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Naseem Ullah,1 Shahzeb Khan,1 Shaimaa Ahmed,2 Thirumala Govender,2 Hani S Faidah,3 Marcel de Matas,4 Muhammad Shahid,5 Muhammad Usman Minhas,6 Muhammad Sohail,7 Muhammad Khurram8 1Department of Pharmacy, University of Malakand, Chakdara, Pakistan; 2Discipline of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Health Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, South Africa; 3Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, Umm Al Qura University, Makkah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; 4SEDA Pharmaceutical Development Services, The BioHub at Alderley Park, Cheshire, UK; 5Department of Pharmacy, Sarhad University of Science and Information Technology, Peshawar, Pakistan; 6Faculty of Pharmacy and Alternative Medicine, The Islamia University of Bahawalpur, Punjab, Pakistan; 7Department of Pharmacy, COMSATS, Abbottabad, Pakistan; 8Department of Pharmacy, Shaheed Benazir Bhutto University, Sheringal, Pakistan Background: The aim of this study was to prepare and evaluate the impact of polymers on fabricating stable dexibuprofen (Dexi) nanocrystals with enhanced therapeutic potential, using a low energy, anti-solvent precipitation method coupled with molecular modelling approach. Methods: Dexi nanocrystals were prepared using antisolvent precipitation with syringe pump. Crystallinity of the processed Dexi particles was confirmed using differential scanning calorimetry and powdered X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy. Dissolution of Dexi nanocrystals was compared with raw Dexi and marketed tablets. Molecular modelling study was coupled with experimental studies to rationalise the appropriate polymers for stable Dexi nanocrystals. Antinociceptive study was carried out using balb mice. Results: Combinations of hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC)–polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP) and HPMC–Eudragit (EUD) were shown to be very effective in producing stable Dexi nanocrystals with particle sizes of 85.0±2.5 nm and 90±3.0 nm, and polydispersity of 0.179±0.01, 0.182±0.02, respectively. The stability studies conducted for 90 days demonstrated that nanocrystals stored at 2°C–8°C and 25°C were more stable than those at 40°C. The maximum recovery of Dexi nanocrystals was observed from the formulations using the combination of HPMC–PVP and HPMC–EUD, which equated to 98% and 94% of the nominal active drug content respectively. The saturation solubility of the Dexi nanocrystals was substantially increased to 270.0±3.5 µg/mL compared to the raw Dexi in water (51.0±2.0 µg/mL) and stabilizer solution (92.0±3.0 µg/mL). Enhanced dissolution rate (P

Ciprofloxacin (CPX), is a broad-spectrum fluoroquinolone antibiotic widely used to treat bacterial infections in humans and animals. In recent years, ecological problems caused by the disposal of CPX-waste product have attracted increasing attention. This study aimed to evaluate the ability of different bacteria to remove CPX from water. The ability of five bacterial strains namely; Acenitobacter sp., Acenitobacter lwofii, Bacillus. pumilus, Burkholderia phytofirmans, and Mesorihizobium sp. were examined in this study. Tests were performed on Luria Bertani (LB) as well as on Mueller-Hinton (MH) agar at different CPX concentrations (20-100 mg L-1). All five tested bacterial strains showed growth on LB as well as on MH agar plates at all concentrations between 20 to 100 mg L-1 CPX. Three bacterial species: Acenitobacter lwofii, Bacillus pumilus, and Mesorihizobium sp. were reported more resistant to CPX of the five strains tested. In a shake flask study, the strain B. pumilus initially showed higher degradation rate (75.53%) followed by Acenitobacter lwofii (72.3%), Mesorihizobium sp. (70.32), Burkholderia phytofirmans (67.10%), and Acenitobacter sp. (63.2%) at low CPX concentration (5 mg L-1) in minimal saline media. However, Mesorihizobium sp. showed higher degradation efficiency (76.32%) at a higher CPX concentration (10 mg L-1). A group of three bacterial strains, A. lowfi, B. pumilus, and Mesorihizobium sp. showed good CPX degradation rate (95.4%), and achieved higher degradation efficiency than the single strains at 20 mg L-1 CPX concentration. Overall, the results suggest that using a combination of bacteria may be a useful tool for the remediation of antibiotic pollution. In addition, this study reveals the ability of previously isolated bacteria to biodegrade CPX as a sole source of carbon, providing new insights into the biodegradation of CPX. