Biosorption of halophilic fungal melanized membrane - PUR/melanin polymer for heavy metal detoxification with electrospinning technology

Eradication of heavy metal pollution has become the prime priority over the conservation of water resources in the upcoming era. Herein, the study involved the halophilic fungal melanin from Curvularia lunata showed a promising biosorbent for the removal of toxic heavy metals which shows eco-friendly, cost-effective, high stability, and adsorbent efficiency. Polyurethane blended with fungal melanin polymers, makes polymeric nanofibrous membranes through electrospinning techniques. BET isotherms revealed the raw fungal melanin holds a surface area of 3.54 m2/g exhibiting type IV isotherms. BJH results in a total pore volume of 5.79 cc/g with a pore diameter of 6.54 ± 1 nm for pores smaller than 4544.8 Å. Exhibits Eumelanin properties were characterized by FE - SEM and FTIR functional elements. ICPMS confirmed the metal adsorption proficiency on both raw and melanized membranes before and after treatments. Over 17 heavy metals, Ni2+ were adsorbed with 100% efficiency by raw melanin alone with 42.48 µg/L of Ni2+ concentration in the water sample, whereas, Cu2+, Zn2+, Co2+, Cr2+, Pb2+, Mn2+, Al3+, Mo6+, Sb3+, Ba2+, Fe2+, and Mg2+ stands next with 99%. In this study, gentle/simple application of raw fungal melanin (without PUR tailored) can detoxify the maximum concentration of heavy metals present in the water bodies which are further used for irrigation and even drinking purposes. This mycoremediation approach can be easily adapted to industrial production than other high-performance membrane materials with minimal process modification, making it a promising strategy for improving the adsorption properties used in various applications after still furthermore investigation.

Melanin biopolymers from microbial world with future perspectives-a review

Melanin is an amorphous polymer made of heterogeneous functional groups synthesized by diverse organisms including fungi, bacteria, animals, and plants. It was widely acknowledged for its biological processes and its key role in the protection of organisms from environmental stress. Recently, melanin clutches attention in the field of nanobiotechnology, drug delivery, organic semiconductors and bioelectronics, environmental bioremediation, photoprotection, etc., Furthermore, melanin from natural sources like microbial community shows antimicrobial, fighting cancer, radical scavenging, cosmeceuticals, and many therapeutic areas as well. Though the multipotentiality nature of melanin has been put forth, real-world applications still flag fall behind, which might be anticipated to the inadequate and high price essence of natural melanin. However, current bioprocess technologies have paved for the large-scale or industrial production of microbial melanin, which could help in the replacement of synthetic melanin. Thus, this review emphasizes the various sources for melanin, i.e., types-based on its pathways and its chemical structures, functional efficiency, physical properties, and conventional and modern methods of both extraction and characterization. Moreover, an outlook on how it works in the field of medicine, bioremediation, and other related areas provides perspectives on the complete exploitation of melanin in practical applications of medicine and the environment.

Implementation of Competency Based Medical Education Curriculum in Paediatrics for Phase 2 MBBS UndergraduatesA Descriptive Study

Introduction: Adoption of Competency Based Medical Education-Undergraduate (CBME-UG) curriculum is made mandatory in medical colleges by National Medical Commission (NMC). CBME-UG curriculum enumerates the expected knowledge and skills in detail and it focuses more on observable outcomes that are important in day-to day medical practice. This curriculum holds the teacher as well as learner equally responsible in running the educational programme. Aim: To put forth the approach adopted in implementation of CBME-UG curriculum for phase 2 MBBS students in paediatric subject. Materials and Methods: This article describes the steps applied in transforming the traditional structured teaching method to the CBME method for undergraduate phase 2 MBBS students in the Department of Paediatrics at Dr. B R Ambedkar Medical College and Hospital, Bengaluru, Karnataka, India, during January 2021 to December 2021. The duration of one year was divided into preimplementation phase (three months) and implementation phase (nine months). The faculty of the department, a coordinator to overview the programmeme, the postgraduate residents, and the students of phase 2 MBBS were the stakeholders identified in order to run the CBME-UG educational programmeme. Results: Preimplementation phase consisted of designing the department module and sensitisation of involved stakeholders. The contents of the module were curriculum planner for three years, time-table plan for phase II MBBS students, structuring of teaching sessions, designing the assessment method, and designing the feedback method. Implementation phase during clinical postings for the phase II MBBS students incorporated the strategies designed in preimplementation phase. The teaching sessions, assessment, the feedback sessions, and student-doctor programmeme were implemented with realistic and feasible planning. Conclusion: The CBME curriculum was successfully implemented among undergraduate second year medical students in term of student feedback and performance. It was noted that appropriate planning and sensitisation of students as well as the teachers, helped in running the programme smoothly.

