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Open dumping of municipal solid waste is prone to groundwater contamination because of leachate production. In this report, an attempt has been made to assess the pollution potential of leachate generated from the solid waste disposal site and its impact on aquifers in Neil line Lucknow environs, Uttar Pradesh, India. Physico-chemical parameters of leachate are determined to evaluate water quality index (WQI) .A large amount of the water requirement of Lucknow City is supplied from groundwater. The quality of this groundwater was determined by taking samples from wells within the study area. The purposes of this investigation were .To provide an overview of present groundwater quality . To determine spatial distribution of groundwater quality parameters such as pH, electrical conductivity, Cl− , SO4 −2 , hardness, and NO3− concentrations, and.To map groundwater quality in the study area by using GIS and Geostatistics techniques. ArcGIS 9.0 and ArcGIS Geostatistical Analyst is used for generation of various thematic maps and ArcGIS Spatial analyst to produce the final groundwater quality map .

The protein content of a plant-based ingredient is generally lower than its animal food counterpart, and research into novel alternative protein is required that can provide similar protein content, texture and appearance as meat. This work investigates a mycelium-based low moisture meat analogue (LMMA) approach, by incorporating 0 to 40%

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) - a novel coronavirus has rapid spread, and caused community infection around the globe. During the absence of a vaccine, people focused more on an immunity-boosting diet and needed clear knowledge about immunity-boosting foods. However, after the vaccination drive, the importance of food as a natural source of immunomodulation cannot be neglected. So, the purpose of this review was to describe the role of vital nutrient in boosting immune system of body apart from other factors like adequate sleep, exercise, and low stress levels. Macrophages, neutrophils, natural killer cells, dendritic cells, B-cells, and T-cells are the important components having important role in maintaining immunity of the human body. The first four-act as the initial mediators of innate host defense, and the latter two produce antibodies for pathogen destruction. The review investigated vital nutrients like vitamin-C, A, E and D, iron, zinc, folic acid, probiotics, and prebiotics affecting these immune components in some extent. Fruits, vegetables, spices, herbs, seeds, nuts, cereals, millets, and superfoods like chlorella and spirulina are good sources of these nutrients. However, fortified foods, functional foods, encapsulated foods with bioactive compounds and plant-based foods have shown immense potential in boosting immunity against viral infections like COVID-19. Some clinical trials and retrospective cohort studies have shown reduction in the severity of COVID-19 patients with relation to plant-based diet, vitamin D and C doses, probiotic, and zinc salts application.

Micronutrient malnutrition (MNM) is called "hidden hunger" due to its invisible vitamin-minerals deficiency symptoms in an individual. In most cases, the prime victim of MNM is children and women. Different strategies such as dietary diversification, supplementation, biofortification, and food fortification are used to fight MNM; however, each method has its own merits and demerits. Therefore, this review discusses an alternate approach, "food-to-food fortification (FtFF)," for combating MNM through enriching the daily diet with essential micronutrients. The main principle behind FtFF is the addition of one or more micronutrient-dense food/s in commonly consumable products. The review highlighted potential natural fortificants rich in iron, folate, zinc, protein, β-carotene, calcium, potassium, and fiber previously used under FtFF. These fortificants are basil, moringa, marjoram, thyme, mint, garden cress, amaranth, fenugreek, and defatted coconut flour. Their effect on nutritional and other properties like antioxidants and antimicrobial, after consuming fortified food, are discussed in detail. At higher substitution levels, a significant impact on sensory and physiochemical properties was observed. Therefore, suitable formulation strategies like mixture design and linear programming were advised to be used before FtFF. A tabulated data on micro-and macronutrients content of fortificants are described for ease in formulation. The review also focused on the latest processing technology in FtFF used for fortifying foods like biscuits, pasta, bread, snack, flakes, porridge, ladoo, dhokla, and many more.

