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Abstract The present study aimed to fabricate a novel polymeric spongy composite to enhance skin regeneration composed of Nystatin (antifungal agent) and Silver Nanoparticles (AgNps). Different formulations (F1–F8) were developed & characterized by using various analytical techniques. AgNps synthesized by chemical reduction method showed spherical morphology 2 µm in size showed by SEM and XRD. A fine porous structure of gel embedded with AgNps having an amorphous structure with 10 % crystallinity due to AgNps was found. IR spectra revealed no chemical interaction between polymers and Nystatin. An increase in thermal stability of formulation was observed till 700 ℃ analyzed by Differential Scanning Calorimetry. Cytotoxic analysis on L929 mouse skin fibroblast cells showed a decrease in cell viability as Ag concentration increased (inactivating Fibroblast and keratinocytes) while 10 mg composition was found safest concentration (94%). Optimized formulation (F2) presented in-vitro drug release up to 90.59% ± 0.76 at pH 7.4, swelling studies (87.5% ± 0.57), water retention (26.60 ± 0.34), pH (5.31 ± 0.03). In the animal burn model, the group that received CHG/Ag/Nystatin healed the wound significantly (p < 0.05). These results suggested that optimized carrier can be used for other anti-fungal drugs facilitating the early healing of the wound.

The presence of heavy metals in aqueous media can cause serious threats to living organisms. Consequently, for the efficient and economic removal of heavy metals from water, a wide range of biomass as biosorbents has been investigated. The present study was designed to deploy Gossypium hirsutum stem powder as a biosorbent for efficient removal of toxic heavy metals including Pb2+, Cu2+, Zn2+ and Ni2+ ions from aqueous media. The biomass was modified through acid and base treatment prior to its deployment as biosorbent. Different instrumental techniques such as FTIR, SEM and TGA were used to analyze the structural, morphological, and thermal characteristics of biosorbent. AAS, and UV spectrophotometer were used to quantify the metal ions in solutions. Nonlinear models of Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms was explored for practical use in real sample analysis, and adsorption parameters were optimized systematically. The adsorption isotherms followed the non-linear Langmuir model, which best fit four heavy metals with an R2 value (0.99) in both acidic and base-modified biomass. The base treated biomass showed relatively higher maximum uptake capacity for the investigated heavy metals (Pb2+ 121.24, Cu2+ 117.09, Zn2+ 130.65, and Ni2+ 111.09 mg g−1) than that of acid treated biomass. Thermogravimetric analysis revealed the degradation pattern of designed adsorbent. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy confirmed the presence of OH and Cl groups which were added during pretreatment. Scanning electron microscopy showed that the modified material has rough surface area which can contribute in enhancing the adsorption of heavy metals. The regeneration studies of modified biosorbent using 0.1 M HNO3 solution demonstrated that the biosorbent can be effectively utilized for further five biosorption cycles without significant loss in its adsorption capability. The findings of the study revealed that acid and base modified Gossypium hirsutum stem could be efficiently utilized as a biosorbent for the removal of heavy metals in water at pH 5.5 with an adsorbent dose of 0.5 g and equilibrium time of 35 min.

Abstract Global food production is threatened due to increasing salinity and can be stabilized by improving salt tolerance of crops. In the current study, salt tolerance potential of 40 local wheat cultivars against 150 mM NaCl stress was explored. Salt treatment at seedling stage caused less reduction in biomass, K+ and P while more decline of Na+ in tolerant cultivars due to reduced translocation and enhanced exclusion of Na+ from leaves. Principal component analysis based selected S-24, LU-26S, Pasban-90 (salt tolerant) and MH-97, Kohistan-97, Inqilab-91 and Iqbal-2000 (salt sensitive) cultivars were evaluated at adult stage applying 150 mM salinity. Osmotic adjustment by accumulation of soluble sugars and proline and accelerated antioxidant enzymes activities caused efficient scavenging of reactive oxygen species making S-24 and LU-26S tolerant while in MH-97 and Kohistan-97, high MDA represent greater membrane damage due to oxidative stress making them salt sensitive. Chlorophyll a fluorescence transients confirmed better efficiency of photosystem II in S-24 and LU-26S based on energy fluxes (ABS/RC, TRo/RC, ETo/RC and DIo/RC), performance index (PIABS) and maximum quantum yield (Fv/Fm). These findings can be correlated using molecular techniques to identify genes for salt exclusion, osmotic adjustment and photosynthetic activity for use in molecular breeding programs.