Photoelectrocatalytic Oxidation of Textile Industry Wastewater by RuO2/IrO2/TaO2 Coated Titanium Electrodes

Photoelectrocatalytic Oxidation (PECO) system prominently increases the migration of photoexcited charges, hinders the fast recombination of electron-hole, and increases the period of photogenerated holes. In this article, we constructed a novel PECO system to degrade textile industry wastewater by RuO2/IrO2/TaO2 coated titanium electrodes. The result shows that PECO treatment can effectively reduce the color and true color of the secondary pollutants present in the wastewater. It is confirmed that a synergistic effect exists between photocatalysis (PC) and electrocatalysis (EC). Moreover, we discussed the influence of pH, current density, electrolyte concentration, and stirring speed. The maximum decolorization efficiency of textile industry wastewater with a pH of 8.2 was found to be 96% under the optimum condition stirrer speed of 200 rpm, an electrolyte concentration of 0.05M, a current density of 15 mA.cm-2, and at a treatment time of 30 mins. The UV-Visible spectra confirm the degradation of textile industry wastewater.

Importance of genetic diversity assessment in crop plants and its recent advances: an overview of its analytical perspectives

The importance of plant genetic diversity (PGD) is now being recognized as a specific area since exploding population with urbanization and decreasing cultivable lands are the critical factors contributing to food insecurity in developing world. Agricultural scientists realized that PGD can be captured and stored in the form of plant genetic resources (PGR) such as gene bank, DNA library, and so forth, in the biorepository which preserve genetic material for long period. However, conserved PGR must be utilized for crop improvement in order to meet future global challenges in relation to food and nutritional security. This paper comprehensively reviews four important areas; (i) the significance of plant genetic diversity (PGD) and PGR especially on agriculturally important crops (mostly field crops); (ii) risk associated with narrowing the genetic base of current commercial cultivars and climate change; (iii) analysis of existing PGD analytical methods in pregenomic and genomic era; and (iv) modern tools available for PGD analysis in postgenomic era. This discussion benefits the plant scientist community in order to use the new methods and technology for better and rapid assessment, for utilization of germplasm from gene banks to their applied breeding programs. With the advent of new biotechnological techniques, this process of genetic manipulation is now being accelerated and carried out with more precision (neglecting environmental effects) and fast-track manner than the classical breeding techniques. It is also to note that gene banks look into several issues in order to improve levels of germplasm distribution and its utilization, duplication of plant identity, and access to database, for prebreeding activities. Since plant breeding research and cultivar development are integral components of improving food production, therefore, availability of and access to diverse genetic sources will ensure that the global food production network becomes more sustainable. The pros and cons of the basic and advanced statistical tools available for measuring genetic diversity are briefly discussed and their source links (mostly) were provided to get easy access; thus, it improves the understanding of tools and its practical applicability to the researchers.

Nevirapine-related adverse events among children switched from efavirenz to nevirapine as compared to children who were started on nevirapine-based antiretroviral therapy directly

In this retrospective study, incidence of nevirapine (NVP) toxicity in children who were switched from efavirenz (EFV) to NVP (treatment experienced [TE] group) was compared with that of children who had started NVP-based antiretroviral therapy directly (treatment naïve [TN] group). This study also identified risk factors associated with development of NVP toxicity in children. The incidence and risk of developing NVP toxicities were significantly higher in TE when compared to TN group. Median duration of onset of NVP toxicity from the initiation was 2.14 and 3.84 weeks in TE and TN children, respectively. Mean CD4 count was found to be significantly higher in children who developed toxicity (577 ± 81 cells/µL) as compared to the children who did not develop toxicity (403 ± 29 cells/µL). Similarly, children in TE group who developed NVP toxicity had higher mean CD4 cell count than children in TN with NVP toxicity. The risk factors for the development of NVP toxicity include female gender with CD4 count >250 cells/μL and TE children especially girls with CD4% >15% and boys with CD4 count >400 cells/μL. To conclude, the higher incidence of NVP toxicity among TE group warrants a cautious approach while switching the NVP- from EFV-based therapy.

Electrochemical oxidation of bisphenol-A from aqueous solution using graphite electrodes

Electrochemical oxidation of bisphenol-A (BPA) from aqueous solution using graphite electrodes has been investigated. The effect of the types and concentration of supporting electrolytes, initial pH and applied current density on the performance of the process were examined. During electrolysis, concentration of BPA has been monitored and determined using UV-vis spectra, chemical oxygen demand (COD) and energy consumption. NaCl has been considered as the best supporting electrolyte among the electrolytes used in the present study. Initial pH 5.0, higher concentration (0.01 to 0.1 M) of supporting electrolyte and higher applied current density (4 to 20 mA cm(-2)) facilitate the treatment process. The maximum COD removal of 78.3% has been achieved under the optimal experimental conditions such as NaCl concentration of 0.05 M, applied current density of 12 mA cm(-2), initial pH 5.0 and electrolysis time of 120 min. When the energy consumption has been found to be decreasing with increasing NaCl concentration, it has increased with increasing applied current density. SEM-EDAX analysis has confirmed that the gases such as oxygen and chlorine are produced during the anodic oxidation in graphite anode. The result of UV-vis spectrum analysis confirms the degradation of BPA from aqueous solution at the end of the treatment.

