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Oral cancer is the most common malignancy in many developing countries, such as India, due to increased consumption of smokeless tobacco. The trace elemental components in commercially packaged forms of tobacco can play a significant role in the pathogenesis of oral cancer. To qualitatively assess the trace elements in various types of commercially packaged forms of tobacco using laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS). Two popular varieties of 'Paan masala' that contained a mixture of slaked lime with areca nut, catechu, and other flavouring agents (tobacco was absent) and four types of packaged tobacco were obtained from 'Paan' shops. The contents in the packets were made into pellets using a hydraulic press and subjected to elemental analysis using LIBS. A ten-trial experiment was carried out on all six pellets. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) database was used to assess the emission lines. The elements obtained from commercially packaged tobacco and Paan masala were similar: calcium (Ca), iron (Fe), aluminium (Al), nickel (Ni), and chromium (Cr). Substances that cause DNA damage and carcinogenesis are inorganic elements such as nickel. Our study revealed that carcinogens such as nickel are present in the commercially packaged forms of tobacco and 'Paan masala' samples., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Microplastics are one of the concerning environmental pollutants because of their ubiquity. Their capability to adsorb other environmental pollutants increases the risk even further. Existing identification approaches for microplastic characterization for polymer class and their surface-adsorbed heavy metal detection require the utilization of multiple resources and expertise. The article discusses the applicability of a custom-made hyphenated Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS)-Raman spectroscopic system in characterizing microplastics by comparing the analytical performance with conventional methods such as Attenuated Total Reflectance- Fourier Transform Infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectroscopy, confocal Raman spectroscopy, and Scanning Electron Microscopy-Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (SEM-EDS). Raman analysis identified polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastics, which is confirmed by confocal Raman and FTIR study of the same. LIBS study of microplastics detected heavy metals such as Al, Ni, Co, and Zn, along with Ca and Mg trace elements. The cross-examination with EDS validates these trace elements' presence on the microplastics' surface. The results of the reported LIBS-Raman analysis and its validity evaluated using conventional gold-standard methods show the applicability of the proposed methodology in characterizing microplastics from environmental resources with less or no sample preparation in short time., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

The increased use of plastic products and global industrial conditions have contaminated natural resources, especially water, with pollutants such as microplastics and trace elements, including heavy metals. Hence, continuous monitoring of water samples is an urgent requirement. However, the existing microplastic-heavy metal monitoring methodologies require discrete and sophisticated sampling approaches. The article proposes a multi-modal LIBS-Raman spectroscopy system for detecting microplastics and heavy metals from water resources with unified sampling and pre-processing approaches. The accomplishment of the detection process is using a single instrument by exploiting the trace element affinity of microplastics, which operates in an integrated methodology to monitor water samples for microplastic-heavy metal contamination. The polypropylene (PP), polyethylene (PE), and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic types dominate the identified microplastics from different sampling spots: in an estuary formed by the Swarna River near Kalmadi (Malpe) in Udupi district, and from River Netravathi in Mangalore, Dakshina Kannada District, Karnataka, India. The detected trace elements from microplastic surfaces include heavy metals such as Al, Zn, Cu, Ni, Mn, and Cr and other elements counting Na, Mg, Ca, and Li. The system could record concentrations of trace elements down to 10 ppm, and comparing results with the conventional technique of Inductively Coupled Plasma-Optical Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-OES) confirms the ability of the system to detect trace elements from microplastic surfaces. In addition, comparing results with direct LIBS analysis of water from the sampling site shows better results in microplastic-based trace element detection., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Context: In today's era, erosion is the most prevalent type of tooth wear. The prevention of demineralization with biomineralization is the most desired treatment., Aim: The aim of this study is to evaluate and compare the surface remineralization potential of two remineralizing agents - self-assembling peptide P11-4 (SAP P11-4) and calcium silicate plus sodium phosphate (CSSP) salts on intact and demineralized enamel using laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS)., Subjects and Methods: Sixteen maxillary premolars were decoronated and split into buccal and palatal halves embedded in acrylic resin with a total sample size of 32 designated into Group 1 (intact teeth) and Group 2 (demineralized teeth). Further subdivision into Groups 1a and 2a (SAP P11-4 group [ n = 8]); Groups 1b and 2b (CSSP group [ n = 8]), Group 2 was first exposed to Coca-Cola. Then, all groups were subjected to experimental LIBS. Groups 1a and 2a were treated with SAP P11-4 based product, i.e., CURODONT™ PROTECT gel. Groups 1b and 2b were treated with CSSP-based products regimen, i.e., REGENERATE Enamel Science™ Advanced Toothpaste and Advanced Enamel Serum. The LIBS assessment was redone for all groups to attain a change in Ca and P values., Statistical Analysis Used: Inferential statistics were done using Wilcoxon signed-rank test (Before-After product application) and Mann-Whitney U -test (between the groups)., Results: According to the statistical evaluation there was a statistically significant difference ( P < 0.05), in Ca and P values in demineralized teeth when both SAP P11-4 and CSSP groups were evaluated. Although Ca values exhibited a significant difference in intact teeth, P did not exhibit a significant difference on the application of both remineralizing agents. The remineralizing potential between the two agents, SAP P11-4 and CSSP groups. There was no statistically significant difference ( P <0.05) observed between the two agent's remineralization potential for intact and demineralized teeth., Conclusion: SAP P11-4 and CSSP have the potential to remineralize both intact and demineralized enamel. There was increased remineralization in demineralized samples subjected to erosion., Competing Interests: There are no conflicts of interest., (Copyright: © 2023 Journal of Conservative Dentistry.)