Aspergillus parasiticus (A. parasiticus) is known for producing aflatoxins and is a major threat to the food industry. Green synthesis of nanoparticles (NPs) is a cost-effective and environment-friendly approach. A variety of NPs have been explored as antifungal agents; however, their antifungal characteristics need to be further enhanced to compete with traditional fungicides. The present work describes the green synthesis of ZnO and CuO NPs by precipitation method using aqueous leaf extract of Manilkara zapota and their surface modification through polyaniline (PANI). Still, there is no published study on the application of PANI-coated particles as antifungal agents against A. parasiticus and hence was the focus of this work. The polymer-coated NPs were synthesized, characterized, and investigated for their antifungal properties against A. parasiticus. Textural and structural characterization of PANI-coated and non-coated ZnO and CuO NPs were confirmed through FT-IR, SEM, and XRD techniques. The PANI-coated NPs presented higher fungal growth inhibition (%) as compared to the non-coated ones. The maximum inhibition of 77 ± 2% (n = 3) was shown by PANI/ZnO NPs at a concentration of 12 mmol L−1 and 72 h of incubation. The non-coated NPs presented a lower inhibition rate with respect to their coated NPs, thus justifying the role of polymeric coating in improving antifungal efficiency.

Abstract Salt tolerant wheat cultivars may be used as genetic resource for wheat breeding to ensure yield stability in future. The study was aimed to select salt tolerant cultivar(s) to identify novel source of salt tolerance in local wheat germplasm. Initially, 40 local wheat cultivars were screened at 150 mM NaCl stress at seedling stage. Selected salt-tolerant (three; S-24, LU-26S and Pasban-90) and salt-sensitive (four; MH-97, Kohistan-97, Inqilab-91 and Iqbal-2000) wheat cultivars were further evaluated using growth, yield, biochemical and physiological attributes. Growth and yield of selected cultivars were reduced under salt stress due to decline in plant water status, limited uptake of macronutrients (N, P and K), reduced K+/Na+ ratio, photosynthetic pigments and quantum yield of PSII. Wheat plants tried to acclimate salt stress by osmotic adjustment (accumulation of total soluble sugars, proline and free amino acids). Degree of salinity tolerance in cvs. S-24 and LU-26S found to be associated with maintenance of K+/Na+ ratio, osmo-protectant and photosynthetic activity and can be used as donor for salt tolerance in wheat breeding program at least in Pakistan. These cultivars can be further characterized using molecular techniques to identify QTLs/genes for salt exclusion, osmo-protectant and photosynthetic activity for molecular breeding.

In this paper, scholars attempted to explore the relationship between employee benefits package and organizational commitment and job satisfaction, and comparatively evaluate whether employee benefits package has a greater impact on organizational commitment or job satisfaction. For this study, educational sector of Pakistan is selected because benefits and pay packages differ between employee categories and could potentially lead to disagreements among employees when remuneration packages are compared. According to results, it has found that employee's job satisfaction is linked to employee's benefits package. Using a conceptual framework, this study examined the impact of employees’ benefits package on their organizational commitment and job satisfaction. The data were collected through a questionnaire with sample size of 200 employees of higher educational institutions including head of the departments, faculty members, and administrative staff using stratified random sampling technique. SPSS 27 was used to analyze the data using reliability, validity, correlation, and regression measures. The data analysis indicates that employee benefits positively impact both organizational commitment and job satisfaction. Employee benefits package has a greater impact on organizational commitment than job satisfaction. It means that a low significant correlation exists between employee benefits package and job satisfaction as compared with organizational commitment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study was designed to measure the relationship of customer brand engagement's dimensions (cognitive processing, affection and activation) and online brand experience, and influence of online brand experience on brand satisfaction and brand loyalty. Additionally, the study aims to answer the question whether the number of transactions made by customers matters for satisfaction and loyalty? Data were collected using an online self-administered questionnaire and 252 online Pakistani bank users participated in the study. Data were analyzed using confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling. The findings support the hypotheses, and it was found that the customers who make more transactions are more satisfied and loyal as compared to those who make a few transactions. The study has practical implications for bank managers to understand the key factors that encourage customers to use online banking, due to the substantial impact of customer brand engagement on online brand experience. Although the study has some limitations, yet the findings provide new insights to understand the role of engagement (cognitive processing, affection and activation) and online brand experience in an online bank setting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With larger data sets and more sophisticated analyses, it is becoming increasingly common for neuroimaging researchers to push (or exceed) the limitations of standalone computer workstations. Nonetheless, although high-performance computing platforms such as clusters, grids and clouds are already in routine use by a small handful of neuroimaging researchers to increase their storage and/or computational power, the adoption of such resources by the broader neuroimaging community remains relatively uncommon. Therefore, the goal of the current manuscript is to: 1) inform prospective users about the similarities and differences between computing clusters, grids and clouds; 2) highlight their main advantages; 3) discuss when it may (and may not) be advisable to use them; 4) review some of their potential problems and barriers to access; and finally 5) give a few practical suggestions for how interested new users can start analyzing their neuroimaging data using cloud resources. Although the aim of cloud computing is to hide most of the complexity of the infrastructure management from end-users, we recognize that this can still be an intimidating area for cognitive neuroscientists, psychologists, neurologists, radiologists, and other neuroimaging researchers lacking a strong computational background. Therefore, with this in mind, we have aimed to provide a basic introduction to cloud computing in general (including some of the basic terminology, computer architectures, infrastructure and service models, etc.), a practical overview of the benefits and drawbacks, and a specific focus on how cloud resources can be used for various neuroimaging applications.