Examining the Response of Resident Welfare Associations During the Covid–19 Pandemic and its Ramifications for Urban Governance in India

Urban decentralisation in India’s major metropolitan cities has seen a proliferation of Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs), which are representative organisations of and for residents of planned neighbourhoods. Middle-class residents participate in the city’s affairs and their own neighbourhood through this form of organisation. This article attempts to critically examine RWA responses to lockdowns and other measures introduced by central and state governments in India to check the spread of the Covid–19 pandemic. The article builds upon existing scholarship that is critical of the government’s delegation of city management to entrepreneurial governance in the form of RWAs. RWAs often exhibit exclusionary politics, and the expansion of their roles in the social sphere has serious ramifications for city governance. These ramifications stood severely exposed during the lockdown period. While there were instances of state officials working productively in collaboration with RWA functionaries regarding contact-tracing and dissemination of practical information, there were also reports of discrimination, with the RWAs denying entry to health workers and other service professionals. Existing class and caste biases were also exacerbated by RWA rules that prohibited the entry of domestic workers and self-employed professionals.While the central, state and city-level officials had their zones of influence, RWAs too emerged as very important actors. Government authorities worked in tandem with the RWAs to enforce and observe pandemic-related restrictions. While this collaboration is useful in extraordinary periods, it compromises the relationship between RWAs and individual citizens as it tilts the long-run balance of power in favour of RWAs. The article attempts to put this behaviour in perspective by contextualising it with literature on RWAs, arguing that the state co-opts RWAs for administrative and political ends and, as a consequence, RWAs emerge more powerful and with expanded scopes of influence. Developments that lead to the amplification of RWA power need to be critically examined, for they reveal the paradoxes inherent in the idea of civil society

The application of amine-based materials for carbon capture and utilisation: an overarching view

In the ongoing research campaign to reduce the global atmospheric CO2 concentration, technologies are being developed to enable the capture of CO2 from dilute sources and conversion into higher-value products. Amine and polyamine-based materials feature widely in the literature as solid CO2 sorbents and as catalyst modifiers for CO2 electrochemical reduction; however, advancing lab-scale research into a pilot or industrial-scale application is fraught with challenges, starting with the definition and identification of an effective adsorbent. This multidisciplinary review serves as an essential introduction to the role of amines in carbon capture and utilisation for scientists entering and advancing the field. The chemical and engineering principles of amine-based CO2 capture are considered to define the parameters required of an adsorbent, describe adsorption testing methods, and introduce the reader to a range of amine-based adsorbents and how they can be specialised to overcome specific issues. Finally, the application of electrocatalysts modified with nitrogen-containing compounds and polymers is reviewed in the context of CO2 utilisation

Terpenoids from Centella asiatica, a novel inhibitor against RNA-dependent-RNA polymerase activity of NSP12 of the SARS CoV-2 (COVID-19)

527-537Covid-19, the first case of which was reported in Wuhan (China) in December 2019 was found to be a strain of coronaviruses like SARS and MERS reported earlier. These viruses are positive strain RNA viruses composed of both structural as well as non-structural proteins. The enzyme RdRp (RNA dependent RNA polymerase) stands responsible for catalyzing the replication of this virus within the host cell. A disruption in the core catalytic subunit composed of nsp12, nsp7, and nsp8 may inhibit the replication of the same. Different drugs targeting different sites on the virus have been developed. In this context, some of the natural products of the plant Centella asiatica was lead for further drug development against the target proteins of RdRp protein (PDB ID: 6NUR) through molecular docking. These compounds are 2,3-dihydroxyurs-12-en-28-oic acid, corosolic acid and pomolic acid which are triterpenoids and have highest binding affinity against RdRp protein thereby arresting the viral replication. Several previous studies showed triterpenoids as pertinent mediators implicated in the in vitro immune response

Terpenoids from Centella asiatica, a novel inhibitor against RNA-dependent-RNA polymerase activity of NSP12 of the SARS CoV-2 (COVID-19)

Covid-19, the first case of which was reported in Wuhan (China) in December 2019 was found to be a strain of coronaviruses like SARS and MERS reported earlier. These viruses are positive strain RNA viruses composed of both structural as well as non-structural proteins. The enzyme RdRp (RNA dependent RNA polymerase) stands responsible for catalyzing the replication of this virus within the host cell. A disruption in the core catalytic subunit composed of nsp12, nsp7, and nsp8 may inhibit the replication of the same. Different drugs targeting different sites on the virus have been developed. In this context, some of the natural products of the plant Centella asiatica was lead for further drug development against the target proteins of RdRp protein (PDB ID: 6NUR) through molecular docking. These compounds are 2,3-dihydroxyurs-12-en-28-oic acid, corosolic acid and pomolic acid which are triterpenoids and have highest binding affinity against RdRp protein thereby arresting the viral replication. Several previous studies showed triterpenoids as pertinent mediators implicated in the in vitro immune response

