The synthesis of reliable biological nanomaterials is a crucial area of study in nanotechnology. In this study, Emericella dentata was employed for the biosynthesis of AgNPs, which were then combined with synthesized biochar, a porous structure created through biomass pyrolysis. The synergistic effects of AgNPs and biochar were evaluated through the assessment of pro-inflammatory cytokines, anti-apoptotic gene expression, and antibacterial activity. Solid biosynthesized AgNPs were evaluated by XRD and SEM, with SEM images revealing that most of the AgNPs ranged from 10 to 80 nm, with over 70% being less than 40 nm. FTIR analysis indicated the presence of stabilizing and reducing functional groups in the AgNPs. The nanoemulsion’s zeta potential, hydrodynamic diameter, and particle distribution index were found to be −19.6 mV, 37.62 nm, and 0.231, respectively. Biochar, on the other hand, did not have any antibacterial effects on the tested bacterial species. However, when combined with AgNPs, its antibacterial efficacy against all bacterial species was significantly enhanced. Furthermore, the combined material significantly reduced the expression of anti-apoptotic genes and pro-inflammatory cytokines compared to individual treatments. This study suggests that low-dose AgNPs coupled with biochar could be a more effective method to combat lung cancer epithelial cells and pathogenic bacteria compared to either substance alone.

The date seeds (DS) biochar produced at 550°C was found to be appropriate for remediation of metal-contaminated water. This was evident in the data, which showed that applying the biochar to Raphanus sp. and Arabidopsis sp. reduced metal stress and toxicity. The LC50 of all tested metals...

Jordan is renowned for having limited water resources. The demand for water will increasing rapidly as the country's population grows and the number of refugees increases. In order to maintain the highest water quality for consumers, the Ministry of Water and Irrigation and other governmental agencies are striving to manage Jordan's water resources through continuous monitoring. The main objective was to evaluate the drinking water quality at storage mixing tanks at Al-Karak province, besides, assessing its suitability for safe consumption. The investigation scheme was to monitor Al-Karak's drinking water system for three successive months. The fourteen principal storage tanks for the water distribution system in the area of investigation were sampled. The pH, electrical conductivity (EC), major cations, major anions, total dissolved solids (TDS), total hardness (TH), turbidity, total alkalinity (TA), and heavy metals were measured. The scaling and originality of the dissolved salt elements in the collected water samples and geochemical processes were examined using Piper and Durov diagrams. The indices used in all samples over the period of investigation, are Langelier Saturation Index (LSI), Ryznar Stability Index (RSI), Aggressive Index (AI), Puckorius Scaling Index (PSI), and Water Quality Index (WQI). The results showed that scale development is high in all storage tanks, as the water is calcium carbonate supersaturated, evident from LSI values that ranges 0.5–2. According to the range of RSI values (5.91–6.6), all water tanks are resistant to corrosion. Throughout the period of study (October–December), the estimated WQIs of all samples upon average were found to be less than 50, indicating excellent water quality. Finally, the collected water samples are analyzed and found to be within the acceptable levels of Jordan's drinking water standards.

It was found that date seeds are suitable for biochar production due to their low moisture content 8.92 %, low ash yield 1.05%, and high organic matter content 78.3%. The biochar was produced by pyrolysis at 350, 450 and 550oC. The effect of pyrolysis temperature on the physicochemical...

Introduction: A cost-effective and ecologically friendly method of generating silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) includes pathways that utilize a variety of biological sources to decrease metal ions. This study was designed to synthesize AgNPs using a fungus strain Aspergillus flavus and evaluate its antibacterial activities alone or in combination with Foeniculum vulgare (fennel) essential oil (EO). Methods: The antibacterial activity of different concentrations of biosynthesized AgNPs by Aspergillus flavus individually and in combination with fennel EO was investigated using disc diffusion methods and minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC). Bacterial species, including Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Enterobacter cloacae, Shigella sp., Staphylococcus aureus, and Staphylococcus epidermidis were tested. Results: Formation of dark brown color, ultraviolet-visible (UV/Vis) spectroscopy, transmission electron microscope (TEM), and attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR) were used for the characterization of AgNPs. Obvious synergistic effects were observed between AgNPs and EO of fennel (F. vulgare) with all tested bacteria except S. aureus, through increases in fold area of inhibition (IFAs) within the range of 0.15 to 8.87. Although S. aureus had the most susceptibility toward both AgNPs and EO of fennel (24 and 17 mm, respectively), no synergistic activity was exhibited. The best synergistic capacity resulted from AgNPs and fennel EO was observed against S. epidermidis (8.87-fold in IFA). Conclusion: This study revealed that when biosynthesized AgNPs were mixed with the EO of F. vulgare, they became more bacteriostatic and might be developed to treat bacterial infections in the future.

Phenol is one of the most important environmental pollutants that are found in sewage and industrial water from which agricultural lands are irrigated. In this study Curtobacterium flaccumfaciens bacterium was isolated in pure culture from phenol-uncontaminated farmland soil. Its ability to biodegrade phenol was examined. C. flaccumfaciens demonstrated its ability to use phenol as a source of carbon and energy in batch cultures. The isolated strain was able to completely biodegrade 700 mg/L phenol in a reasonable incubation period (96 h). However, these bacteria were able to completely remove 700 mg/L of phenol in a reasonable incubation period (96 h). The degradation rate of phenol was 19.4 ppm/h. However, they also endured higher concentrations than 1200 mg/L, but had a lower biodegradation rate because of cytotoxicity generated by phenol concentration of more than 700 mg/L. It was observed that the biodegradation process of phenol occurred at pH 7.0 to obtain maximum degradation of phenol by C. flaccumfaciens. In addition, the biodegradation of phenols occurred over a large range of incubation temperature (25 to 37ºC) where 28ºC was the optimum incubation temperature for C. flaccumfaciens cells for phenol biodegradation. Since this is, the first study related to the use of C. flaccumfaciens in the biodegradation process of phenol, more works need to be done, whether from a biochemical or molecular biology point of view.