Papain Loaded Poly(ε-Caprolactone) Nanoparticles<Emphasis Type="Italic">: In-silico and</Emphasis><Emphasis Type="Italic">In-Vitro</Emphasis> Studies

Papain is a protease enzyme with therapeutic properties that are very valuable for medical applications. Poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) is an ideal polymeric carrier for controlled drug delivery systems due to its low biodegradability and its high biocompatibility. In this study, the three-dimensional structure and action mechanism of papain were investigated by in vitro and in silico experiments using molecular dynamics (MD) and molecular docking methods to elucidate biological functions. The results showed that the size of papain-loaded PCL nanoparticles (NPs) and the polydispersity index (PDI) of the NPs were 242.9 nm and 0.074, respectively. The encapsulation efficiency and loading efficiency were 80.4 and 27.2%, respectively. Human embryonic kidney cells (HEK-293) were used for determining the cytotoxicity of papain-loaded PCL and PCL nanoparticles. The in vitro cell culture showed that nanoparticles are not toxic at low concentrations, while toxicity slightly increases at high concentrations. In silico studies, which were carried out with MD simulations and ADME analysis showed that the strong hydrogen bonds between the ligand and the papain provide stability and indicate the regions in which the interactions occur.     

Dose response of hydrazine – Deproteinated tooth enamel under blue light stimulation

The beta dose response and Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) signal stability characteristics of human tooth enamel deproteinated by hydrazine reagent under blue photon stimulation are reported. Removal of the protein organic component of tooth enamel resulted in a higher OSL sensitivity and slower fading of OSL signals. The effect of chemical sample preparation on the enamel sample sensitivity is discussed and further steps to make this deproteinization treatment suitable for in vitro dose reconstruction studies are suggested.     

Synthesis of new bicarbazole-linked triazoles as non-cytotoxic reactive oxygen species (ROS) inhibitors

Abstract

Carbazole analogs 3 and 4 and a new library of bicarbazole-linked triazoles 6–11 were prepared via new synthetic methodology. Metal-catalyzed oxidative coupling reaction was utilized for the synthesis of bicarbazole acetylene 4 and different metals (Zn⁺², Co⁺², Fe⁺³, Ni⁺², Cu⁺², Mn⁺²) as catalyst were screened. Only Fe-catalyzed reaction was found to be excellent and gave homocoupled product 4. Cu-catalyzed 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition was also utilized to install triazole moiety for the synthesis of hybrid molecules 6–11. Based on reported anti-inflammatory activity of carbazole and triazole scaffolds, all compounds were screened for their reactive oxygen species (ROS) inhibitory potential. Results from these studies revealed triazole 9 as most active compound (IC₅₀ value of 7.6?±?0.1?µg/mL on human whole blood and 2.7?±?0.09?µg/mL on isolated neutrophils) using ibuprofen as a standard. Therefore, class described herein can serve as attractive structural element for further studies on ROS inhibition.     

Determination of Lambda-Cyhalothrin and Malathion Residues in Locust by Gas Chromatography with Electron Capture Detection

Journal of Analytical Chemistry - A reliable, easy, and reproducible method was developed for the quantification of λ-cyhalothrin and malathion residues in desert locust. For the extraction, a...     

Preparation and dispersion stability of aqueous metal oxide nanofluids for potential heat transfer applications: a review of experimental studies

Journal of Thermal Analysis and Calorimetry - Nanofluids have recently attracted attention of many researchers due to their growing potential applications in heat transfer devices. They possess...     

Evaluating the mobility of toxic metals in untreated industrial wastewater sludge using a BCR sequential extraction procedure and a leaching test

The distribution and speciation of toxic metals in industrial wastewater sludge (IWS) was investigated. In this work, the modified BCR three-stage sequential extraction procedure was applied to the fractionation of Cr Pb Ni, and Cd in untreated industrial wastewater sludge from industrial sites in Hyderabad (Pakistan). The extracts were analyzed using electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry. The procedure was evaluated using a certified reference material for soil mixed with sewage sludge BCR 483. The results from the partitioning study indicate that more easily mobilized forms (acid exchangeable) of Cd were dominant. The oxidizable fraction was dominant for all four toxic metals. Metal recovery was good, with <4% difference between the total metal recovered through the extractant steps and the total metal determined after microwave digestion. Lixiviation tests (DIN 38414-S4) were used to evaluate the leaching of toxic species from IWS, and it was observed that levels of leachable toxic metals were low compared to the amount of metal extracted in the exchangeable fraction of the BCR protocol.     

