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Plastics are indispensable part of the society but it effects directly or indirectly in the environment, wildlife, aquatic life as well as the human health also. Households use plastics the most frequently and due to unavailability of proper tools, most individuals simply throw the used plastics into nature without following the correct recycling procedure. As a result of the ecology system, people face several health problems. Although Single-Use Plastics and Plastic Polybags are prohibited, our society has continued to utilise it. In order to prevent plastic pollution, government must play a crucial role, otherwise future generations will have to face a dire situation by plastic pollutions. A clean environment and a healthy lifestyle are both possible if we can continue to be conscious of plastic.

The present study focuses on the translation of a pure Bengali vernacular strip Nonte Fonte in English and to colour and its reception across the Bengali reading and speaking populace especially of Tripura, a North Eastern state of which the researcher is a part. At the same time this paper also highlights the way in which an apparently innocent comic strip such as Nonte Fonte showcases and disseminates, naturalizes and legitimizes stereotypes that represent negative codification of the cultural ‘Other’ (the inhabitant of Orissa relocated to Kolkata for work for instance) through its image /illustration medium and how the target reader internalizes it. Attempt has also been made to locate how market forces and the demand of English readership/target culture influence the translated product/text, thus pertaining to Bassnet’s (2007) concept of cultural capital which can be loosely defined as that which is necessary for an individual to belong to the ‘right circle’ in the society (p.19). Translation helps a culture to come closer to the ‘cultural capital’ of the other. The concept of cultural capital is most pertinent to the power relation, concept of hierarchy and negotiation involved in translation in this context. Cultural capital here is not the Source Text (ST), but the Western canon of English language and English readership (global readership in English in this context that would generally define itself as a summation of the Bengali (with or without Bengali reading competence, but with English reading competence) and non- Bengali but English reading domains in India and the rest of the English reading world). However as has been pointed out later in this paper, the publisher tends to contain and restrict the consumption of his product- the text thus translated, within a supposed niche of target readership, the Bengali children. The paper also interrogates the impracticality of such a proposition.

The increase in concern from viable cells of probiotics specifically in acute inflammatory conditions has led to the emergence of the concept of postbiotics as a safer alternative therapy in the field of health and wellness. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the efficacy of surface proteins from three probiotic strains in dextran sodium sulfate and trinitrobenzenesulphonic acid = induced colitis mouse models. The molecular weight of total surface proteins extracted from the three probiotic strains ranged from ∼25 to ∼250 kDa with the presence of negligible levels of endotoxins. Surface layer proteins (SLPs) (∼45 kDa) were found to be present only in the Lactobacillus acidophilus NCFM strain. In the in vivo study, significant differences were not observed in the weight loss and general appetite, however, the decrease in colon length was apparent in TNBS colitis control mice. Further, the administration of these surface proteins significantly reversed the histopathological damages induced by the colitogens and improved the overall histological score. The oral ingestion of these surface proteins also led to a decrease in myeloperoxidase activity and TNF-α expression while the IL-10 levels significantly increased for the strain NCFM followed by MTCC 5690 and MTCC 5689. Overall, the present study signifies the ameliorative role of probiotic surface proteins in colitis mice, thereby, offering a potential and safer alternative for the management of inflammatory bowel disorders.

The green synthesis of gold nanoparticles has attracted tremendous interest owing to their unique physicochemical properties and widespread applications which are primarily size-dependent. The stability, less reaction time, and use of biological resources as novel nanofactories as an alternative to conventional synthesis strategies are the main objectives of green synthesis approaches. However, to attain size-controlled synthesis from the biogenic route is still a challenge. Hence, use of nontoxic stabilizers becomes increasingly essential. Herein, we describe an emerging, simple, nonconventional approach to synthesize stable and size-controlled biogenic nanogold using cell lysate supernatant containing nitrate reductase of Bacillus licheniformis in the presence of Tween 20 and dodecanethiol respectively. The face-centered central composite design used for the optimization of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) biosynthesis. The maximum AuNPs biosynthesis obtained using the optimized media variables, glucose (2.1 g/L), peptone (14.05 g/L), yeast extract (4.14 g/L), and potassium nitrate (3.91 g/L) was 0.769 a.u. Highly stable monodispersed nanogold of 10.4 ± 0.6 nm and 12.5 ± 0.9 nm sizes arranged in ordered self-assembly was obtained. The stability profile and kinetics of bioreduction was evaluated with respect to time, and the involvement of the nitrate reductase enzyme in bioreduction was validated by inhibitor study. The physicochemical properties of biogenic nanoparticles were characterized using multiple spectroscopy and microscopy techniques. The obtained nanogold demonstrated excellent bactericidal property against both gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria in size-dependent manner and thus could find tremendous utility in clinical, biological, and environmental applications as a broad-spectrum antibacterial agent.

