are sensitive only up to micromolar levels. Moreover, as little as 0.044 g fish fillet was required for the assay, and no time-consuming sample preparation was necessary. Luminescence of prolonged duration was observed in harvested fish kept at -20 °C in comparison with fish kept at 4 and 30 °C, which reflects the shelf life of fish preserved at lower temperatures.

In the present study we explored metal enhanced bioluminescence in luciferase enzymes for the first time. For this purpose a simple and reproducible one pot synthesis of gold-silver alloy nanoparticles was developed. By changing the molar ratio of tri-sodium citrate and silver nitrate we could synthesize spherical Au-Ag colloids of sizes ranging from 10 to 50 nm with a wide range of localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) peaks (450-550 nm). The optical tunability of the Au-Ag colloids enabled their effective use in enhancement of bioluminescence in a luminescent bacterium Photobacterium leiognathi and in luciferase enzyme systems from fireflies and bacteria. Enhancement of bioluminescence was 250% for bacterial cells, 95% for bacterial luciferase and 52% for firefly luciferase enzyme. The enhancement may be a result of energy transfer or plasmon induced enhancement. Such an increase can lead to higher sensitivity in detection of bioluminescent signals with potential applications in bio-analysis.

Cockayne's syndrome is a rare, autosomal recessive disorder characterized clinically by cachectic dwarfism, cutaneous photosensitivity, loss of adipose tissue, mental retardation, skeletal and neurological abnormalities, and pigmentary degeneration of the retina. Dental caries is a common finding. Dental rehabilitation of a 14-year-old male with Cockayne's syndrome is presented.

Aqueous phase synthesis of CdTe quantum dots (QDs) with surface functionalization for bioconjugation remains the best approach for biosensing and bioimaging applications. We present a facile aqueous phase method to prepare CdTe QDs by adjusting precursor and ligand concentrations. CdTe QDs had photoluminescence quantum yield up to ≈33% with a narrow spectral distribution. The powder X-ray diffraction profile elucidated characteristic broad peaks of zinc blende cubic CdTe nanoparticles with 2.5-3 nm average crystalline size having regular spherical morphology as revealed by transmission electron microscopy. Infra-red spectroscopy confirmed disappearance of characteristic absorptions for -SH thiols inferring thiol coordinated CdTe nanoparticles. The effective molar concentration of 1 : 2.5 : 0.5 respectively for Cd(2+)/3-mercaptopropionic acid/HTe(-) at pH 9 ± 0.2 resulted in CdTe quantum dots of 2.2-3.06 nm having band gap in the range 2.74-2.26 eV respectively. Later, QD523 and QD601 were used for monitoring staphylococcal enterotoxin B (SEB; a bacterial superantigen responsible for food poisoning) using Forster resonance energy transfer based two QD fluorescence. QD523 and QD601 were bioconjugated to anti-SEB IgY antibody and SEB respectively according to carbodiimide protocol. The mutual affinity between SEB and anti-SEB antibody was relied upon to obtain efficient energy transfer between respective QDs resulting in fluorescence quenching of QD523 and fluorescence enhancement of QD601. Presence of SEB in the range 1-0.05 µg varied the rate of fluorescence quenching of QD523 , thereby demonstrating efficient use of QDs in the Forster resonance energy transfer based immunosensing method by engineering the QD size., (Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.)

A simple colorimetric biosensing technique based on the interaction of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) with the aptamer was developed for detection of p53, a tumor suppressor protein, in the current study. Aggregation of AuNPs was induced by desorption of the p53 binding RNA aptamer from the surface of AuNPs as a result of the aptamer target interaction leading to the color change of AuNPs from red to purple. The detection limit of p53 protein by the colorimetric approach was 0.1 ng/ml after successful optimization of the amount of aptamer, AuNPs, salts, and incubation time. Furthermore, the catalytic activity of the aggregated AuNPs was greatly enhanced by chemiluminescence (CL) reaction, where the detection limit was enhanced to 10 pg/ml with a regression coefficient of R2 = 0.9907. Here the sensitivity was increased by 10-fold compared with the AuNP-based colorimetric method. Hence, the sensitivity of detection was increased by employing CL, by using the catalytic activity of aggregated AuNPs, on the luminol-hydrogen peroxide reaction. Thus, the combination of colorimetric and CL-based aptasensor can be of great advantage in increasing the sensitivity of detection for any target analyte., (Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Optical based sensing systems that measure luminescence, fluorescence, reflectance and absorbance, etc., are some of the areas of applications of optical immunosensors. Immunological methods rely on specific binding of an antibody (monoclonal, polyclonal or engineered) to an antigen. Detection of specific microorganisms and microbial toxins requires immobilization of specific antibodies onto a given transducer that can produce signal upon attachment of typical microbe/microbial toxins. Inherent features of immunosensors such as specificity, sensitivity, speed, ease and on-site analysis can be made use for various applications. Safety of food and environment has been a major concern of food technologists and health scientists in recent years. There exists a strong need for rapid and sensitive detection of different components of foods and beverages along with the food borne and water borne pathogens, toxins and pesticide residues with high specificity. Biosensors present attractive, efficient alternative techniques by providing quick and reliable performances. There is a very good potential for application of biosensors for monitoring food quality and safety in food and bioprocessing industries in India.