A chromogenic fluoride probe bearing bis imine groups having dual -NH functionality (BSB) has been designed, synthesised and structurally characterized by its single crystal X-ray diffraction studies. The BSB could visually and spectroscopically recognise F(-) with high selectivity over other anions by exhibiting intense chromogenic response (from colourless to red) for F(-) in acetonitrile solution. The UV-visible titration and (1)H NMR titration experiments indicated that the observed changes occur via a combined process including hydrogen bonding and deprotonation between the BSB and F(-). Moreover theoretical calculations at the Density Functional Theory (DFT) level shed further light upon probe design strategy and the nature of interactions between BSB and F(-). The limit of detection and binding constant of BSB towards F(-) were found to be 6.9×10(-7)M and 1.42±0.069×10(8)M(-2) respectively. Finally, by using F(-)and H(+) as chemical inputs and the absorbance as output, a INHIBIT logic gate was constructed, which exhibits "Multi-write" ability without obvious degradation in its optical output.

Two acid hydrazones incorporating xanthene as a metal chelating centre (B-XAN and N-XAN) have been synthesized, characterized and evaluated for the optical sensing of Mg2+ and Al3+. The replacement of the naphthyl moiety in N-XAN by the phenyl moiety in B-XAN leads to total specificity of the latter one towards Mg2+. The B-XAN exhibited a highly sensitive and selective ‘turn-on’ fluorescent response towards Mg2+ through intense blue fluorescence enhancement. This measurement was free from any interference by other cationic analytes including the Ca2+ and Al3+ also. The binding constant, stoichiometry as well as the mechanistic aspect of the above sensing phenomenon were also studied through various spectroscopic methods.

Nimotuzumab, an anti-epidermal growth factor receptor (anti-EGFR) monoclonal antibody, has been used extensively in many solid tumors and confers significant survival advantage. The antibody has limited skin toxicity and is generally well tolerated. Similar to other anti-EGFR therapies, patients may relapse a few months after treatment. In this study we show for the first time, the use of Nimotuzumab along with Sirolimus has synergistic effect on tumor inhibition as compared with the drugs used individually, in Nimotuzumab responsive and nonresponsive cell lines. In vitro studies prove that while Sirolimus (25 nmol/L) affects the signal downstream to mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR), Nimotuzumab (83 nmol/L) downregulates pTYR, pMAPK and pSTAT3 by 40%, 20% and 30%, respectively. The combination, targeting these two different signaling hubs, may be associated with the synergistic inhibition observed. In vivo, the use of half human therapeutic equivalent doses for both the drugs substantially reduces tumors established in nude as well as severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) mice by EGFR overexpressing A-431 cells. The drug combination reduces cell proliferation and the expression of signal transduction molecules. Treated tumors are better differentiated as compared with those established in the control mice. Tumor microarray demonstrates that Nimotuzumab and the combination groups segregate independently to the Sirolimus and the control treatment. The combination uniquely downregulated 55% of the altered tumor genes, extending beyond the typical pathways associated with Nimotuzumab and Sirolimus downstream pathways inhibition. These results would suggest that this nontoxic drug combination improves therapeutic benefit even in patients with low-EGFR expression and severely immunocompromised because of their current medication.

In the present study, sequence and structural analysis of ITS2 region (the spacer segment between 5.8S and 28S rRNA of mature rRNA sequences) of 7 Culex species belonging to 5 different geographical locations was carried out. Alignment of the ITS2 sequence from the 7 species revealed 8 homologous domains. Four species namely C. vishnui, C. annulus, C. pipiens, C. quiquefasciatusshowed high sequence (98­100%) and RNA secondary structure similarity. The ITS2 similarity among different species is high despite their varying geographical locations. Several common features of secondary structure are shared among these species, with some of them supported by compensatory changes, suggesting the significant role by ITS2 as an RNA domain during ribosome biogenesis.

GST (glutathione S-transferases) are a family of detoxification enzymes that catalyze the conjugation of reduced GSH (glutathione) to xenobiotic (endogenous electrophilic) compounds. GST from Wb (Wuchereria bancrofti) and Bm (Brugia malayi) are significantly different from human GST in sequence and structure. Thus, Wb-GST and Bm-GST are potential chemotherapeutic targets for anti-filarial treatment. Comparison of modeled Wb and Bm GST with human GST show structural difference between them. Analysis of the active site residues for the binding of electrophilic co-substrates provides insight towards the design of parasite specific GST inhibitors.