Prediction of Binary Gas Adsorption of CO₂/N₂ and Thermodynamic Studies on Nitrogen Enriched Nanostructured Carbon Adsorbents

Pure component adsorption isotherms for CO₂ and N₂ on the prepared nitrogen enriched carbon were evaluated using a static volumetric analyzer at four different adsorption temperatures ranging from 30–100 °C and were then correlated with three pure component adsorption isotherm models, namely, Langmuir, Sips, and dual-site Langmuir (DSL) models. Adsorption equilibria of binary CO₂–N₂ adsorption was then predicted by extending Sips and DSL equations empirically along with the usage of ideal adsorbed solution theory and was compared with experimental data obtained from the breakthrough curves through various phase diagrams. Breakthrough data for binary system were obtained at four different CO₂ feed concentrations (5–12.5% by volume) and four adsorption temperatures (30–100 °C) using a fixed-bed reactor. Among three adsorption isotherms models used to investigate the equilibrium data of pure component system, Sips and DSL adsorption isotherm models fitted well, indicating energetically heterogeneous adsorbent surface. However, for the binary adsorption system, their extended forms highly under-predicted the amount of CO₂ adsorbed over the complete temperature and feed concentration range because of the difference in adsorptive strengths of CO₂ and N₂ molecules. Also, ideal adsorbed solution theory was not able to describe the mixed-gas adsorption equilibria. Total adsorbed amounts were found to increase with CO₂ gas phase molar fraction implying positive deviations from Raoult’s law with asymmetric <i>x–y</i> diagrams. Thermodynamic functions such as molar Gibbs free energy change, entropy change, and enthalpy change were evaluated numerically for pure component system. They confirmed the feasibility of adsorption process and indicated the formation of more ordered configuration of CO₂ molecules on adsorbent surface and hence exhibited higher heats of adsorption as compared to N₂

Pure and Binary Gas Adsorption Equilibrium for CO₂–N₂ on Oxygen Enriched Nanostructured Carbon Adsorbents

Pure component (CO₂ and N₂) adsorption isotherms of oxygen enriched nanostructured carbon (RF-700) were evaluated using a static volumetric analyzer at four different adsorption temperatures ranging from 30 to 100 °C. Langmuir, Sips, and dual-site Langmuir (DSL) models were used to correlate pure component adsorption isotherms and it was found that Sips and DSL isotherm model fitted well with the experimental data, indicating the heterogeneous nature of the adsorbent surface. Fixed-bed column was used to obtain dynamic breakthrough data for binary system CO₂–N₂ at different adsorption temperatures (30–100 °C) and CO₂ feed concentrations (5–12.5% by volume). Extended Sips, extended DSL, and IAST (ideal adsorbed solution theory) models using pure component adsorption isotherm data were used for the prediction of adsorption of binary system (CO₂–N₂). Predicted equilibria data was compared with experimental breakthrough curve data, and it was found that extended forms of the isotherm models (Sips and DSL) underpredicted CO₂ adsorption equilibria because of the difference in adsorptive strengths of CO₂ and N₂ molecules. Ideal adsorbed solution theory failed to describe the mixed-gas adsorption equilibria. Asymmetric <i>x–y</i> diagrams showed positive deviation from Raoult’s law. The feasibility of the adsorption process was suggested by the negative value of molar Gibbs free energy change. The formation of more ordered configuration of CO₂ molecules on the adsorbent surface was seen as a higher heat of adsorption was exhibited for CO₂ as compared to N₂

An Insight into Vaginal Microbiome Techniques

There is a unique microbial community in the female lower genital tract known as the vaginal microbiota, which varies in composition and density and provides significant benefits during pregnancy, reproductive cyclicity, healthy newborn delivery, protection from preterm birth, infections such as UTIs, bacterial vaginosis, and so on, and improves the efficacy of treatments for vaginal cancers. Methods: It is necessary to know how the vaginal microbiome is composed in order to make an accurate diagnosis of the diseases listed above. A microbiome&rsquo;s members are difficult to classify, and the way microbial communities function and influence host&ndash;pathogen interactions are difficult to understand. More and more metagenomic studies are able to unravel such complexities due to advances in high-throughput sequencing and bioinformatics. When it comes to vaginal microbiota research, we&rsquo;ll be looking at the use of modern techniques and strategies that can be used to investigate variations in vaginal microbiota in order to detect diseases earlier, better treat vaginal disorders, and boost women&rsquo;s health. Discussion: The discussed techniques and strategies may improve the treatment of vaginal disorders and may be beneficial for women&rsquo;s overall health