Carbon dots have gained tremendous interest attributable to their unique features. Two approaches are involved in the fabrication of quantum dots (Top-down and Bottom-up). Most of the synthesis methods are usually multistep, required harsh conditions, and costly carbon sources that may have a toxic effect, therefore green synthesis is more preferable. Herein, the current review presents the green synthesis of carbon quantum dots (CQDs) and graphene quantum dots (GQDs) that having a wide range of potential applications in bio-sensing, cellular imaging, and drug delivery. However, some drawbacks and limitations are still unclear. Other biomedical and biotechnological applications are also highlighted.

Housing system and nutrition are non-genetic factors that can improve the well-being of animals to obtain higher quality products. A better understanding of how different housing systems and essential oils can influence the performance of layers is very important at the research and commercial levels. The current study aimed to investigate the effects of a housing system and dietary supplementation of rosemary and cinnamon essential oils on layers’ performance and egg quality. A factorial arrangement (2 × 3) was performed include two housing systems (floor and cage) and three different types of essential oils (0, 300 mg/kg diet of rosemary and 300 mg/kg diet of cinnamon essential oils) to study their effects on the productive performance, egg quality, immunity, oxidative stress and haematology of ISA brown laying hens during the production stages (from 28 to 76 weeks of age). Birds were randomly divided into two groups each comprising of 1500 birds; the first group was moved from the litter to reared laying cages while the second group was floor reared. Each group was randomly divided into three groups, the first was considered as a control group, the second treated with rosemary essential oil, and the third with cinnamon essential oil. The differences in egg production and weight, egg quality, feed intake and conversion, blood picture and chemistry, immunity, and antioxidant parameters between the different housing systems (floor and cage) were not significant at (p < 0.05 or 0.01). On the other hand, the egg production and weight, Haugh unit, feed intake and conversion, blood cholesterol, Alanine Aminotransferase (ALT), Aspartate Aminotransferase (AST), urea, Ca, P, immunity, and antioxidant parameters were significantly (p < 0.05 or 0.01) better in rosemary and cinnamon groups than in the control group. Furthermore, the results of dietary supplementation with rosemary and cinnamon were very close. Regarding egg production and weight, there were no significant differences due to the interactions. The differences in egg mass among the interactions were also not significant except at 68–76 weeks, where the cage × cinnamon group was the highest. Under the floor rearing system, birds that were fed a diet supplemented with or without essential oils (EOs) consumed more feed than those raised under the cage system. Regarding feed conversion rate (FCR), the differences among the interactions were not significant except at 44–52, 52–60 and 68–76 weeks, where the cage × cinnamon group was the lowest. Excluding glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activity (p < 0.001), all immunity and antioxidant indices were not statistically different as a consequence of the interaction among EOs and housing systems. Additionally, the highest levels of phosphorus were observed for layers fed diets enriched with cinnamon oil with the cage or floor system. In conclusion, the data suggested that supplementation of rosemary and cinnamon essential oils in laying hen diet showed significantly positive effects on hen performance and egg production. Cholesterol, liver and kidney functions, immunity, and antioxidant parameters improved with rosemary and cinnamon supplementation when compared to the control. Additionally, the different housing systems did not result in any positive or negative impact on these traits.

Graphene quantum dots (GQD) is an efficient nanomaterial composed of one or more layers of graphene with unique properties that combine both graphene and carbon dots (CDs). It can be synthesized using carbon-rich materials as precursors, such as graphite, macromolecules polysaccharides, and fullerene. This contribution emphasizes the utilization of GQD-based materials in the fields of sensing, bioimaging, energy storage, and corrosion inhibitors. Inspired by these numerous applications, various synthetic approaches have been developed to design and fabricate GQD, particularly bottom-up and top-down processes. In this context, the prime goal of this review is to emphasize possible eco-friendly and sustainable methodologies that have been successfully employed in the fabrication of GQDs. Furthermore, the fundamental and experimental aspects associated with GQDs such as possible mechanisms, the impact of size, surface alteration, and doping with other elements, together with their technological and industrial applications have been envisaged. Till now, understanding simple photo luminance (PL) operations in GQDs is very critical as well as there are various methods derived from the optical properties of manufactured GQDs can differ. Lack of determining exact size and morphology is highly required without loss of their optical features. Finally, GQDs are promising candidates in the after-mentioned application fields.