Osseous tissue repair has advanced due to the introduction of tissue engineering. The key elements required while engineering new tissues involve scaffolds, cells, and bioactive cues. The macrostructural to the nanostructural framework of such complex tissue has engrossed the intervention of nanotechnology for efficient neo-bone formation. Gold nanoparticles (GNPs) have recently gained interest in bone tissue regeneration due to their multimodal functionality. They are proven to modulate the properties of scaffolds and the osteogenic cells significantly. GNPs also influence different metabolic functions within the body, which directly or indirectly govern the mechanism of bone regeneration. Therefore, this review highlights nanoparticle-mediated osteogenic development, focusing on different aspects of GNPs ranging from scaffold modulation to cellular stimulation. The toxic aspects of gold nanoparticles studied so far are critically explicated, while further insight into the advancements and prospects of these nanoparticles in bone regeneration is also highlighted.

Bone metabolism constitutes the intricate processes of matrix deposition, mineralization, and resorption. Any imbalance in these processes leads to traumatic bone injuries and serious disease conditions. Therefore, bone remodeling plays a crucial role during the regeneration process maintaining the balance between osteoblastogenesis and osteoclastogenesis. Currently, numerous phytobiologics are emerging as the new therapeutics for the treatment of bone-related complications overcoming the synthetic drug-based side effects. They can either target osteoblasts, osteoclasts, or both through different mechanistic pathways for maintaining the bone remodeling process. Although phytobiologics have been widely used since tradition for the treatment of bone fractures recently, the research is accentuated toward the development of osteogenic phytobioactives, constituent-based drug designing models, and efficacious delivery of the phytobioactives. To achieve this, different plant extracts and successful isolation of their phytoconstituents are critical for osteogenic research. Hence, this review emphasizes the phytobioactives based research specifically enlisting the plants and their constituents used so far as bone therapeutics, their respective isolation procedures, and nanotechnological interventions in bone research. Also, the review enlists the vast array of folklore plants and the newly emerging nano-delivery systems in treating bone injuries as the future scope of research in the phytomedicinal orthopedic applications.

Resveratrol, a polyphenolic and biocompatible molecule, exhibits significant pharmacological effects but has poor bioavailability and metabolic stability. It appears in two isomeric forms trans-(E)-resveratrol (tRes) and cis-(Z)-resveratrol (cRes). Many pharmacological activities studied so far are of tRes and is the most stable, predominant, and natural form. cRes is not commercially available due to difficulty in its purification and hence not explored much for its biological activities. Therefore, our study focuses on investigating the stability and therapeutic potential of cRes through its bio-conjugation to nanomaterial. In this study, tRes reduces gold ions to gold nanoparticles (GNPs) and itself gets oxidized to its isomeric form cRes. The isomeric switching was evidenced through cRes characteristic spectral differences and chromatographic elution pattern. The monodispersed GNPs of 25.6 ± 0.4 nm size was formed having zeta potential of -19 ± 3.82 mV confirming it to be a stable formulation. The stability studies were further extended to be tested under different physiological fluids. The cRes loaded GNPs (cRGNPs) reflecting the biological activity of cRes presented equivalent antioxidant property to that of tRes even at low concentrations. Also, cRGNPs showed the hemocompatibility by presenting no hemotoxicity and simultaneous in vitro anti-hemolytic activity. Therefore, the stability provided to cRes upon conjugating to GNPs can further be exploited to study the biological activities of cRes through its nano-conjugated delivery.

