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Mechanical downsizing of waste lignocellulosic fibers to small-size particles is a promising way to produce efficient reinforcing elements for bio-composites, both from commercial and environmental perspectives. This study specifically aims to make nano-sized lignocellulosic fillers from date palm agro-residues using a mechanical ball milling technique supplemented with liquid Nitrogen. The researchers aimed to obtain efficient reinforcing elements for bio-composites by fragmenting and downsizing waste lignocellulosic fibers. Several tests were conducted to evaluate and characterize the fillers' properties. The morphological analysis using TEM and FE-SEM showed that the microparticles had irregularly shaped particles with sizes ranging from 0.6 to 0.8 μm for micro-untreated particles and 0.22–0.32 μm for micro-treated particles. The nanoparticles had smaller particle sizes, with nano-untreated particles ranging from 80 to 122 nm and nano-treated particles ranging from 32 to 55 nm. XRD analysis revealed a boost in crystallinity due to the treatment process; (45 %) for micro-treated and (67 %) for nano-treated. TGA analysis indicated that the chemically treated fillers contributed to the improved thermal stability of the samples. Specifically, MT showed the best thermal stability due to increased crystallinity and stronger binding among the cellulose chains than that of NT.

Background: With the global increase in antibacterial resistance, the challenge faced by developing countries is to utilize the available antibiotics, alone or in combination, against resistant bacterial strains. We aimed to encapsulate the levofloxacin (LVX) into polymeric nanoparticles using biodegradable polymers i.e. Chitosan and PLGA, estimating their physicochemical characteristics followed by functional assessment as nanocarriers of levofloxacin against the different resistant strains of bacteria isolated from biological samples collected from tertiary care hospital in Lahore, Pakistan. Methods: LVX-NPs were synthesized using ion gelation and double emulsion solvent-evaporation method employing chitosan (CS) and poly-lactic-co-glycolic acid (PLGA), characterized via FTIR, XRD, SEM, and invitro drug release studies, while antibacterial activity was assessed using Kirby-Bauer disc-diffusion method. Results: Data revealed that the levofloxacin-loaded chitosan nanoparticles showed entrapment efficiency of 57.14% ± 0.03 (CS-I), 77.30% ± 0.08(CS-II) and 87.47% ± 0.08 (CS-III). The drug content, particle size, and polydispersity index of CS-I were 52.22% ± 0.2, 559 nm ± 31 nm, and 0.030, respectively, whereas it was 66.86% ± 0.17, 595 nm ± 52.3 nm and 0.057, respectively for CS-II and 82.65% ± 0.36, 758 nm ± 24 nm and 0.1, respectively for CS-III. The PLGA-levofloxacin nanoparticles showed an entrapment efficiency of 42.80% ± 0.4 (PLGA I) and 23.80% ± 0.4 (PLGA II). The drug content, particle size and polydispersity index of PLGA-I were 86% ± 0.21, 92 nm ± 10 nm, and 0.058, respectively, whereas it was 52.41% ± 0.45, 313 nm ± 32 nm and 0.076, respectively for PLGA-II. The XRD patterns of both polymeric nanoparticles showed an amorphous nature. SEM analysis reflects the circular-shaped agglomerated nanoparticles with PLGA polymer and dense spherical nanoparticles with chitosan polymer. The in-vitro release profile of PLGA-I nanoparticles showed a sustained release of 82% in 120 h and it was 58.40% for CS-III. Both types of polymeric nanoparticles were found to be stable for up to 6 months without losing any major drug content. Among the selected formulations, CS-III and PLGA-I, CS-III had better antibacterial potency against gram+ve and gram-ve bacteria, except for K. pneumonia, yet, PLGA-I demonstrated efficacy against K. pneumonia as per CSLI guidelines. All formulations did not exhibit any signs of hemotoxicity, nonetheless, the CS-NPs tend to bind on the surface of RBCs. Conclusion: These data suggested that available antibiotics can effectively be utilized as nano-antibiotics against resistant bacterial strains, causing severe infections, for improved antibiotic sensitivity without compromising patient safety.

The food sustainability and safety issues are one of the biggest challenges that are faced by the developing countries as a result of the growing human population. Applications of nanotechnology enable a straightforward, alternative, and dependable technology for such issues. Various metal nanoparticles (NPs) have been shown in multiples research over the years to exhibit antibacterial and barrier capabilities, hence revolutionizing the packaging of various processed and fresh commodities. Additionally, improved outlook of metal nanomaterials has risen the availability of nanotechnology-based food items. Such an advancement in nanotechnology may provide a variety of solutions for issues associated with foods, their storage, shelf-life and may offer sustained economic, commercial and health benefits. Silver nano-particles (Ag NPs) in particular has a significant impact on sustainability and active & intelligent packaging due to their tunable physico-chemical, biological and enhanced biocidal properties. However, the challenges in assessing the safety of nanofoods and nano-packaging should be addressed in such a way so that socio-environmental interests are not compromised. Thus, this article presents a review, to provide scope of Ag NPs in food technology along with the recent advancements in food packaging industry.

