An Apolipophorin III Protein from the Hemolymph of Desert Locust, Schistocerca gregaria

Apolipophorin III (apoLp-III) from insects and apolipoprotein A-I from humans, are major component of the lipoprotein and share various properties. ApoLp-III is an abundant hemolymph protein. Besides its crucial role in lipid transport, apoLp-III is able to associate with fungal and bacterial membranes and stimulate cellular immune responses. ApoLp-III was isolated and purified from the hemolymph of desert locust Schistocerca gregaria by ion-exchange and reversed-phase chromatography. The purity and the molecular weight of apoLp-III were determined at ～19,000 Da by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. According to similarities in the amino terminal sequence, molar mass and retention on reversed-phase analytical HPLC column, this protein is a Schistocerca gregaria homologue of Locusta migratoria apoLp-III.     

Quantitative Particle Uptake by Cells as Analyzed by Different Methods

There is a large number of two‐dimensional static in vitro studies about the uptake of colloidal nano‐ and microparticles, which has been published in the last decade. In this Minireview, different methods used for such studies are summarized and critically discussed. Supplementary experimental data allow for a direct comparison of the different techniques. Emphasis is given on how quantitative parameters can be extracted from studies in which different experimental techniques have been used, with the goal of allowing better comparison.     

CRISPR-Cas13a mediated nanosystem for attomolar detection of canine parvovirus type 2

The CPV-2 DNA extracted from dog's intestine was amplified using RPA and transcribed into an RNA copy. The RNA copy was incubated with Cas13a and crRNA, upon activation collateral cleavage activity of Cas13a cleaves all the target RNA and nonspecific RNA in the vicinity producing fluorescent signals within 30 min.     

New thermodynamics of entropy generation minimization with nonlinear thermal radiation and nanomaterials

This research addressed entropy generation for MHD stagnation point flow of viscous nanofluid over a stretching surface. Characteristics of heat transport are analyzed through nonlinear radiation and heat generation/absorption. Nanoliquid features for Brownian moment and thermophoresis have been considered. Fluid in the presence of constant applied inclined magnetic field is considered. Flow problem is mathematically modeled and governing expressions are changed into nonlinear ordinary ones by utilizing appropriate transformations. The effects of pertinent variables on velocity, nanoparticle concentration and temperature are discussed graphically. Furthermore Brownian motion and thermophoresis effects on entropy generation and Bejan number have been examined. Total entropy generation is inspected through various flow variables. Consideration is mainly given to the convergence process. Velocity, temperature and mass gradients at the surface of sheet are calculated numerically.     

Energy conditions and conservation laws in LTB metric via Noether symmetries

In this paper, we have investigated Noether symmetries in Lemaitre–Tolman–Bondi (LTB) metric. Using the Lagrangian associated with the LTB metric, the set of determining equations for Noether symmetries is obtained and then integrated in several cases. It is shown that the LTB metric can be classified in to eight distinct classes corresponding to Noether algebra of dimension 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11 and 17. The obtained Noether symmetries are compared with Killing and homothetic vectors. The well known Noether’s theorem is used to find the expressions for conservation laws in each case. Moreover, it is shown that most of the obtained metrics are anisotropic or perfect fluid models which satisfy certain energy conditions and the equation of state.     

Energy Conditions and Conservation Laws in LRS Bianchi Type I Spacetimes via Noether Symmetries

In this paper, we have completely classified the locally rotationally symmetric (LRS) Bianchi type I spacetimes via Noether symmetries (NS). The usual Lagrangian corresponding to LRS Bianchi type I metric is used to find the set of determining equations. To achieve a complete classification, these determining equations are generally integrated to find the components of NS vector field and the metric coefficients. During this procedure, several cases arise which give different Noether algebras of dimension 5,..., 9, 11, and 17. A comparison is established between the obtained NS and the Killing and homothetic vectors. Corresponding to all NS generators, the conservation laws are stated by using Noether's theorem. The metrics which we have obtained as a result of our classification are shown to be anisotropic or perfect fluids which satisfy certain energy conditions.     