Bone injuries occur due to various traumatic and disease conditions. Healing of bone injury occurs via a multi-stage intricate process. Body has the potential to rectify most of the bone injuries but some severe traumatic cases with critical size defects may require interventions. Autografts are still considered the "gold standard" for fracture healing but due to limitations associated with it, new alternatives are warranted. The field of orthobiologics has provided novel approaches using scaffolds, bioactive molecules, stem cells for the treatment of bone defects. Phyto-bioactives have been widely used in alternative medicine and folklore practices for curing bone ailments. It is believed that different bioactive constituents in plants work synergistically to give the therapeutic efficacy. Bioactives in plants extracts act upon different signal transduction pathways aiding in bone healing. The present review focuses on the use, chemical composition, mode of delivery, mechanism of action, and possible future strategies of three medicinal plants popularly used in traditional medicine for bone healing: Cissus quadrangularis, Withania somnifera and Tinospora cordifolia. Plants extracts seem to be a natural and non-toxic therapeutic alternative in treating bone injuries. Most of the studies on bone healing for these plants have reported oral administration of the extracts and presented them as a safe alternative without any side effects despite giving higher doses. Forthcoming studies could be directed towards the local delivery of extracts at the defect site. Unification of herbal extracts and orthobiologics could be an interesting direction in the field of bone healing in future. The present review intends to provide a bird's eye view of different strategies used in bone healing, mechanisms involved and future direction of advancements using phytobioactives and orthobiologics.

Recent thrust in the biomaterials research has shifted towards developing bioactive and resorbable scaffolds with nanotechnological interventions. Next-generation bone scaffolds need to be multifunctional with desired osteo-integration ability, conformed resorption rate and in vivo imaging potential. In this study, we synthesized biogenic multifunctional gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) using immobilized crude enzyme (ImCE) of Bacillus licheniformis. The multifunctional characteristics of AuNPs and reusability of ImCE for AuNP synthesis can make the process and application cost-effective. ImCE catalyzed the bioreduction of gold ions to AuNPs of 18.4 ± 3.3 nm. AuNPs showed good hemocompatibility and antioxidant property without any toxic effects. Further, AuNPs demonstrated the increase in alkaline phosphatase activity and calcium deposition through MC3T3-E1 murine preosteoblast cell line and rat bone marrow stromal cells (BMSCs). The osteoinductive effect of AuNPs was also investigated in vivo wherein the composite cryogel scaffold functionalized with bone morphogenic protein-2 (rhBMP-2), zoledronic acid (ZA), and AuNPs was implanted in a muscle pouch of Wistar rats. AuNPs had synergistic effect on bone formation along with rhBMP-2 and ZA as seen from micro-computed tomography and histological analysis. The AuNPs were found to exhibit autofluorescence property and enhanced the degradation of scaffold at the implanted site in vivo. The developed process of using ImCE presents a novel approach for biogenic fabrication of AuNPs with the potential orthopedic application.

Recently an increase in occurrence of bone implant infections leading to implant failure and need for revision surgery has been observed. The major reason being development of antibiotic resistant microbes (MRSA and MRSE), while the withdrawal of antibiotic and suboptimal dose are further increasing the chances of antibiotic resistance. In recent time, nanotechnology interventions have led to emergence of a new generation of microbicidal agents the “nano-antimicrobials” showing potent antimicrobial efficacy even against MRSA. To circumvent this problem in orthopedics, multiple efforts are being made to make potent antimicrobials that can be nontoxic for cells and able to counter resist microbes simultaneously. Owing to the unique physicochemical properties, the nanomaterials exhibit tremendous capabilities and hence utility in the field of orthopedics. However, the long-term implications of these nanomaterials upon health are feebly understood. This review focuses on the current scenario, mechanism of action, and future perspective and concerns of this emerging field of “nanobiotics” to alleviate the postsurgical infections to pave the way for better clinical orthopedic requirements.

