Recent advances in woundcare is targeted towards developing active-dressings, where multiple components are combined to provide a suitable environment for rapid healing. The aim of the present research is to study the preparation of biomimic composite wound dressings by the grafting of hydrogel on silk fibroin fabric. The swelling ability of hydrogel grafted silk fibroin fabric was optimized by changing the initiator concentration. In order to impart antimicrobial properties, these dressing are further coated sono-chemically with zinc oxide nanoparticles. The water vapor transmission rate of the prepared samples was measured. The conformation of silk fibroin proteins after grafting with hydrogel was also confirmed using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR). The morphology of the zinc oxide-coated silk fibroin fabric and hydrogel-coated silk fibroin was studied using Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM). The antimicrobial activity of the zinc oxide-coated samples was studied against E coli. The cytocompatibility of the prepared dressing materials were evaluated using L929 fibroblast cells. MTT assay and phase contrast microscopic studies showed that the adherence, growth, and proliferation of the L929 fibroblast cells that were seeded on zinc oxide nanoparticles on the functionalized hydrogel-coated silk fibroin dressing was significantly higher than that of pure silk fibroin due to the highly porous, bio-mimic structure that allowed ease of passage of nutrients, growth factors, metabolites, and the exchange of gases which is beneficial for successful regeneration of damaged tissues. The expression of TNF-α and IL-2 were not significantly higher than that of control. The proposed composite dressing would be a promising material for wound dressing and regenerative medicine but in order to prove the efficacy of these materials, more in vivo experiments and clinical tests are required to be conducted in future.

Hydrocarbon contamination is of great worry because of their widespread effect on all forms of life. Pollution caused by increasing the use of crude oil is ordinary because of its extensive application and its related transport and dumping problems. Crude oil contains a complex mixture of aliphatic, aromatic, and heterocyclic compounds. Soil naturally consists of heavy metals, and due to human action like refining of oil and use of pesticides, their concentration in soil is rising. Several areas have such high heavy metal and metalloid concentration that surrounding natural ecosystem has been badly affected. The reason is that heavy metals and metalloids limit microbe’s activity rendering it unsuitable for hydrocarbon degradation, thus reducing its effectiveness. Environmental remediation is thus extremely necessary and involves with the elimination of pollutants from soil, air, and water. In the last several decades, different methods have been employed and applied for the cleanup of our environment which includes mechanical, chemical, and biochemical remediation methods. The hydrocarbon pollution consists of many aspects like oil spills, fossil fuels, organic pollutants like aromatics, etc. that are discussed below.

A new sequential organocatalytic method for the synthesis of chiral 3-substituted (X = OH, NH₂) tetrahydroquinoline derivatives (THQs) [ee up to 99%, yield up to 87%] based on α-aminooxylation or -amination followed by reductive cyclization of o-nitrohydrocinnamaldehydes has been described. This methodology has been efficiently demonstrated in the synthesis of two important bioactive molecules namely (−)-sumanirole (96% ee) and 1-[(S)-3-(dimethylamino)-3,4-dihydro-6,7-dimethoxy-quinolin-1(2H)-yl]propanone (92% ee).