Simultaneous estimation of metformin hydrochloride, pioglitazone hydrochloride, and glimepiride by RP-HPLC in tablet formulation

A simple, precise, rapid, and reproducible reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography method is developed for the simultaneous estimation of metformin hydrochloride (MET), pioglitazone hydrochloride (PIO), and glimepiride (GLP) present in multicomponent dosage forms. Chromatography is carried out isocratically at 25 degrees C +/- 0.5 degrees C on an Inertsil-ODS-3 (C-18) Column (250 x 4.60 mm, 5 microm) with a mobile phase composed of methanol-phosphate buffer (pH 4.3) in the ratio of 75:25 v/v at a flow rate of 1 mL/min. Detection is carried out using a UV-PDA detector at 258 nm. Parameters such as linearity, precision, accuracy, recovery, specificity, and ruggedness are studied as reported in the International Conference on Harmonization guidelines. The retention times for MET, PIO, and GLP are 2.66 + 0.5 min, 7.12 + 0.5 min, and 10.17 + 0.5 min, respectively. The linearity range and percentage recoveries for MET, PIO, and GLP are 10-5000, 10-150, and 1-10 microg/mL and 100.4%, 100.06%, and 100.2%, respectively. The correlation coefficients for all components are close to 1. The relative standard deviations for three replicate measurements in three concentrations of samples in tablets are always less than 2%.     

ZrCl4 as an efficient catalyst for a novel one-pot protection/deprotection synthetic methodology

A catalytic quantity of ZrCl 4 (20 mol %) was found to be an efficient catalyst for the one-pot esterification and deprotection of (5 S,6 R)-5,6-diacetoxyoct-7-enoic acid in good yields (44-62%) with a lactone formed as a minor byproduct. ZrCl 4 (10-20 mol %) was also sufficient to deprotect 1,3-dioxalane, bis-TBDMS ethers, and diacetate functional groups in excellent yields of up to 93%. ZrCl 4 (1-10 mol %) also promoted diol protection as the acetonide in 90% yield and acted as a trans-esterification catalyst for a range of esters.     

Mapping the binding site of thiopeptide antibiotics by proximity-induced covalent capture

Proximity-induced covalent capture (PICC) has been established for the investigation of ligand binding to composite protein/oligonucleotide target complexes. The RNA-induced attachment of the thiopeptides Thiostrepton and Nosiheptide to engineered Cys mutants of the ribosomal protein L11 was highly position selective and allowed mapping of their binding site at amino acid resolution.     

l-Ascorbic acid in organic synthesis: a facile synthesis of 4-(butenolide-5-methylidenyl)-1,4-dihydropyridines

An efficient synthesis of 4-(butenolide-5-methylidenyl)-1,4-dihydropyridines has been achieved via a three-component reaction of β-keto esters or ketones, ammonium acetate and vinylic aldehydes from ascorbic acid in the presence of tetrabutylammonium hydrogen sulfate in ethylene glycol.     

Exploring the Antibacterial and Antibiofilm Efficacy of Silver Nanoparticles Biosynthesized Using Punica granatum Leaves

The current research work illustrates an economical and rapid approach towards the biogenic synthesis of silver nanoparticles using aqueous Punica granatum leaves extract (PGL-AgNPs). The optimization of major parameters involved in the biosynthesis process was done using Box-Behnken Design (BBD). The effects of different independent variables (parameters), namely concentration of AgNO₃, temperature and ratio of extract to AgNO_3, on response viz. particle size and polydispersity index were analyzed. As a result of experiment designing, 17 reactions were generated, which were further validated experimentally. The statistical and mathematical approaches were employed on these reactions in order to interpret the relationship between the factors and responses. The biosynthesized nanoparticles were initially characterized by UV-vis spectrophotometry followed by physicochemical analysis for determination of particle size, polydispersity index and zeta potential via dynamic light scattering (DLS), SEM and EDX studies. Moreover, the determination of the functional group present in the leaves extract and PGL-AgNPs was done by FTIR. Antibacterial and antibiofilm efficacies of PGL-AgNPs against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria were further determined. The physicochemical studies suggested that PGL-AgNPs were round in shape and of ~37.5 nm in size with uniform distribution. Our studies suggested that PGL-AgNPs exhibit potent antibacterial and antibiofilm properties.     