In order to evaluate the effect of water deficit stress and foliar application of zinc oxide nano particles on morphophysiological characteristics in Withania coagulans L. landraces, a factorial experiment in a completely randomized design with 3 replications was setup. The experiment included various irrigation regimes (control), (medium stress), (severe stress), four landraces (Fanuj, Khash, Saravan and Sarbaz), with and without foliar application of zinc oxide nano particles. The experiment was conducted in green house of the faculty of Agriculture, Tarbiat Modares University, during 2018-2019. The highest leaf area (538.92 cm2) was related to Sarbaz in control irrigation and the lowest leaf area (245.88 cm2) was related to Khash in severe water deficit stress. Based on the comparison results, the mean of maximum plant dry weight (1.76 g) was related to Sarbaz and control irrigation and the lowest plant dry weight (0.63 g) was related to Fanuj and severe water deficit stress. Also, the highest amount of chlorophyll a (2.55 μmol.g-1) was related to Khash, control irrigation and foliar application of zinc oxide nano particles. The highest amount of chlorophyll b (1.26 μmol.g-1) was related to Fanuj, control irrigation and foliar application of zinc oxide nano particles, which was not significantly different from other landraces. Also, the lowest amount of chlorophyll b (0.62 μmol.g-1) was related to Khash, severe water deficit stress and without foliar application of zinc oxide nano particles. Sarbaz had the highest amount of anthocyanin (0.3 μmol.g-1) in the treatment of severe water deficit stress and lack of foliar application of zinc oxide nano particles, which was not significantly different from Saravan. Also, the lowest amount of anthocyanin (0.146 μmol.g-1) was related to Fanuj in the treatment of severe water deficit stress with foliar application of zinc oxide nano particles. Severe water deficit stress reduced the amount of traits tested. Also, the Sarbaz showed good tolerance to water deficit stress conditions compared to other landraces. The foliar application of zinc oxide nano particles also improved plant growth and increased some of the tested traits under stress conditions.

This study investigates the mechanism and effects of incorporating different ZrO2 nano-particles into SAC0307 solder alloys. ZrO2 nano-powder and nano-fibers in 0.25–0.5 wt% were added to the SAC0307 alloy to prepare composite solder joints by surface mount technology. The solder joints were shear tested before and after a 4000 h long 85 °C/85% RH corrosive reliability test. The incorporation of ZrO2 nano-particles enhanced the initial shear force of the solder joint, but they decreased the corrosion resistance in the case of 0.5 wt%. SEM, EDS, and FIB analysis revealed intensive growth of SnO2 on the solder joint surfaces, leading to the formation of Sn whiskers. Density functional theory (DFT) simulations showed that, despite Sn being able to bond to the surface of ZrO2, the binding energy was weak, and the whole system was therefore unstable. It was also found that ZrO2 nano-particles refined the microstructure of the solder joints. Decreased β-Sn grain size and more dispersed intermetallic compounds were observed. The microstructural refinement caused mechanical improvement of the ZrO2 composite solder joints by dispersion strengthening but could also decrease their corrosion resistance. While ZrO2 nano-particles improved the solder joint mechanical properties, their use is recommended only in non-corrosive environments, such as microelectronics for space applications.

Sol gel auto-combustion was used to create gadolinium doped nickel ferrite nano-particles, which have chemical composition NiFe2‑xGdxO4 (x = 0.00, 0.010, 0.15, 0.20 & 0.25). The investigation focused on how the composition of Gd+3 affected the magnetic properties and structural parameters. Magnetic properties were investigated using VSM technique, structural properties were determined using XRD and SEM techniques. XRD graphs verified the establishment of the spinel ferrite phase. With an increase in Gd composition, the crystallite size and lattice parameter increased from 21.0288 to 27.04125 nm and 8.3325 to 8.3367Å, respectively. It was also evident how the composition of Gd+3 affected the estimation of bond-angles and lengths in tetrahedral and octahedral structures. SEM micrographs showed that all of the grains had a small amount of agglomeration and that all of the synthesized compositions were homogenous. The range of 140.5–176.2 nm was found to be the average grain size. Using VSM at 300K, magnetic parameters like coercivity, residual magnetization, and saturation magnetization were computed. Until the composition was 0.20, the saturation magnetization and residual magnetization dropped from 30.28 emu/g to 15.35 emu/g and 5.07 emu/g to 3.65 emu/g, respectively. After that, they increased to 34.40 emu/g and 6.52 emu/g, respectively. Until composition 0.20, coercivity was raised from 154 to 261 Oe; after that, it was lowered to 233 Oe.