Textile-templated electrospun anisotropic scaffolds for tissue engineering and regenerative medicine

Cardiovascular diseases, specifically myocardial infarction and end-stage heart failure represent some of the major pathologies that threaten human life. Here we present a novel approach for a bioactive cardiac patch based on a combination of biomedical and textile manufacturing techniques in concert with nano-biotechnology based tissue-engineering stratagems. The technological goal is to create BioNanoTextiles™ (BNT) by using "conventional" fabrics as templates for creating three-dimensional nanofibrous scaffolds. Electrospinning nanofibrous scaffolds templated after "ordinary" textiles is a novel way to create complex-patterned, 3-D scaffolds intrinsically mimicking some of the anisotropic structural features of the ventricular wall's extracellular matrix. In preliminary studies, we established that this approach will yield anisotropic 3-D scaffolds with mechanical properties dependent upon the yarn type of the textile-templates. These scaffolds are biocompatible, as inferred from their support of H9C2 cardiac myoblast adhesion which promotes their proliferation as well as cardiac-like anisotropic organization. The use of textile manufacturing strategies will enhance the complexity of the 3-D scaffold structures and enable their commercialization, while providing an opportunity for the textile industry to advance established "low-tech" manufacturing technologies into the realm of "high-tech" BioNanoTextiles.

Electrochemical oxidation of tannic acid contaminated wastewater by RuO2/IrO2/TaO2-coated titanium and graphite anodes

The electrochemical oxidation of tannic acid contaminated wastewater by RuO2/IrO2/TaO2-coated titanium and graphite anodes has been investigated. The effect of the process variables, such as initial pH, current density, processing time, concentration of the electrolyte and anode materials, on the degradation of tannic acid was studied. During the various stages of electrolysis, parameters such as COD, chloride ion concentration and UV-Vis spectra were examined and discussed. The maximum chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal efficiency of 94% was achieved at pH 5, operated at the current density of 8.10 mA/cm2, electrolyte (NaCl) concentration of 0.1 M and at 60 min of electrolysis using graphite anodes. The experimental results showed that the electrochemical oxidation process could effectively reduce the COD from the tannic acid contaminated wastewater. An acidic pH showed the maximum reduction of COD compared with neutral and alkaline pH. Increase in current density, process time and electrolyte (NaCl) concentration with the increase in COD removal. Graphite anodes showed maximum removal of COD and better tannic acid degradation when compared with RuO2/IrO2/TaO2-coated titanium anodes.

What is the cause of dyspnea in asthma and emphysema?

A group of 50 asthmatics and another of 27 subjects with emphysema were interviewed with regard to the nature of dyspnea. They were in particular asked whether their difficulty was during inspiration or in expiration. Asthmatics chiefly described dyspnea as inspiratory while the majority of the emphysema group were unable to relate their distress to either phase of respiration. It is not clear why these two types who share common physiologic abnormalities and form the two well defined polar groups in the spectrum of airways obstruction experience clearly different sensations of dyspnea.

Asthma and chronic bronchitis: contrasting changes in body weight and hematocrit values during recovery from acute episodes

Two groups of hospital inpatients, one with asthma and the other with chronic bronchitis were studied during the course of an acute episode. All had comparable airways obstruction and were free of cardiac involvement. They were treated on roughly similar lines and without the use of adrenal corticosteroids or any other agent that may influence body water balance. Body weight and hematocrit values done on admission and following recovery from dyspnoes, show that the asthmatics gained in weight and showed significant decrease in hematocrit on recovery, while there was no appreciable changes in the bronchitic group.

Effect of alpha-receptor blocking drugs and disodium cromoglyate on histamine hypersensitivity in bronchial asthma

Twenty patients with extrinsic type bronchial asthma are shown to have a significant fall in vital capacity (V.C.) and forced expiratory volume in 1 second (F.E.V.(1)) after an intravenous infusion of 50mug. of histamine dihydrochloride. In 10 of these subjects the fall in V.C. and F.E.V.(1) produced by intravenous histamine is inhibited by the alpha-receptor blocking drugs phentolamine and phenoxybenzamine injected before the histamine test. The inhalation of disodium cromoglycate in 10 subjects is also shown to inhibit the fall in V.C. and F.E.V.(1) produced by the intravenous infusion of histamine. It is suggested that bronchial smooth muscle in asthmatic subjects has alpha-adrenergic receptor sites, and that a possible mechanism for the action of disodium cromoglycate is that it stabilizes the cell membrane, thereby altering calcium ion transport.

Scleroderma heart disease

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