The present investigation aimed to explore the impact of dietary graded levels of 2 types of probiotic bacteria (Bacillus toyonensis [BT] and Bifidobacterium bifidum [BB]) on growth, carcass traits, meat quality, and bacteriology of growing Japanese quail reared under the cage system. One thousand three hundred sixty Japanese quail day-old chicks were randomly divided into 10 groups (8 replicates each). Birds were fed a basal diet (control, T1) and the basal diet plus 0.05, 0.075, 0.10, and 0.125% BT (T2, T3, T4, and T5, respectively), 0.10% BB (T6), and the same previous doses of BT plus 0.05% BB (T7, T8, T9, and T10, respectively). Results showed a significant (P < 0.001) increase in final BW and weight gain because of probiotic supplementation (except T2 for weight gain). Both feed intake and feed conversion ratio did not differ during the overall experimental period (1–42 D of age) except feed intake that was reduced in T2 and increased in T5 and T9 groups. All carcass traits studied were significantly (P < 0.01) affected by probiotics, and the combination between BT and BB in group T8 increased all studied parameters as compared with the other treatment groups. The quail meat color of redness a∗ and L∗ values, thiobarbituric content, cooking loss, proteolysis, and total coliform were decreased (P < 0.001) by probiotic treatment. In general, supplementing BT, BB, or their combination to the basal diet delayed the proliferation of pathogenic bacteria in the diet and intestine. Using BT and BB as feed supplements enhanced growth performance and meat quality of quails as well as diminished pathogenic bacteria proliferation in their diet and intestine. As per our results, we can recommend the application of T5 and T8 to T10 levels for the best performance, carcass traits, and meat quality of growing quails.

Amongst sulfur- and nitrogen-containing heterocyclic compounds, the 2-aminothiazole scaffold is one of the characteristic structures in drug development as this essential revelation has several biological activities abiding it to act as an anticancer, antioxidant, antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory agent, among other things. Additionally, various 2-aminothiazole-based derivatives as medical drugs have been broadly used to remedy different kinds of diseases with high therapeutic influence, which has led to their wide innovations. Owing to their wide scale of biological activities, their structural variations have produced attention amongst medicinal chemists. The present review highlights the recently synthesized 2-aminothiazole-containing compounds in the last thirteen years (2008–2020). The originality of this proposal is based on the synthetic strategies developed to access the novel 2-aminothiazole derivatives (N-substituted, 3-substituted, 4-substituted, multi-substituted, aryl/alkyl substituents or acyl/other substituents). The literature reports many synthetic pathways of these 2-aminothiazoles associated with four different biological activities (anticancer, antioxidant, antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory activities). It is wished that this review will be accommodating for new views in the expedition for rationalistic designs of 2-aminothiazole-based medical synthetic pathways.

Microbial contamination affects beverages’ lifetime, quality, and safety. Cucumber crops are seasonally spoiled because of the overproduction. The current study aimed to maximize the importance of natural preservatives and reduce the usage of artificial ones to prolong the cucumber juice’s storage life, enhance flavor, and control the microorganisms after protein isolate and organic acids supplementation. The additions included control (no addition), citric, benzoic acid, sodium salts, kidney bean pepsin hydrolysate (KPH), chicken egg protein isolate (CEPI), duck egg protein isolate (DEPI), and quail egg protein isolate (QEPI) as J-Control, J-Citric, J-Benzoic, J-sod. Citrate, J-sod. Benzoate, J-KPH, J-CEPI, J-DEPI, and J-QEPI, respectively. The antioxidant activity of these additives and juices was evaluated by DPPH radical scavenging activity. The antimicrobial activity, including antibacterial and antifungal activities, was evaluated by using disc assay and the radial growth of fungal mycelium, respectively. The phenolic compounds and flavonoids were estimated by a spectrophotometer as Gallic acid equivalent (GAE) and quercetin equivalent (QE), respectively. Moreover, chemical parameters such as pH, total soluble solids (TSS), Titratable acidity (TTA), and Vitamin C were evaluated by AOAC. Finally, the color properties were estimated by a spectrophotometer, using the Hunter method. KPH had higher significant (p ≤ 0.05) antioxidant activity (88%), along with antimicrobial activity. It significantly (p ≤ 0.05) reduced the growth of G+ and G− bacteria by 71–97% and 58–66% respectively. Furthermore, it significantly (p ≤ 0.05) inhibited the tested fungi growth by 70–88% and the other additives less than that. During the storage of cucumber juice for an interval of zero, two, four, and six months, the phenolic compounds and flavonoids were significantly (p ≤ 0.05) decreased. Consequently, the potential activity of the juice was reduced; in addition, pH and vitamin C were significantly (p ≤ 0.05) decreased during the storage period. Meanwhile, the TSS and Titratable acidity were significantly raised. As for color and sensory properties, J-sod. Benzoate, J-KPH, J-CEPI, and J-DEPI had significantly (p ≤ 0.05) high scores in color, taste, and flavor against the control. Generally, the usage of natural additives extends the cucumber juice’s lifetime and increased the manufacture of high-quality and valuable juice.