Phytochemical and In Silico ADME/Tox Analysis of Eruca sativa Extract with Antioxidant,Antibacterial and Anticancer Potential against Caco-2 and HCT-116 Colorectal Carcinoma Cell Lines

Eruca sativa Mill. (E. sativa) leaves recently grabbed the attention of scientific communities around the world due to its potent bioactivity. Therefore, the present study investigates the metabolite profiling of the ethanolic crude extract of E. sativa leaves using high resolution-liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (HR-LC/MS), including antibacterial, antioxidant and anticancer potential against human colorectal carcinoma cell lines. In addition, computer-aided analysis was performed for determining the pharmacokinetic properties and toxicity prediction of the identified compounds. Our results show that E. sativa contains several bioactive compounds, such as vitamins, fatty acids, alkaloids, flavonoids, terpenoids and phenols. Furthermore, the antibacterial assay of E. sativa extract showed inhibitory effects of the tested pathogenic bacterial strains. Moreover, the antioxidant activity of 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) were found to be IC₅₀ = 66.16 μg/mL and 76.05 μg/mL, respectively. E. sativa also showed promising anticancer activity against both the colorectal cancer cells HCT-116 (IC₅₀ = 64.91 μg/mL) and Caco-2 (IC₅₀ = 83.98 μg/mL) in a dose/time dependent manner. The phytoconstituents identified showed promising pharmacokinetics properties, representing a valuable source for drug or nutraceutical development. These investigations will lead to the further exploration as well as development of E. sativa-based nutraceutical products.     

Development of Sustained Release Baricitinib Loaded Lipid-Polymer Hybrid Nanoparticles with Improved Oral Bioavailability

Baricitinib (BTB) is an orally administered Janus kinase inhibitor, therapeutically used for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. Recently it has also been approved for the treatment of COVID-19 infection. In this study, four different BTB-loaded lipids (stearin)-polymer (Poly(d,l-lactide-co-glycolide)) hybrid nanoparticles (B-PLN1 to B-PLN4) were prepared by the single-step nanoprecipitation method. Next, they were characterised in terms of physicochemical properties such as particle size, zeta potential (ζP), polydispersity index (PDI), entrapment efficiency (EE) and drug loading (DL). Based on preliminary evaluation, the B-PLN4 was regarded as the optimised formulation with particle size (272 ± 7.6 nm), PDI (0.225), ζP (−36.5 ± 3.1 mV), %EE (71.6 ± 1.5%) and %DL (2.87 ± 0.42%). This formulation (B-PLN4) was further assessed concerning morphology, in vitro release, and in vivo pharmacokinetic studies in rats. The in vitro release profile exhibited a sustained release pattern well-fitted by the Korsmeyer–Peppas kinetic model (R² = 0.879). The in vivo pharmacokinetic data showed an enhancement (2.92 times more) in bioavailability in comparison to the normal suspension of pure BTB. These data concluded that the formulated lipid-polymer hybrid nanoparticles could be a promising drug delivery option to enhance the bioavailability of BTB. Overall, this study provides a scientific basis for future studies on the entrapment efficiency of lipid-polymer hybrid systems as promising carriers for overcoming pharmacokinetic limitations.     

Surface Functionalization of Magnetite Nanoparticles with Multipotent Antioxidant as Potential Magnetic Nanoantioxidants and Antimicrobial Agents

Functionalized magnetite nanoparticles (Fe₃O₄) were prepared using the coprecipitation method followed by functionalization with a multipotent antioxidant (MPAO). The MPAO was synthesized and analyzed using FTIR and NMR techniques. In this study, the functionalized nanoparticles (IONP@AO) were produced and evaluated using the FTIR, XRD, Raman, HRTEM, FESEM, VSM, and EDX techniques. The average determined particle size of IONP@AO was 10 nanometers. In addition, it demonstrated superparamagnetic properties. The magnitude of saturation magnetization value attained was 45 emu g⁻¹. Virtual screenings of the MPAO’s potential bioactivities and safety profile were performed using PASS analysis and ADMET studies before the synthesis step. For the DPPH test, IONP@AO was found to have a four-fold greater ability to scavenge free radicals than unfunctional IONP. The antimicrobial properties of IONP@AO were also demonstrated against a variety of bacteria and fungi. The interaction of developed nanoantioxiants with biomolecules makes it a broad-spectrum candidate in biomedicine and nanomedicine.     