A novel functionalized aptamer based 'turn-off' fluorescent biosensor for ultra-sensitive detection of small molecules like bisphenol-A in water samples.

Cancer is a complex disease with a range of genetic and biochemical markers within and among tumors, but a general tumor characteristic is extracellular acidity, which is associated with tumor growth and development. Acidosis could be a universal marker for cancer imaging and the delivery of therapeutic molecules, but its promise as a cancer biomarker has not been fully realized in the clinic. We have discovered a unique approach for the targeting of acidic tissue using the pH-sensitive folding and transmembrane insertion of pH (low) insertion peptide (pHLIP). The essence of the molecular mechanism has been elucidated, but the principles of design need to be understood for optimal clinical applications. Here, we report on a library of 16 rationally designed pHLIP variants. We show how the tuning of the biophysical properties of peptide-lipid bilayer interactions alters tumor targeting, distribution in organs, and blood clearance. Lead compounds for PET/single photon emission computed tomography and fluorescence imaging/MRI were identified, and targeting specificity was shown by use of noninserting variants. Finally, we present our current understanding of the main principles of pHLIP design.

The occurrence of organochlorine pesticides in the environment has been a major concern, due to their high persistence and the possible impacts of their exposure to humans. Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) is most hazardous and one of the most widely used organochlorine insecticides. DDT and its main metabolites are highly stable to physical, chemical and biological degradation and are therefore still being detected in many parts of the world. The present study describes dipstick-based immuno-chemiluminescence method for the detection of DDT with high sensitivity. Anti-DDT antibodies raised in chicken (IgY) were used as the biological sensing elements by immobilizing onto nitrocellulose membrane strips in a chemiluminescence (CL)-based dipstick technique. The photons generated during the biochemical interaction were directly proportional to the DDT concentration. A mean recovery of 81.2-95.6% was obtained for DDT-spiked fruit juice samples with 2.8-4.6% relative standard deviation (RSD). Using the proposed dipstick-based immuno-CL method, DDT was detected with linearity in the range 0.05-1 ng/mL, having a limit of detection (LOD) of 0.05 ng/mL. This method can be used for the rapid, reliable detection of DDT pesticide., (Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.)

The routing of fluorescent signals from NADH to quantum dots (QDs) has been a subject of extensive research for FRET based applications. In the present study, the spectral cross talk of NAD(+)/NADH with QDs was used to monitor the reaction of NAD(+)-dependent dehydrogenase enzyme. CdTe QD may undergo dipolar interaction with NADH as a result of broad spectral absorption due to multiple excitonic states resulting from quantum confinement effects. Thus, non-radiative energy transfer can take place from NADH to CdTe QD enhancing QDs fluorescence. Energy routing assay of NADH-QD was applied for detection of formaldehyde as a model analyte in the range 1000-0.01 ng/mL by the proposed technique. We observed proportionate quenching of CdTe QD fluorescence by NAD(+) and enhancement in the presence of NADH formed by various concentrations of enzyme (0.028-0.4 U). Hence, it was possible to detect formaldehyde in the range 1000-0.01 ng/mL with a limit of detection (LOD) at 0.01 ng/mL and regression coefficient R(2)=0.9982. Therefore, a unique optical sensor was developed for the detection of the formaldehyde in sensitive level based on the above mechanism. This method can be used to follow the activity of NAD(+)-dependent enzymes and detection of dehydrogenases in general., (Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Extensive research on avian systems has proved hens as an alternate source for polyclonal antibody generation necessary for immunosensing applications. Herein, we present the immobilization of avian antibody raised against staphylococcal enterotoxin B (SEB) and its applicability for a competitive fluoroimmunoassay technique. White leghorn hens immunized with SEB generated high affinity antibodies with a highest yield of 3.2 mg ml(-1) having affinity constant of 0.976 × 10(10) M l(-1). A competitive fluoroimmunoassay format was developed comprising CdTe(557) as a fluorescence detector for monitoring SEB, a bacterial super-antigen. CdTe(557) was bioconjugated to SEB according to the carbodiimide protocol and confirmed by absorption spectral analysis. An immunoreactor column was designed by immobilizing anti-SEB antibodies and was successfully employed as an efficient bio-recognition tool. An immuno-affinity reaction involving competitive binding between free SEB and CdTe(557)-bioconjugated SEB for immobilized antibody was relied upon to attain assay specificity and sensitivity. It was possible to quantify SEB from 1000 to 10 ng based on the integrated fluorescence of the SEB-CdTe(557) bioconjugate eluted from the immunoreactor column with a limit of detection of 8.15 ng and a regression coefficient R(2) = 0.9925. Thus, integration of QDs with immuno-affinity reactions revealed the versatility of nanoparticles as a potential fluorescence label for bioanalytical applications.

