Biogenic nanozirconium in hydrogel beads for fluoride removal: equilibrium, thermodynamic and kinetic studies

248-253In the present research work, removal of fluoride from aqueous solution using fenugreek leaf mediated Zr nanoparticle entrapped in calcium alginate beads has been attempted. The adsorption study for removal of fluoride from aqueous solution of defined concentrations has been carried out in batch mode followed by its estimation using ion-chromatography. Synthesized Zr nanoparticles are subjected to various analyses e.g. SEM, TEM, SAED EDAX and FTIR, revealing zirconium an integral component. The adsorption capacity of Zr entrapped calcium alginate beads for fluoride is found to be 90.90 mg/g. The Langmuir isotherm model best fits on equilibrium data since it provides higher R2 value than Freundlich model similarly, pseudo-second order kinetic model could better explain adsorption kinetic in comparison to pseudo first order model by presenting better correlation coefficient. The overall study suggests that Zr nanoparticles entrapped in alginate beads could be a better candidate for removal of fluoride from aqueous solution

Impact of COVID-19 Nationwide Lockdowns and Unlock Phases in India on River Water Quality of Upper Part of the Ganga River

The river water quality index (RWQI) of the upper Ganga canal has been computed to assess the effect of lockdown and unlock phases lead down by COVID-19 in India. Geospatial distribution of RWQI from January 2019 to December 2021 in the study area revealed significant impacts of lockdown on water quality. However, unlock phases (post lockdown) have deteriorated water quality since August 2020 and reached to actual conditions of the river by August 2021. To evaluate the lockdown as a management strategy to clean the river, other factors were reviewed including rainfall data, migration, and other activities. The results revealed that all the monitoring stations have improved water quality index ranging from 3 to 45 between March to June 2020. The River Ganga at Haridwar showed a two-fold improvement in the water quality index making it the highest positive impact of the lockdown, and at Rishikesh, the water quality index showed the least changes. The average decrease in RWQI has been observed to be 13 units in the year 2020 as compared to 2019 between March to June. In October 2020, RWQI has been observed to be higher as compared to the years 2019 and 2021. This is possibly due to a shift in rainfall patterns and other factors such as evapotranspiration, precipitation, and atmospheric temperature involved in river water quality control. Up to 60% reduction in average total coliforms and fecal coliforms has been observed due to the nationwide lockdown and a shift in human behavior towards cleaner and sustainable approaches

Biogenic nanozirconium in hydrogel beads for fluoride removal: equilibrium, thermodynamic and kinetic studies

In the present research work, removal of fluoride from aqueous solution using fenugreek leaf mediated Zr nanoparticle entrapped in calcium alginate beads has been attempted. The adsorption study for removal of fluoride from aqueous solution of defined concentrations has been carried out in batch mode followed by its estimation using ion-chromatography. Synthesized Zr nanoparticles are subjected to various analyses e.g. SEM, TEM, SAED EDAX and FTIR, revealing zirconium an integral component. The adsorption capacity of Zr entrapped calcium alginate beads for fluoride is found to be 90.90 mg/g. The Langmuir isotherm model best fits on equilibrium data since it provides higher R2 value than Freundlich model similarly, pseudo-second order kinetic model could better explain adsorption kinetic in comparison to pseudo first order model by presenting better correlation coefficient. The overall study suggests that Zr nanoparticles entrapped in alginate beads could be a better candidate for removal of fluoride from aqueous solution

BIOGENIC SELENIUM NANOPARTICLES FOR THEIR THERAPEUTIC APPLICATION: Nano selenium usages

Biosynthesis is an eloquent, safe, biocompatible, eco-friendly, and recyclable way of preparing selenium nanoparticles (SeNPs). Selenium occurs in multiple oxidation states, for example, +6, +4, 0, or −2. Selenium (Se) is an essential trace element with a very narrow margin between the lowest acceptable levels of intake and toxicity. Selenium is an essential trace element required for all living organisms. Despite its essentiality, selenium is a potentially toxic element to natural ecosystems due to its bioaccumulation potential that is why it is biologically available in the environment. Selenium is a trace element commonly found in materials of the earth’s crust, and it is essential for humans, animals, and plants. Oxyanions of selenium, that is selenite and selenate, are biologically available. Selenium in the form of selenate ion (SeO42−) is more toxic to most organisms than selenite (SeO32−). Contrarily, elemental selenium (Se0) is inOsoluble and less toxic in comparison to other forms of selenium. Nanoselenium (Se0) in the range of 100–500 nm has similar bioavailability to other forms of selenium into plants, animals, humans, and microorganisms. Biologically synthesized SeNP has many biological applications in the field of medical and pharmaceutical research to combat threats to human health. Biogenic SeNPs have anticancer (cytotoxic) activity, antioxidant activity, and antimicrobial activity. Researches are going on with special interest of SeNPs. Conjugation of antibiotics with SeNPs enhances their anticancer efficacy. SeNPs have also applications in nanobiosensors and environmental remediation

Super-rapid race for saving lives by developing COVID-19 vaccines

The pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has affected millions of people and claimed thousands of lives. Starting in China, it is arguably the most precipitous global health calamity of modern times. The entire world has rocked back to fight against the disease and the COVID-19 vaccine is the prime weapon. Even though the conventional vaccine development pipeline usually takes more than a decade, the escalating daily death rates due to COVID-19 infections have resulted in the development of fast-track strategies to bring in the vaccine under a year’s time. Governments, companies, and universities have networked to pool resources and have come up with a number of vaccine candidates. Also, international consortia have emerged to address the distribution of successful candidates. Herein, we summarize these unprecedented developments in vaccine science and discuss the types of COVID-19 vaccines, their developmental strategies, and their roles as well as their limitations