Biotic Cathode of Graphite Fibre Brush for Improved Application in Microbial Fuel Cells

The biocathode in a microbial fuel cell (MFC) system is a promising and a cheap alternative method to improve cathode reaction performance. This study aims to identify the effect of the electrode combination between non-chemical modified stainless steel (SS) and graphite fibre brush (GFB) for constructing bio-electrodes in an MFC. In this study, the MFC had two chambers, separated by a cation exchange membrane, and underwent a total of four different treatments with different electrode arrangements (anodeǁcathode)—SSǁSS (control), GFBǁSS, GFBǁGFB and SSǁGFB. Both electrodes were heat-treated to improve surface oxidation. On the 20th day of the operation, the GFBǁGFB arrangement generated the highest power density, up to 3.03 W/m³ (177 A/m³), followed by the SSǁGFB (0.0106 W/m³, 0.412 A/m³), the GFBǁSS (0.0283 W/m³, 17.1 A/m³), and the SSǁSS arrangements (0.0069 W/m⁻³, 1.64 A/m³). The GFBǁGFB had the lowest internal resistance (0.2 kΩ), corresponding to the highest power output. The other electrode arrangements, SSǁGFB, GFBǁSS, and SSǁSS, showed very high internal resistance (82 kΩ, 2.1 kΩ and 18 kΩ, respectively) due to the low proton and electron movement activity in the MFC systems. The results show that GFB materials can be used as anode and cathode in a fully biotic MFC system.     

基于脉冲微反装置的Au/HZSM-5催化剂上正丁烷反应性能研究

以HZSM-5沸石分子筛为载体,尿素为沉淀剂,采用常压沉积-沉淀法和负压沉积-沉淀法制备了系列Au/HZSM-5沸石催化剂并采用常规催化剂表征方法对其进行了表征.用脉冲微反装置评价了纯正丁烷(99.9%)在氢型和金改性的纳米HZSM-5催化剂上的反应活性和烯烃选择性.结果表明,在550℃下,负压沉积-沉淀法制备的不同金负载量的纳米HZSM-5催化剂上的转化率和烯烃选择性都远高于常压沉积沉淀法制备的催化剂.改性量为2.0%的Au/HZSM-5-A(负压)催化剂正丁烷转化率达到了58.0%、烯烃选择性为57.2%.脱氢和脱甲基活化是正丁烷的重要活化方式,也是影响其烯烃选择性的主要因素.金改性在提高正丁烷转化率的同时,也促进了正丁烷的脱氢和脱甲基活化.纳米HZSM-5因晶粒度小,孔道短和微孔扩散阻力低而有利于正丁烷转化.负压有利于清除HZSM-5内部的无定型杂质和脱气净化处理,有利于金的负载量和分散度.     

Index for vehicle acoustical comfort inside a passenger car

Sound quality is among the main factors that influence customers’ preference for choosing good automobile products. It all started more than 10 years ago and grows up so fast due to high competition in the automotive industries. A-weighted noise levels and sound power are usually utilised to measure the noise but they are not adequate to characterise the impact sound inside a car. The most popular approach to determine sound quality of a product is to define an annoyance or specific index, which involves both subjective and objective evaluations. Subjective and objective tests should be studied concurrently in order to determine the sound quality inside a passenger car. This approach is used in this paper to evaluate vehicle comfort index according to most frequently used sound quality metrics, namely; Zwicker loudness, sharpness, roughness and fluctuation strength. As a result researchers of different fields of automotive acoustics investigations can use this index according to the type of road (international road roughness) without any need to perform time-consuming jury tests. The metrics are correlated with jury test results that show which of them and how much has affected the acoustical comfort of the vehicle. The relation between road roughness and vehicle acoustical comfort index is another point of interest in this research.     