Vortex phase diagram of F=1 spinor Bose-Einstein condensates

We have calculated the F=1 ground state of a spinor Bose-Einstein condensate trapped harmonic potential with an applied Ioffe-Pitchard magnetic field. The vortex phase diagram is found in the plane spanned by perpendicular and longitudinal magnetic fields. The ferromagnetic condensate has two vortex phases which differ by winding number in the spinor components. The two vortices for the F(z)=-1 antiferromagnetic condensate are separated in space. Moreover, we considered an average local spin || to testify to what extent it is parallel to magnetic field (the nonadiabatic effects). We have shown that the effects are important at vortex cores.     

MEKC determination of vanadium from mineral ore and crude petroleum oil samples using precapillary chelation with bis(salicylaldehyde)tetramethyl‐ethylenediimine

An analytical procedure has been developed for the separation of Cu(II), Ni(II), Co(II), Fe(II), Pd(II), Th(IV), V(IV), and determination of Fe(II), Co(II), Ni(II), and V(IV) by MEKC after chelation with bis(salicylaldehyde)tetramethylethylenediimine (H₂SA₂Ten). Uncoated fused silica capillary was used with an applied voltage of 30 kV with photo‐diode array detection at 228 nm. SDS was added as micellar medium at pH 8.2 with sodium tetraborate buffer (0.1 M). Linear calibrations were established within 0.015–1000 μg/mL of each element with LOD within 5–67 ng/mL. The method was applied for the determination of vanadium from crude oil and ore samples in the range 0.34–2.40 and 114.2–720.7 μg/g with RSD 1.7–3.8 and 0.98–2.30% (n = 3), respectively. Fe, Ni, and Co present in crude oil and ore samples were also determined with RSD 1.3–2.8, 1.1–4.1, and 1.2–3.5% (n = 3), respectively. The results were compared with that of supplier's specifications and atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS). Method was evaluated by standard addition technique.     

Small amplitude dust-acoustic soliton energy in dusty plasmas with suprathermal polarization force

The effect of suprathermal polarization force on both linear and weakly nonlinear dust-acoustic solitary structures in a three-component dusty plasma is investigated. For this purpose, a new expression of the polarization force acting on dust particles that include the electronic suprathermal effect is derived. The results are applied to two different experimental dusty plasmas. We have found that the polarization force acting on the dust grains decreases as the electron suprathermality becomes more significant. In addition, we have shown that, for a given value of the spectral index κ , the polarization force magnitude fluctuates from one plasma to another. The changes arising in the propagation of small-amplitude dust-acoustic (DA) solitons due to the presence of this suprathermal polarization force are also analysed. Interestingly, an increase in the magnitude of the polarization force leads to an increase in the amplitude and width of DA soliton and provides more energy to the motion of this soliton.     

Oblique interaction of electrostatic nonlinear structures in relativistically degenerate dense magnetoplasmas

We have investigated the interaction of obliquely propagating ion acoustic solitary waves in a magnetoplasma with relativistically degenerate electrons. Using the quantum hydrodynamics model and by employing the extended Poincaré–Lighthill–Kuo technique, we have derived a set of Korteweg de Vries equations for two solitons. We have observed that the system under consideration allows the formation of only compressive solitons and their velocities remain in the sub-acoustic limit. Furthermore, phase shifts of solitons as a result of their interaction have been calculated. The phase shifts have been observed to be dependent on the obliqueness and the physical parameters of plasma. It has also been noticed that phase shifts remain negative for the whole range of parameters generally found in white dwarf stars. We have observed that the phase shifts enhance with the enhancement in number density, however, the converse happens when the magnetic field is enhanced. It has also been observed that the phase shift is slightly greater for the solitons that are less oblique as compared to their more oblique counterparts. Furthermore, we have estimated the spatial scales of interaction of solitons using the parameters found in white dwarf stars.