In the present study, bulk nanocrystallineCu99.5Zr0.5, Cu99Nb1.0, and Cu98.5Zr0.5Nb1.0alloys have been synthesized by using mechanical alloying followed by hot pressing (HP) at 550 °C. Further, these as-fabricated alloys were annealed at 800 °C and 900 °C for 1 h to investigate the structure-property correlation. Grain size and phase identification has been carried out using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). While mechanical properties were investigated using Vickers hardness and shear punch test (SPT). The grain size of the as-processed alloys was found to remain nanosized 41 ± 2.2 nm in Cu99.5Zr0.5(CZ), 50 ± 1.5 nm in Cu99Nb1.0(CN) and 26 ± 1.2 nm in Cu98.5Zr0.5Nb1.0 (CNZ) even after annealing at 900 °C. This is attributed to the stabilization of the nanosize grains by segregation of solute atoms (Nb and Zr) along grain boundaries and/or Zenner pinning by intermetallic precipitates like Cu5Zr in CZ and CNZ alloys.

Present study concerns strengthening of nanocrystalline Cu-Nb (1.0 at.%) matrix through addition of W using ball milling at cryogenic temperature. Nb and W has low equilibrium solid solubility in Cu, hence powder blend was subjected to non-equilibrium alloying. The studies shows that 1 at.% Nb could be dissolved into the Cu solid solution, after mechanical alloying for eight hours of cryo-milling. However, W did not form a solid solution even after eight hours of mechanical alloying. The stabilization of the metastable grains by segregation of large size solute atoms along grain boundaries, was attributed to Orowan strengthening of alloys.

Objective The study made an attempt to develop and optimize gabapentin loaded mucoadhesive nanoemulsion for the direct nose to brain delivery for better management of convulsion. Method The nanocarrier was screened based on maximum drug solubility and capmul assisted improved permeation across the blood brain barrier for rapid relief. The optimized formulations (response surface methodology) comprising of Capmul MCM C8, Smix and constant amount of the drug were characterized for particles size and size distribution, zeta potential, morphology, pH, viscosity, percent transmittance, residence time, stability, drug content, in vitro and ex vivo permeation parameters using goat nasal mucosa. Nasal cilio toxicity study was conducted using fresh goat nasal mucosal tissue. Results The optimized formulation (M130) had a particle size of 16.72 nm, zeta potential of −4.59 mV, percent transmittance of 99.99%, viscosity of 164.8 mPa s−1, residence time of 5 s and drug content of ˃ 97–99.8%. The mucoadhesive carbopol (0.5% and 0.7% w/v) addition increased zeta potential and globular size (

A direct Mannich type diastereoselective biomimetic cyclization using acetal as a pro-nucleophile leading to the hydroxymethyl substituted bicyclic framework of various bicyclic alkaloids is presented. Following this protocol, total synthesis of (±)-epilupinine and formal syntheses of (±)-laburnine, (±)-isoretronecanol and (±)-tashiromine are described.

This paper attempts to analyze comic book Senapati Ray Kachag based on the fifteenth century chivalrous Reang General of King Dhanyamanikya, as a comprehensive document recording Tripura’s historical and geographical facts, history of art and culture through image and text. It presents a non-conventional and non- canonical history of Tripura. In the course of this paper attempts will also be made to explore the populist appeal of visual texts evidenced by the existing academic pedagogy of comprehending History through story boards. In comic book mould the historical legend of Tripura, Ray Kachag and his story find an alternative expression using myth, folk-lore, folk life and culture as its ingredients and reconstructs history concerning oral historical traces defying monolithic ‘writing’ .The inclusion of Jamichalang, a folk hero of Tripura is interesting as he eludes and deludes any historical traces. He is a historical as he denies age and time by resisting the prime determiner of canonical and conventional historical documentation viz. chronology. This paper explores this visual text as an interdisciplinary field of study linking history, culture and literature expanding the frontier of knowledge in the discipline of history. History is always accompanied with some obscurity and half-visibility, and this obscurity in fact, facilitates the canonical history formation that involves the politics of inclusion or exclusion. . Adapting the comic book medium, the writer –illustrator of Senapati Ray Kachag Alak Dasgupta presents a blending of fact and fiction, humour and history. The list of books in acknowledgement section is documented, conventional and canonical history written more or less from the perspective of royalty of Tripura. To consider Senapati Ray Kachag a conventional history or legend would be erroneous as no attempt has been made to situate him in such way so far. This paper thus aims to enforce the idea of folk culture and life of Tripura forming a distinct thematic perspective, reconstructing history tracing the presence of a culture integral to historical process but absent in conventional and canonical history.