Cytotoxic,antibacterial and antioxidant activities of extracts of the bark of Melia azedarach (China Berry)

Nature provides a variety of drugs and medicinal agents derived from plants. This study was conducted to determine antimicrobial, antioxidant and cytotoxic activities of extracts of Melia azedarach bark with methanol/water (9:1 v/v), chloroform, butanol, hexane, water and ethyl acetate. For the determination of the antimicrobial activities, the agar well diffusion method was employed. Cytotoxicity was studied by brine shrimp lethality assay; antioxidant activities were measured using 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl. The chloroform extract was active against Enterobacter aerogenes and Proteus mirabilis, the ethyl acetate extract had highest antibacterial spectrum against Pseudomonas aeruginosa, the n-hexane extract had highest inhibition against E. aerogenes, the aqueous extract showed highest activities against P. mirabilis, the butanol fraction showed highest activities against E. aerogenes and the methanolic extract was highly active against P. mirabilis.     

Three-dimensional MHD flow over a shrinking sheet: Analytical solution and stability analysis

The magnetohydrodynamic(MHD) steady and unsteady axisymmetric flows of a viscous fluid over a two-dimensional shrinking sheet are addressed. The mathematical analysis is carried out in the presence of a large magnetic field. The steady state problem results in a singular perturbation problem having an infinite domain singularity. The secular term appearing in the solution is removed and a two-term uniformly valid solution is derived using the Lindstedt–Poincaré technique. This asymptotic solution is validated by comparing it with the numerical solution. The solution for the unsteady problem is also presented analytically in the asymptotic limit of large magnetic field. The results of velocity profile and skin friction are shown graphically to explore the physical features of the flow field. The stability analysis of the unsteady flow is made to validate the asymptotic solution.     

Anabasis articulata (Forssk.) Moq: A Good Source of Phytochemicals with Antibacterial,Antioxidant, and Antidiabetic Potential

Anabasis articulata is medicinally used to treat various diseases. In this study, A. articulata was initially subjected to extraction, and the resultant extracts were then evaluated for their antimicrobial, antioxidant, and antidiabetic potentials. After obtaining the methanolic extract, it was subjected to a silica gel column for separation, and fractions were collected at equal intervals. Out of the obtained fractions (most rich in bioactive compounds confirmed through HPLC), designated as A, B, C, and D as well hexane fraction, were subjected to GC-MS analysis, and a number of valuable bioactive compounds were identified from the chromatograms. The preliminary phytochemical tests were positive for the extracts where fraction A exhibited the highest total phenolic and flavonoid contents. The hexane fraction as antimicrobial agent was the most potent, followed by the crude extract, fraction A, and fraction D. DPPH and ABTS assays were used to estimate the free radical scavenging potential of the extracts. Fraction C was found to contain potent inhibitors of both the tested radicals, followed by fraction D. The potential antidiabetic extracts were determined using α-glucosidase and amylase as probe enzymes. The former was inhibited by crude extract, hexane, and A, B, C and D fractions to the extent of 85.32 ± 0.20, 61.14 ± 0.49, 62.15 ± 0.84, 78.51 ± 0.45, 72.57 ± 0.92 and 70.61 ± 0.91%, respectively, at the highest tested concentration of 1000 µg/mL with their IC₅₀ values 32, 180, 200, 60, 120 and 140 µg/mL correspondingly, whereas α-amylase was inhibited to the extent of 83.98 ± 0.21, 58.14 ± 0.75, 59.34 ± 0.89, 81.32 ± 0.09, 74.52 ± 0.13 and 72.51 ± 0.02% (IC₅₀ values; 34, 220, 240, 58, 180, and 200 µg/mL, respectively). The observed biological potentials might be due to high phenolic and flavonoid content as detected in the extracts. The A. articulata might thus be considered an efficient therapeutic candidate and could further be investigated for other biological potentials along with the isolation of pure responsible ingredients.