LDH-intercalated d-gluconate: Generation of a new food additive-inorganic nanohybrid compound

Intercalation of d-gluconate into the interlamellae of zinc-aluminum-layered double hydroxide for the formation of a food additive-inorganic layered nanohybrid was accomplished by both direct (co-precipitation) and indirect (ion-exchange) methods. Powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD) together with CHNS and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) analyses showed that the hybridization of d-gluconate with pure phase and good crystallinity was successfully accomplished by a direct method within ranges of pH 7.5-10, Zn to Al initial molar ratio of 2-5 and DG concentration of 0.05-0.3 M. The same nanohybrid compound was also prepared using an indirect ion-exchange method by contacting the pre-prepared LDH with 0.1 M DG for 80 min. The basal spacing of the nanohybrid synthesized by the direct method ranged between 9 and 12.0 Å while that synthesized by the indirect ion-exchange method was 14.0 Å. The crystallinity of the latter was higher than the former and it inherited the crystallinity of the precursor. This work shows that a food additive, such as d-gluconate, can be hybridized into an inorganic host for the formation of a new nanohybrid compound, which can be used to regulate the release of acidity in the food industry.     

Nickel(II) complexes bearing pyrazolylpyridines: synthesis,structures and ethylene oligomerization reactions

Reactions of 2‐bromo‐6‐(3,5‐dimethyl‐1H‐pyrazol‐1‐yl)pyridine ( L1 ) and 2,6‐bis(3,5‐dimethyl‐1H‐pyrazol‐1‐yl)pyridine ( L2 ) with NiCl₂ and NiBr₂ led to the formation of their respective metal complexes [NiCl₂(L1)] ( 1 ), [NiBr₂(L1)] ( 2 ) and [NiBr₂(L2)] ( 3 ) in moderate to high yields. The complexes were characterized using elemental analyses, mass spectrometry and single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction for 2 . The solid‐state structure of 2 confirmed the bidentate coordination mode of L1 and formation of a monometallic compound. Activation of the nickel(II) pre‐catalysts with methylaluminoxane afforded active catalysts in the ethylene oligomerization reaction to produce mainly butenes (84–86%). In contrast, activation of nickel(II) pre‐catalyst 2 with ethylaluminium dichloride resulted in partial Friedel–Crafts alkylation of the toluene solvent by the preformed oligomers. Complex structure, nature of co‐catalyst employed, type of solvent and reaction conditions influenced the catalytic behaviour of these pre‐catalysts. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effect of styrene–acrylonitrile content on 0.5?M NaI/0.05?M I2 liquid electrolyte encapsulation for dye-sensitized solar cells

The effect of a gel polymer electrolyte (GPE) as the redox electrolyte used in dye-sensitized solar cells was studied. A GPE solution consisting of 0.5?M sodium iodide, 0.05?M iodine, and ethylene carbonate/propylene carbonate (1:1 w/w) binary solvents was mixed with increasing amounts of styrene–acrylonitrile (SAN). Bulk conductivity measurements show a decreasing trend from 4.54 to 0.83×10^?3?S?cm^?1 with increasing SAN content. The GPE exhibits Newtonian-like behavior and its viscosity increases from 0.041 to 1.093?Pa?s with increasing SAN content. A balance between conductivity (1.3?×?10^?3?S?cm^?1) and viscosity (1.4?Pa?s) is observed at 19?wt.% SAN. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy detects elevated ring torsion at 706?cm^?1 upon the addition of SAN into the liquid electrolyte. This indicates that SAN does not bond with the liquid electrolyte. Finally, the potential stability window of 19?wt.% SAN, which ranges from ?1.68 to 1.38?V, proves its applicability in solar cells.     

High-performance 850 nm vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser in Gigabit Ethernet network

High-performance oxide vertical-cavity surface-emitting (VCSEL) laser is fabricated, and its usefulness is demonstrated as a suitable transmitting light source at 850 nm operating wavelength for Gigabit Ethernet application. Utilization of barrier reduction layers reveals low-threshold current requirement for operation at high modulation bandwidth. The electrical and optical characteristics, measured from the fabricated VCSEL, are simulated for Gigabit Ethernet transmission. Data rates of 1.25 Gbps with a bit error rate of 10⁻¹¹ are achieved by the use of a specific multimode network simulator.