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Cellulosic fabric finishing via silver nanoparticles to develop antimicrobial properties and to upsurge its esthetic worth is flourishing in the textile industry. To contribute this research effort, the current project was conducted for the application of starch-embedded stable silver nanoparticles on cotton fabric before and after dyeing using a newly synthesized heterofunctional reactive dye. SEM imaging was used to check the morphological changes in cellulose polymeric structure after silver nanoparticles loading. Interaction between silver nanoparticle finishing and dyeing properties (colorimetric, fastness, and UV protection) of samples was explored and delineated. Silver-loaded cotton samples retained antimicrobial activities even after five laundry actions and pre- and post-dyeing treatment had no significant effect on the antimicrobial activity. Superb color buildup of samples revealed that silver nanoparticles should be applied before dyeing because pre-application of nanoparticles would increase the active surface area of cotton fabric which increased color strength and esthetic quality of fabric. Fastness properties and UPF of dyed cellulosic fabric were improved due to silver nanoparticles finishing. Future perspectives of the current study comprised the application and assessment of dyeing properties of new heterofunctional azo reactive dye on polyester cotton (PC) fabric. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Density functional theory (DFT) calculations were utilized to assess the drug delivery efficiency of phosphorene carrier for nebivolol drug to treat cardiovascular diseases. The optimized structures, excited state, and electronic properties of nebivolol, phosphorene, and nebivolol-phosphorene (nebivolol-PH) complex were considered to determine the drug delivery ability of phosphorene at the target site. The increased dipole moment (6.08 D) results in the higher solubility of the complex in polar solvents (water). Weak interactive forces between nebivolol and phosphorene were demonstrated by the non-covalent interaction (NCI) plot that facilitated the offloading of nebivolol at the targeted area. The analysis of frontier molecular orbitals (FMOs) revealed that during excitation, the charge was transferred from nebivolol as a higher occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) to phosphorene as a lower unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO). Thus, the charge-transfer process was further studied by charge decomposition analysis (CDA). The calculated results at the excited state for the nebivolol-PH complex exhibited that the maximum wavelength (λmax) was red-shifted by 6 nm in the gas phase. The electron–hole theory and photoinduced electron transfer (PET) processes were carried out for the exploration of different excited states of the complex. Additionally, phosphorene with + 1 and − 1 charge states indicated the minor structural changes and provide the stable nebivolol-PH complex. This theoretical study also investigated that phosphorene can be exploited as an effective carrier for the delivery of a therapeutic agent as nebivolol to treat cardiovascular diseases. This work will also encourage the researchers to investigate the other 2D nanoparticles as a nano-drug delivery system (NDDS). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Strontium-doped CuTl-1223 phase has been obtained by employing a nonstoichiometric composition of the form Tl1/2Cu1/2(Ba1−xSrx)Ca1Cu4Oy (x = 0, 0.1, 0.2, 0.3). The superconducting properties of the samples were investigated by x-ray diffraction analysis and four-probe resistivity, alternating-current (AC) susceptibility, and Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) absorption measurements. The effect of doping strontium atoms on the intrinsic superconductor parameters of these samples was studied by excess conductivity analysis. All the samples showed orthorhombic crystal structure in space group Pmmm, and the cell parameters were determined by using all the planar reflections. The c-axis length and the unit cell volume decreased with Sr doping in the final compound. Suppression of the room-temperature resistivity followed by metallic variations in resistivity versus temperature measurements are typical features for these samples. The zero-resistivity critical temperature and the onset of diamagnetism were suppressed with increasing Sr doping in the final compound. The apical oxygen phonon mode of type Cu(1)–OA–Cu(2) observed at around 548 cm−1 hardened with increasing Sr doping. The excess conductivity analysis revealed that the coherence length along the c-axis, the interlayer coupling, and the Fermi velocity of the carriers increased for the Sr doping levels of x = 0.1 and 0.2 but decreased for the sample with x = 0.3. The values of Bc0(T), Bc1(T), and Jc0(0) increased with increasing Sr doping in the final compound. It is proposed that this effect arises due to an increase in the superconducting volume fraction. A decrease in the value of the London penetration depth λp.d. and the Ginzburg–Landau (GL) parameter shows that the flux-pinning characteristics of the samples were improved by Sr doping. An increase in the mean free time of the carriers and a decrease in the energy required to break apart Cooper pairs result from a decrease in the remanent field scattering induced by the increased population of pinning centers in Sr-doped samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copper oxide nanoparticles are used in various fields. The increased use also enhances the release of these particles