Synergistic effect of magnesium and fluorine doping on the electrochemical performance of lithium-manganese rich (LMR)-based Ni-Mn-Co-oxide (NMC) cathodes for lithium-ion batteries

Mg-doped-LMR-NMC (Li_1.2Ni_0.15-xMg_xMn_0.55Co_0.1 O₂) is synthesized by combustion method followed by fluorine doping by solid-state synthesis. In this approach, we substituted the Ni²⁺ by Mg²⁺ in varying mole percentages (x = 0.02, 0.05, 0.08) and partly oxygen by fluorine (LiF: LMR-NMC = 1:50 wt%). The synergistic effect of both magnesium and fluorine substitution on electrochemical performance of LMR-NMC is studied by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and galvanostatic-charge-discharge cycling. Mg-F-doped LMR-NMC (Mg 0.02 mol) composite cathodes shows excellent discharge capacity of ~300 mAh g^?1 at C/20 rate whereas pristine LMR-NMC shows the initial capacity around 250 mAh g^?1 in the voltage range between 2.5 and 4.7 V. Mg-F-doped LMR-NMC shows lesser Ohmic and charge transfer resistance, cycles well, and delivers a stable high capacity of ~280 mAh g^?1 at C/10 rate. The voltage decay which is the major issue of LMR-NMC is minimized in Mg-F-doped LMR-NMC compared to pristine LMR-NMC.     

Cosmological Models with Time Dependent G and Λ Coupling Scalars

A cosmological model in which the universe has its critical density and gravitational constants generalized as coupling scalars in Einstein's theory is considered. A general method of solving the field equations is given. An exact solution for matter distribution in cosmological models satisfying G=G₀(R/R₀)ⁿ is presented. Corresponding physical interpretations of the cosmological solutions are also discussed.     

Evaluation of the odd-even effect in limits of detection for electron microprobe analysis of natural minerals

Limit of detection (LOD), being a fundamental quality parameter for analytical techniques, has been recently investigated and a systematic behavior has been observed for most odd-even element pairs for many techniques. However, to the best of our knowledge very few LOD data are available in published literature for electron microprobe analysis; these consist of three papers, two being on rare-earth elements and the third covering a large number of elements of atomic number between 21 and 92. These data confirm the systematic behavior of LODs for many odd-even pairs. To initiate to full this gap, we determined LODs for several major rock-forming chemical elements from Na to Fe with atomic numbers between 11 and 26, during the microprobe analysis of common minerals (olivine, plagioclase, pyroxene, amphibole, quartz, and opaques) in volcanic rocks. The odd-even effect of nuclear stability seems to be present in LOD data for most odd-even pairs investigated. Nevertheless, the experimental strategy concerning the reference materials, calibration procedure, and blank measurements, should be substantially modified to better evaluate the systematic behavior of LOD values in microprobe analysis.     

Dispersion behavior of electromagnetic wave near the resonance in 1D magnetized ferrite photonic crystals

In the present article, we have analyzed the dispersion of electromagnetic wave in the one dimensional magnetized ferrite photonic crystals near the resonance in the permeability of the constituent materials for transverse magnetization in the transverse electric mode. The dispersion relation is obtained by transfer matrix method. It is observed that in the vicinity of resonant frequency, large numbers of oscillations occur in the normalized Bloch wave number. These oscillations in the Bloch wave number are strongly dependent on external magnetic fields, filling factor, and damping constant. The frequency regime of these oscillations is found to be shifted in higher frequency range with increase in the magnitude of the magnetic fields. With increase in the filling factor keeping length of periods fixed, number of oscillations is found to be increased. Near the resonance, effect of incident angle is negligible. It is demonstrated that these nearly equidistant oscillations occurring in the vicinity of resonance may be used for making filter in micro wave frequency range.     

Structural,optical, and photoelectrochemical properties of nanosphere-like CdXZn1-XS synthesized by electrochemical route

Here, we present the effect of different Zn contents on the structural, morphological, and optical properties of Cd_XZn_1-XS thin films deposited by electrodeposition method on stainless steel and indium-doped tin oxide (ITO) glass substrates. Electrosynthesized Cd_XZn_1-XS thin films are characterized by using X-ray diffraction (XRD), UV-Vis spectrophotometer, field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM), and surface wettability analysis. XRD pattern reveals that the Cd_XZn_1-XS thin films are polycrystalline in nature with hexagonal crystal structure. FE-SEM micrograph displays that these Cd_XZn_1-XS thin films exhibit the different sizes of sphere-like nanostructures by varying the X value. The optical absorption study indicates that drastic variation in band gap energy of Cd_XZn_1-XS thin films. In advance photovoltaic measurements, Cd_XZn_1-XS thin films are to be studied by forming the photoelectrochemical (PEC) cell having Cd_XZn_1-XS/0.5 M (Na₂SO₃)/C configuration. The efficiency values of Cd_XZn_1-XS are found to be 0.2, 0.35, 0.32, 0.25, and 0.23 % respectively at X content.