Use of dyes as well as colorants in industrial processes has extensively increased. Effluents from various industries such as textile, paint, food, etc. are reported to have a diverse range of colorants. The effluents from these industries are often released into natural water bodies, causing serious water and environmental pollution, to which humans and other species are constantly exposed. Continued changes in climate have also affected water availability for people around the world. Thus, advanced treatments and removal of harmful contaminants from municipal and industrial wastewater are becoming increasingly important. Removal of dyes and colorants from wastewater can be done in a variety of ways, including physical, chemical, and biological treatments. These technologies, however, differ in terms of efficiency, cost, and environmental effect. There are many technological and economic challenges for the wastewater treatment methods currently available. The search for the most suitable strategy for successful degradation or removal of dyes from effluents is an urgent requirement. Previously published research suggests that the use of enzymes for dye removal is a more economic and effective strategy as compared to traditional techniques. Nanoparticles, with their exceptional physicochemical features, have the potential to tackle the problem of wastewater purification in a less energy-intensive way. However, extensive standardization would be a necessity for the use of different nanoparticles. Therefore, intense research in the use of enzymes and nanoparticle-based technologies may provide much needed technological solution for the remediation of a diverse range of dyes from wastewater.

Recycling plastic waste into valuable materials is one of the contemporary challenges. Every year around 50 million tons of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles are used worldwide. The fact that only a part of this amount is being recycled is putting a burden on the environment. Therefore, a technology that can convert PET-based waste materials into useful ones is highly needed. In the present work, attempts have been made to convert PET-based waste materials into a precursor for others. We report an aminolysed product (3) obtained by aminolysis reaction of PET (1) with 1,2 diaminopropane (DAP, 2) under solvent and catalytic free conditions. The highest amount of monomeric product was obtained upon heating the mixture of diamine and PET at 130 °C. The resulting aminolysed product was then converted to a Schiff-base (5) in 25% yield. The chemical structure of the synthesized compounds was confirmed using multi-spectroscopic techniques. The results of this study will be a valuable addition to the growing body of work on plastic recycling.

ZnO nanoparticles (NPs) were prepared by green synthesis using plant leaf extraction of Ochradenus baccatus and characterized by XRD, FESEM, HRTEM, and Raman spectroscopy techniques. Since elevated CO levels have been associated with inflammatory conditions, cardiovascular diseases, and respiratory disorders and the methane gas primarily produced by gut microbiota and linked to gastrointestinal disorders and other abnormal methane levels in breath samples, the nanoparticles were applied for gas sensor fabrication. Thus, the gas sensors fabricated using ZnO nanoparticles were investigated for CH₄, H₂, CO, and NO₂ gases. The gas sensing was performed for the fabricated sensors at various operating temperatures and gas concentrations. Interestingly, leaf-extracted green synthesized ZnO NPs were more sensitive to CH₄, CO, and NO₂ gases than to H₂. The results of sensing studies revealed that the nanoparticles exhibit a selectivity toward gas depending on the gas type. The sensor response was also studied against the humidity. These findings bridge between the laboratory and industry sectors for future gas sensors development, which can be used for exhaled breath analysis and serve as potential diagnostic tools for highly sensitive contagious diseases.

Garlic has been reported to inhibit protein glycation, a process that underlies several disease processes, including chronic complications of diabetes mellitus. Biophysical, biochemical, and molecular docking investigations were conducted to assess anti-glycating, antioxidant, and protein structural protection activities of garlic. Results from spectral (UV and fluorescence) and circular dichroism (CD) analysis helped ascertain protein conformation and secondary structure protection against glycation to a significant extent. Further, garlic showed heat-induced protein denaturation inhibition activity (52.17%). It also inhibited glycation, advanced glycation end products (AGEs) formation as well as lent human serum albumin (HSA) protein structural stability, as revealed by reduction in browning intensity (65.23%), decrease in protein aggregation index (67.77%), and overall reduction in cross amyloid structure formation (33.26%) compared with positive controls (100%). The significant antioxidant nature of garlic was revealed by FRAP assay (58.23%) and DPPH assay (66.18%). Using molecular docking analysis, some of the important garlic metabolites were investigated for their interactions with the HSA molecule. Molecular docking analysis showed quercetin, a phenolic compound present in garlic, appears to be the most promising inhibitor of glucose interaction with the HSA molecule. Our findings show that garlic can prevent oxidative stress and glycation-induced biomolecular damage and that it can potentially be used in the treatment of several health conditions, including diabetes and other inflammatory diseases.

To reduce the mortality and morbidity associated with cancer, new cancer theranostics are in high demand and are an emerging area of research. To achieve this goal, we report the synthesis and characterization of piperazine-linked 1,8-naphthalimide-arylsulfonyl derivatives (SA1–SA7). These compounds were synthesized in good yields following a two-step protocol and characterized using multiple analytical techniques. In vitro cytotoxicity and fluorescent cellular imaging of the compounds were assessed against non-cancerous fibroblast (3T3) and breast cancer (4T1) cell lines. Although the former study indicated the safe nature of the compounds (viability = 82–95% at 1 μg/mL), imaging studies revealed that the designed probes had good membrane permeability and could disperse in the whole cell cytoplasm. In silico studies, including molecular docking, molecular dynamics (MD) simulation, and ADME/Tox results, indicated that the compounds had the ability to target CAIX-expressing cancers. These findings suggest that piperazine-linked 1,8-naphthalimide-arylsulfonyl derivatives are potential candidates for cancer theranostics and a valuable backbone for future research.

Glycation of various biomolecules contributes to structural changes and formation of several high molecular weight fluorescent and non-fluorescent, advanced glycation end products (AGEs). AGEs and glycation are involved in various health complications. Synthetic medicines, including metformin, have several adverse effects. Natural products and their derivatives are used in the treatment of various diseases due to their significant therapeutic qualities. Allium sativum (garlic) is used in traditional medicines because of its antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-diabetic properties. This study aimed to determine the anti-glycating and AGEs inhibitory activities of garlic. Biochemical and biophysical analyses were performed for in vitro incubated human serum albumin (HSA) with 0.05 M of glucose for 1, 5, and 10 weeks. Anti-glycating and AGEs inhibitory effect of garlic was investigated in glycated samples. Increased biochemical and biophysical changes were observed in glycated HSA incubated for 10 weeks (G-HSA-10W) as compared to native HSA (N-HSA) as well as glycated HSA incubated for 1 (G-HSA-1W) and 5 weeks (G-HSA-5W). Garlic extract with a concentration of ≥6.25 µg/mL exhibited significant inhibition in biophysical and biochemical changes of G-HSA-10W. Our findings demonstrated that garlic extract has the ability to inhibit biochemical and biophysical changes in HSA that occurred due to glycation. Thus, garlic extract can be used against glycation and AGE-related health complications linked with chronic diseases in diabetic patients due to its broad therapeutic potential.