Abstract Background Green synthesized nanoparticles have recently gained significant medicinal applications and oftentimes outperform their green sources. Selenium is of fundamental importance to human health, stemming from its distinctive physicochemical properties, such as antioxidant activity, inhibition of Lipid peroxidation, stabilization of membrane proteins, maintenance of membrane fluidity and modulation of cell signaling. Though reports have shown some therapeutic potential of Ackee plant parts such as antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, neuroprotective, very few scientific proofs still exist in support of these effects. Methods This study synthesized selenium nanoparticles (Se-NPs) from crude methanolic extracts of Ackee leaves (AKL) and Ackee arils (AKA), examined the photo-physical characteristics of the Se-NPs and determined the in-vitro antioxidant, antidiabetic, and anti-inflammatory potentials of AKL, AKA, and their Se-NPs using established protocols. Results In both leaves and arils Se-NPs: UV spectroscopy revealed a qualitative absorbance at 310 nm; FTIR indicated multiple vibrations around 4000 cm−1- 400 cm−1; SEM images of 5 µm principally showed consistent size distribution of amorphous and granular shape at a magnification of 10,000X; while EDS spectra strongly confirm the presence of atomic Se compound at 30 kV. Various antioxidant activities assays carried out showed a range of approximately 4 to 60 times higher activities of the AKL, AKA, and Se-NPs than Ascorbic acid—the standard drug used. Furthermore, appreciable activities of more than 50% were obtained for alpha-amylase and alpha-glucosidase inhibitory activities, along with highly significant activities of haemoglobin glycosylation, glucose uptake, membrane stabilization, anti-arthritic, anti-haemolysis activities, when AKL, AKA, and Se-NPs were compared with standard drugs. Conclusion Encouraging the development and utilization of AKL, AKA, and Se-NPs will provide tremendous therapeutic efficacy and bioavailability approaches towards the management of diabetes, inflammation, and other oxidative stress-related diseases.

Abstract We prepared novel plasmon-coupled silver (Ag) and silver oxide (Ag2O) nanoparticles using green synthesis and a magnetic stirrer device from lemon juice. Firstly, we prepared six Ag samples from green tea and lemon juice, characterized by XRD, FTIR, UV, and HRTEM. We selected just two samples to apply to MDA-MB-231 cells. The samples entered the cell through endocytosis, showed moderate cytotoxicity and ROS levels, caused cell growth arrest at the G2M phase, exhibited higher inhibition of Cyclin D1, and induced early apoptosis. β-Catenin is an abundant protein in triple-negative breast cancer TNBC. Both samples showed inhibition of the β-catenin proteins pathway. Plasmon-coupled nanoparticles effectively inhibited β-catenin, physically capturing β-catenin and its pathway proteins, mimicking the action of a degradation protein complex due to their geometric properties. The prepared materials could be considered a promising treatment for TNBC that has not responded to chemotherapy and radiotherapy. As they have low toxicity to normal cells; this paves the way for new material designs without strict size limitations.

Abstract Nanoparticles impose multidimensional effects on living cells that significantly vary among different studies. Machine learning (ML) methods are recommended to elucidate more consistence and predictable relations among the affected parameters. In this study, nine ML algorithms [Support-Vector Regression (SVR), Linear, Bagging, Stochastic Gradient Descent (SGD), Gaussian Process, Random Sample Consensus (RANSAC), Partial Least Squares (PLS), Kernel Ridge, and Random Forest] were applied to evaluate their efficiency in predicting the effects of zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs: 0.5, 1, 5, 25, and 125 µM) and microparticles (ZnO MPs: 1, 5, 25, and 125 µM) on Carum copticum. The plant root/shoot biomass; number of leaves, branches, umbellates, and flowers; protein content; reducing sugars; phenolic compounds; chlorophylls (a, b, Total); carotenoids; anthocyanins; H2O2; proline; malondialdehyde (MDA); tissue zinc content; superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity; and media ΔpH were measured and considered input variables. All levels of ZnO MPs treatments increased growth parameters compared to the control (ZnSO4). The highest shoot/root fresh and dry mass were recorded at 5 µM ZnO MPs compared with the control. The root fresh/dry mass under ZnO NPs treatments was more sensitive than shoot parameters. The number of flowers increased by 134 and 79% in MPs and NPs treatments compared to the control, respectively. ZnO NPs reduced protein content by up to 81% in 125 µM NPs compared to ZnSO4. Reducing sugar content increased to 25, 40 and 36% in 5, 25, 125 µM MPs and 67, 68, 26, 26 and 21% in 0.5, 1, 5, 25 and 125 µM NPs treatments, respectively. The pH alteration was more significant under NPs and affected zinc uptake. All levels of ZnO NPs treatments increased growth parameters compared to the control. All ML algorithms showed varied efficiencies in predicting the nonlinear relationships among parameters, with higher efficiency in predicting the behavior of root and shoot dry mass, root fresh weight and number of flowers according to R2 index. The model obtained from SVR with the radial basis function (RBF) kernel was selected as a comprehensive model for predicting and determining the efficacy of the results.