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Amylase enzyme is used in various industries due to its diverse applications. In this study, bacteria from soil sample were primarily screened on starch agar medium to identify amylase producer through the detection of prominent clear zone. Total of five soil samples namely bakery points (A-1), sugar cane juice point (A-2), Lichi chinesis garden soil (A-3), rice field (A-4) and sugar industrial waste (A-5) were used in this study. Among the 17 strains isolated from three samples A-1, A-2 and A-3 were found positive for amylase production. The strains were further screened on the production medium. The N-1 bacterial strain revealed higher enzyme activity (92.21 ± 17 IU/ml) compared to the other strain and was thus selected for further work. The strain was identified as Bacillus lichenoformis from the 16S rRNA analysis. Enzyme production was enhanced by optimizing various parameters by one factor at a time technique. The agro industrial waste rice polish was used as substrate. The optimum temperature of the enzyme was 35°C, pH 5.5 and 2% (w/v) of substrate concentration. Qualitative detection by using sodium dodecyl polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis showed that molecular weight of enzyme was 35 kDa. This indicated that the enzyme requires a moderately high temperature and neutral pH to show greatest activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Acinetobacter baumannii (AB) is a gram-negative bacterium and a main source of nosocomial infection that mainly affect immunocompromised individuals. Methylene blue (MB) is commonly used for staining in microbiology but in this article MB is used as resisting agent against AB. The main aim of this study is to find the most possible cure against A. baunannii. Isolated strains of A. baumannii were subcultured on Muller-Hinton agar (MHA) containing MB and sub-cultured on eosin methylene blue (EMB). Then antibiotic susceptibility testing (AST) and minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) were determined. The A. baumannii isolates were highly inhibited by EMB medium but showed growth on MHA plates containing MB. The results infer that A. baumannii shows sensitivity against Meropenem. In-vitro studied effect of methylene blue shows inhibition against carbapenem resistance A. baumannii growth was also inhibited by EMB agar. AB strains showed sensitivity against synergistic combinational drugs (Meropenem + Amikacin), (Meropenem + Ciprofloxacin) (Imipenem + Tobramycin), these strains showed resistance against additive combinational drugs (Meropenem + Cefepime) and (Imipenem + Tobramycin), (Ciprofloxacin), (Cefepime) as compared with individually. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Increasing concentration of carbon dioxide ( CO 2) in Earth's atmosphere due to burning of fossil fuels is a major cause of global warming. To avoid catastrophic consequences of increasing global temperature, the conversion of CO 2 is vital. Incidentally, synergistic effect of Ba 0. 7 Sr 0. 3 TiO 3 photocatalyst on CO 2 dissociation in atmospheric pressure planer dielectric barrier discharge is investigated. Maximum dissociation fraction of 37% is achieved in undiluted CO 2 , 49% in CO 2 + Ar and 44% in CO 2 + He at 10 kV applied voltage with 10 kHz fixed frequency and 200 SCCM total flow rate. Transitions from the Angstrom band of CO at 483.5 nm and the 2nd positive system of N 2 at 380.4 nm are used for molecular actinometry measurements. Rotational temperature is calculated, by employing the Boltzmann plot technique, using rotational spectra of Q-branch of CO (0-1) Angstrom band. To avoid inconsistency in rotational temperature measurement, rotational spectra of 1st negative system of N 2 (0-0) band are also used. For this, synthetic spectra have been fitted over experimentally recorded spectra of 1st negative system of N 2 (0-0) band using LIFEBASE software. Electrical characterization of the discharge suggests that power added to the plasma increased from 1.92 to 6.13 W in undiluted CO 2 , from 1.81 to 6.4 W in CO 2 + He and from 1.71 to 7 W in case of CO 2 + Ar mixture plasma. A higher dissociation fraction is found in the case of CO 2 − N 2 ∕ Ar mixture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Chinkara