As emerged the Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Indonesia, causing the increased number of death. Ministry of Education and Culture of Indonesia allowed the distance learning method due the prevention of transmission COVID-19. Institut Teknologi Sumatera ordered the implementation of distance learning method by accessing the online courses since 18^th March 2020 to 29^th May 2020. One of the obstacle for implementation the distance learning in Departement of Chemistry is the achievement of practical skill competencies. This study describes the implementation of alternative laboratory practice in home at one of biochemistry topic using daily chemical and been adjusted with Department of Chemistry learning outcomes and curriculum. Design of this study is one-shot case study and subjects were the 92 of second year college students at Department of Chemistry, Institut Teknologi Sumatera. Instruments of this study are quesioner guideline and student practicum report. The result of implementation the alternative laboratory practice in home were 71.7% of students well-understood the instruction in handbook, 82.6% of students agreed that the topic of distance laboratory practice been accordance with the curriculum, and 80.4% of students were able to elaborate other useful topic of implementation laboratory practice in daily life. Around 86.9% of students could make the good practicum report. Implementation of chemistry laboratory practice using daily chemical in home could be considered as one of alternative distance laboratory practice to achieve the practical skill competencies.

The α-amylase BmaN1 from Bacillus megaterium NL3 is a member of GH13_45 subfamily that has a conserved C-terminal region of approximately 30 residues. This region features a motif of five aromatic amino acids predicted to play a role in starch binding. This study aimed to unravel the role of the C-terminal region in starch hydrolysis. The full-length and C-terminally truncated forms of BmaN1 (BmaN1∆C) were expressed in Escherichia coli ArcticExpress (DE3), resulting in proteins with molecular weights of 56 kDa and 49 kDa, respectively. They exhibited comparable enzymatic activity in the hydrolysis of soluble starch, displaying versatility across a wide range of pH values, temperatures, and NaCl concentrations. BmaN1 and BmaN1∆C activities were inhibited by acarbose and were reduced by SDS and EDTA. In terms of binding and degrading the starch granules, BmaN1∆C showed lower affinity and activity in comparison to BmaN1. Our study indicates that the C-terminal region of BmaN1 significantly enhances its binding affinity and degrading the raw starches. IMPORTANCE: α-Amylase (EC 3.2.1.1) stands as an endo-acting enzyme, essential for catalyzing the hydrolysis of α-1,4 glycosidic bonds within starch molecules. The relevance of α-amylases in biotechnological applications is substantial, constituting approximately 30% of the global enzyme market. Among these enzymes, BmaN1 was the first α-amylase identified to possess distinct catalytic residues within the GH13 family. BmaN1 from B. megaterium NL3 belongs to the GH13_45 subfamily. This subfamily is characterized by a conserved C-terminal region consisting of approximately 30 residues that contains a motif of five aromatic residues predicted to be involved in starch binding. Our study shows that the C-terminal effectively contributes to binding and degrading the raw starch granules. This pioneering research on BmaN1 expands our understanding of α-amylases and holds promise for innovative biotechnological advancements.

The era of industrial revolution 4.0 contributes major challenges in 21st century of education in obtaining qualified students. Education process lead to the development of student skills and attitudes in addition to the knowledge learning process. Critical thinking skills (KBKr) is one of the 21st century learning skills that students should have and needs to be practiced during learning process in school. One of the learning method to practice KBKr is discovery-inquiry learning method. The purpose of this study is obtain the affect of discovery-inquiry learning method on student’s critical thinking skill achievement in topic of solubility. Method of research is pre-experimental and one-shot case study as the design of method research. Subjects were 41 students at one of the senior high school in Bandung. Instruments of this research are six questions of written test and interview guidelines. Highest achievement at the whole sub indicators is the high ability student’s group. Overall, the student’s critical thinking skill achievement on factors affecting solubility’s learning with discovery-inquiry is good.

The development of environmentally sustainable synthetic approaches for biologically active heterocyclic compounds has become increasingly important in medicinal chemistry. In this study, two dihydropyrimidinone (DHPM) derivatives were synthesized through a green Biginelli multicomponent reaction using Phyllanthus acidus fruit extract as a natural acid catalyst. The synthesized compounds were characterized by UV-Vis, FT-IR, ¹H NMR, and ¹³C NMR analyses. The effects of the volume of the catalyst on product yield were investigated, revealing optimal conditions of 3 and 7 mL, respectively, for DHPM-1 and DHPM-2. The biological potential of the synthesized compounds was evaluated through molecular docking, molecular dynamics simulation, and in vitro cytotoxicity assays against A549 cell lines. Molecular docking predicted moderate binding affinities of −5.8 and −5.5 kcal mol⁻¹ for DHPM-1 and DHPM-2, respectively, compared with −7.5 kcal mol⁻¹ for doxorubicin. Consistent with the computational results, DHPM-1 and DHPM-2 exhibited weak cytotoxic activity with IC₅₀ values of 156.395 and 447.205 µg/mL, respectively. These findings indicated that although the present DHPM derivatives possess limited anti-lung cancer activity, the developed green synthetic strategy provides a route associated with lower environmental impact for preparing DHPM scaffolds that may serve as promising starting points for further structural optimization and biological investigation.

The trend of amylase research focus is screening amylase produced by thermophilic bacteria that grow from hot springs. Indonesia has a diversity of bacteria tha

Water kefir is a promising non-dairy probiotic beverage, yet its microbial dynamics in coconut water and coconut–pineapple substrates remain insufficiently explored. This single-run study evaluated microbial growth using three carbon sources (glucose, sucrose, and commercial sugar). Fermentation was carried out with 5% (w/v) water kefir grains and 5% sugar at 25–28 °C for 72 h, with sampling every 24 h. Optical density (OD₆₀₀) ranged from 0.13 to 0.83, generally increasing during the first 48 h and declining thereafter, while pH remained acidic (3.65–3.93). Plate counts on MRS agar were too numerous to count during the first 48 h, followed by enumerable counts at 72 h. Coconut–pineapple substrates showed higher culturable lactic acid bacteria counts (~10⁸–10⁹ CFU/mL), whereas coconut-only substrates were lower (~10⁷ CFU/mL or below detection). Pineapple-containing and sucrose-based treatments were associated with higher activity. Because the study was a single run without replication, results are presented descriptively as observed trends and should be regarded as preliminary. Fermentation up to 48 h supported microbial growth, whereas extended fermentation reduced culturability under MRS-based enumeration. These observations highlight the roles of fermentation time and substrate composition, providing a basis for future replicated studies.