A simple and stable RNA aptamer-based colorimetric sensor for the detection of vitamin B₁₂ using gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) has been proposed. Vitamin B₁₂ belongs to the B vitamin group and prevents pernicious anemia, which is caused by vitamin B₁₂ deficiency. A highly stable RNA aptamer that binds to vitamin B₁₂ was employed by structural modification of 2'-hydroxyl group of ribose to 2'-flouro in all pyrimidines indicated in lowercase in 35-mer aptamer (5' GGA Acc GGu GcG cAu AAc cAc cuc AGu GcG AGc AA 3'). Aggregation of AuNPs was specifically induced by desorption of the vitamin B₁₂ binding RNA aptamer from the surface of AuNPs as a result of the aptamer-target interaction, leading to the color change from red to purple. The level of detection of vitamin B₁₂ was 0.1 μg/ml by successful optimization of the amount of the aptamer, AuNPs, salts, and stability of the aptamer. Analysis of vitamin B₁₂ was carried out, and the observed recovery was 92 to 95.3% with a relative standard deviation in the range of 2.08 to 8.27%. The results obtained were compared with those of the ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis) spectrometry method. This colorimetric aptasensor is advantageous for on-site detection with the naked eye., (Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

The present communication deals with construction of immobilized robust biophotonic bead using P. leiognathi, a marine luminescent bacterium for their possible application in monitoring of environmental toxicants. Immobilization efficiency of agar, carrageenan and sodium alginate was evaluated separately in terms of luminescence response and was recorded as 30.3, 77.4 or 99.5%, respectively. Under optimized storage conditions, the luminescent response of P. leiognathi in the immobilized state was studied over a period of 30 days. These biophotonic beads were further used as a rapid and reliable optical biosensing tool for the detection of heavy metals [Hg(II), As(V) or Cd(II)] and pesticide [2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D)] in water systems. The concentration range for the detection of Hg(II), As(V), Cd(II) and 2,4-D was 2-32ppm, 4-128ppm, 16-512ppm and 100-600ppm, respectively, while corresponding sensitivity threshold was 2.0ppm, 4.0ppm, 16.0ppm and 100ppm. A comparison of inhibition constant (K(d)) (or EC(20)) values indicated that the sensitivity thresholds rank as Hg(II)>As(V)>Cd(II)>2,4-D. Moreover, the time taken for the detection of heavy metals and pesticide was less than 30min. Using the bioluminescence inhibition method, the concentration of heavy metals and pesticide could be predicted., (Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Aims:   The study describes the development of simple and rapid DNA extraction method in combination with loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) to detect enterotoxigenic Staphylococcus aureus in food samples., Methods and Results:   In this study, isolation of genomic DNA of enterotoxigenic Staph. aureus from spiked milk, milk burfi, khoa, sugarcane juice and boiled rice was carried out by boiling the isolated sample pellets for 10 min with 1% Triton X-100. The isolated DNA was evaluated by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and LAMP method. The LAMP was found to be 100 times more sensitive than PCR. The LAMP assay was very specific for Staph. aureus, and the presence of other contaminating bacterial DNAs and food matrix did not interfere or inhibit the LAMP assay., Conclusions:   The template DNA extraction method developed in this study for food samples is simple, rapid and cost-effective. LAMP was found to be less sensitive to matrix effect of food, compared to PCR., Significance and Impact of the Study:   The method is suitable for direct detection of Staph. aureus without any enrichment in contaminated food samples and hence finds its application in food safety analysis, in permutation with LAMP., (© 2012 The Authors. Journal of Applied Microbiology © 2012 The Society for Applied Microbiology.)

The membrane-associated folding/unfolding of pH (low) insertion peptide (pHLIP) provides an opportunity to study how sequence variations influence the kinetics and pathway of peptide insertion into bilayers. Here, we present the results of steady-state and kinetics investigations of several pHLIP variants with different numbers of charged residues, with attached polar cargoes at the peptide's membrane-inserting end, and with three single-Trp variants placed at the beginning, middle, and end of the transmembrane helix. Each pHLIP variant exhibits a pH-dependent interaction with a lipid bilayer. Although the number of protonatable residues at the inserting end does not affect the ultimate formation of helical structure across a membrane, it correlates with the time for peptide insertion, the number of intermediate states on the folding pathway, and the rates of unfolding and exit. The presence of polar cargoes at the peptide's inserting end leads to the appearance of intermediate states on the insertion pathway. Cargo polarity correlates with a decrease of the insertion rate. We conclude that the existence of intermediate states on the folding and unfolding pathways is not mandatory and, in the simple case of a polypeptide with a noncharged and nonpolar inserting end, the folding and unfolding appears as an all-or-none transition. We propose a model for membrane-associated insertion/folding and exit/unfolding and discuss the importance of these observations for the design of new delivery agents for direct translocation of polar therapeutic and diagnostic cargo molecules across cellular membranes., (Copyright © 2012 Biophysical Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)