gazelle (Gazella bennettii), an endangered species, faces a serious threat from anthropogenic activities and climate change. In Balochistan, climate change and drought have created extremely challenging circumstances for its survival. The population status of many species cannot be determined due to a lack of data. If the current situation persists, there is a high risk of extinction for this species in its natural habitat. The purpose of this study was to examine the population dynamics and distribution patterns of Chinkara gazelle in the Khuzdar and Lasbela districts of Balochistan, Pakistan. The study covered an area of approximately 45,123.97 km² and involved a double-observer survey at six sites from 2019 to 2022, using the BBRecapture package in the R programming language. The study detected a decreasing population trend in the Chinkara population over a four-year period. A population of 700, 683, 613 and 583 individuals were observed in 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022, respectively. Rocky shrub land consistently recorded the highest number of chinkara sightings among various habitats. This study provides valuable information about the Chinkara gazelle population, including population trends, gender ratios, habitat preferences, and density. The findings contribute significantly to our understanding of the species and will be used to develop local-level conservation initiatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The research deals with the isoflavone genistein production, followed by the β-glucosidase production from Aspergillus oryzae. The Cajanus cajan leaf extract was prepared and the optimized extraction parameters were leaf powder weight (1 g), agitation time (75 min), and temperature (60°C). The optimal conditions for β-glucosidase production by submerged fermentation were 0.4% (w/v) (NH4)2SO4 as nitrogen source, 0.05% (w/v) MgSO4 as magnesium source, 2 ml (v/v) size of inoculum, and 60 min incubation time. The Al2O3 nanocrystals (NCs) were synthesized by optimal volume of leaf extract (25 ml) and procurement period (50 min) along with Al2NO3 and NaOH. The β-glucosidase immobilization on Al2O3 NCs improved the specific activity from 2.38 ± 0.002 to 5.64 ± 0.07 U·mg−1. The maximum genistein production was achieved with the rate of biotransformation (48 h) and enzyme concentration (1% (v/v)) along with the substrate level. In fourier transform infrared spectroscopy analysis, the difference between both β-glucosidases free and Al2O3 immobilized was obtained with peaks at 1,120 and 2,150 cm−1. The X-ray diffraction analysis for the NCs was obtained from 10° to 80° with several intensities. and zeta potential size distribution was recorded at 16.2% of intensity with 206.4 d nm. After immobilization, the stability of the β-glucosidase was increased, thereby increasing its potential in the pharmaceutical, biofuel, food, and beverage industries.

Proteases have received a lot of attention in recent years thanks to their use in a variety of industries, including the food, feed, leather, textile, and pharmaceutical sectors. The soil sample from a cold climate was used in the current experimental study of protease production. In order to identify the protease-producing bacterial species, morphological, physiological, and biochemical analyses were carried out, and the isolated bacterial strain's ability to produce proteases on skim milk agar was assessed. As a result of casein hydrolysis, a zone formed surrounding the bacterial colony suggested a protease-positive strain. To increase the production of protease by isolated Bacillus species, various sources of nitrogen and carbon were examined. Yeast extract (309.32 IU/ml) was the nitrogen source that supported growth the best among the other sources studied, and fructose (269.4 IU/ml) was the carbon source that produced the most protease activity. The fermentation time of 72 h (393.7033 IU/ml) was anticipated to be the best setting for protease synthesis. When 2% (w/v) soybean meal was employed, protease activity was measured at 494.92 IU/ml. The influence of pH was investigated, and it was discovered that 7.5 was the best and optimal pH for Bacillus species to produce 511 IU/ml of protease. When the temperature range was discovered to be 40°C, the highest protease activity of 542.93 IU/ml was recorded. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]