into the aquatic environment. CuO-NPs cause toxicity to every stage of aquatic organisms' lives. This study investigates the effects of CuO-NPs on the antioxidant system of rohu (Labeo rohita). Four treatment groups were maintained in this study including; T0 (control), T1 (0.5 µg/L), T2 (1 mµ/L) and T3 (1.5 mµ/L) CuO-NPs for 45 days. 25% of water was exchanged on daily basis with redosing with CuO-NPs. The samples were taken for antioxidant analysis after 45 days. The samples of gill, heart, liver and kidney were analyzed with graphite furnace atomic absorption spectroscopy to measure the absorbed concentration of Cu. Results showed an increase in Cu accumulation in tissues (P ≤ 0.001) in all the treatments compared to control. The accumulation pattern of Cu was gill > kidney > liver > heart. Besides, the treatment also disturbs the GST level in the liver, heart, kidney and gill tissue. A sharp decline in GST activities (P ≤ 0.05) was observed due to raised in MDA content. The high GSH level (P ≤ 0.001) in liver indicates an alteration in the defensive mechanism against. This study concluded that Cu has more potential to deposit in soft tissues from CuO-NPs and cause disruption in antioxidant defenses by raising the glutathione (GSH) level. This study recommended taking preventive measures for minimizing the entry of CuO-NPs into the aquatic environment and building up in the food chain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diabetes is a complex metabolic disorder and different environmental toxicants including heavy metals have been involved in diabetes induction. Therefore, assessment of the environmental risk factors and heavy metals induced toxicity have become critical for reducing the consequences of metals pollutants. Previously, we reported heavy metals induced nephrotoxicity in non-diabetic and diabetic rats. Here, we extended our analysis by examining the heavy metals induced organs (heart, kidney, liver, pancreas, and spleen) damage in diabetic and non-diabetic Wistar rats using histopathology and quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR). Following the generation of the diabetic rat model, the animals were exposed to heavy metals including lead (Pb), arsenic (As), manganese (Mn) and cadmium (Cd). Both non-diabetic and diabetic rats were exposed to heavy metals for 30 days and subsequently, the heart, kidney, liver, pancreas and spleen tissues were examined. Heavy metal treatment resulted in irregularly arranged myofibrils and vacuolization in the heart tissue of metal treated groups as evident from hematoxylin and eosin (H & E) staining. The kidney tissue of rats treated with heavy metals showed tubular degeneration, fibrosis, hemorrhage, and vacuolation. The liver of the heavy metals treated rats exhibited cellular degeneration and necrosis. The pancreatic tissue of streptozotocin injected untreated and metal treated rats revealed severe degeneration, necrosis, degranulation, shrinkage, and depression in the islets of Langerhans. Increased red pulp area and congestion were observed in the spleen of the metal mixture treated non-diabetic and diabetic rats. In line with the histological data, the qRT-PCR analysis showed downregulated expression of Bcl2 and upregulation of Caspase-3 in non-diabetic and diabetic metal treated rats as compared to the non-diabetic untreated rats. In conclusion, the present study revealed, diabetic rats are more prone to metal alone as well as metal mixture induced organ damage as compared to non-diabetic rats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Pakistan is a Lower and Middle Income Country with a scarcity of resources for mental health services but high prevalence of mental health problems particularly anxiety and depression. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) has been deemed an empirically supported treatment for anxiety disorders among children, but evidence is lacking from countries like Pakistan. Objective: The present project translated and adapted the Coping Cat Program, a CBT based program for children and adolescents having anxiety disorders, for Pakistani children. Method: The translated (Urdu) version of Coping Cat program was tested (N = 24) using repeated measure and a between group design in an orphanage school setting over a period of 6 months. The outcome measures were the Screen for Children Anxiety Related Disorders and the Childhood Anxiety Sensitivity Index. Results: Intent-to-Treat analysis indicated significant decreases in self-reported anxiety sensitivity (η2 =.69); anxiety (η2 = 0.50); generalized anxiety disorder (η2 =.44) and panic disorder (η2 =.30) in the treated group from pre- to follow-up compared to the control group. Therapists rated treatment protocol as easy to implement and 80% of participants rated the treatment manual as useful and effective. Conclusion: The Coping Cat program appeared culturally appropriate for this group, has implementation feasibility and clinical utility for the children having anxiety related problems. Further research is needed to evaluate its effectiveness as an indicated preventive intervention for Pakistani children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, two newly developed methods, namely the exp $$(-~\Phi (\xi ))$$ method and the modified Kudryashov method are used to extract the exact solutions of the nonlinear fractional Phi-4 equation in the sense of conformable time-fractional derivative. The obtained solutions confirm the significant features of the proposed methods in handling the conformable time fractional Phi-4 equation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]