Single cell fertilizer (SCF): Evidence to prove that bio-molecules are potent nutrient for plant growth

Fertilizers of various kinds are used for the cultivation of crop plants for hyper production of plant based food materials. The study used bio-molecules made in a bacterial cell. The experimental results showed tremendous effect on plant growth. These cellular molecules were made by treating the bacterial cells with lysozyme and protenase K. The wet/weight was increased in multiple folds compared to that of control sets. The fold of increase was 4.79 for rice, 2.77 for wheat, 1.89 for gram and 1.89 for pea when bacterial cellular molecules were used as fertilizer

Facile sonochemical synthesis of zinc oxide nanoflakes at room temperature

Zinc oxide (ZnO) nanostructures with controlled morphology have been synthesized by a facile sonochemical method using cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (cationic surfactant) as a structure directing agent. The influence of surfactant concentration on the evolution of morphology, from starletlike 3D structures to 2D flakes, has been systematically investigated. Room temperature formation of phase-pure ZnO crystals has been confirmed by X-ray diffraction (XRD). Field emissiom scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) reveals the dimensions of ZnO flakes, which are 200-400 nm wide and a few nanometre thick. Molecular fingerprints of the synthesized materials have been obtained by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), while UV-vis spectroscopy estimates the bandgap of ZnO as 3.37 eV. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

First time report on the weather patterns over the Sundarban mangrove forest, East Coast of India

766-770In order to understand the current weather pattern of the Sundarban, a comprehensive data base of meteorological parameters were collected from Satjelia Island of Sundarban and analyzed for a one year period and a long term set up has been commissioned to understand the climate change patterns of the region

Fast detection of low concentration carbon monoxide using calcium-loaded tin oxide sensors

Solid state sensors with noble metal-loaded tin oxide as sensing elements are widely used for the detection of flammable and toxic gases and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Apart from rendering high cost, incorporation of noble metals often increases the preconditioning time and introduces a drift in baseline properties of the sensors. Herein, we report on the development of stable and economically viable sensor modules for fast and efficient detection of carbon monoxide (CO) in air. The sensing layer comprises sonochemically synthesized calcium-loaded tin oxide (Ca-SnO2) nanocrystals, in which calcium primarily gets segregated at the SnO2 grain boundaries as calcium oxide (CaO) and thereby restricts the growth of SnO2 particles. Due to larger ionic radius of Ca2+ as compared to that of Sn4+, a minute quantity of calcium can be doped as well into the SnO2 lattice. The variation of calcium concentration in SnO2 has a prominent effect on the sensor performance, where 5 wt% calcium loading shows the highest sensor response. The sensors exhibit a lower detection limit of 1 ppm CO in air. The response time (10-12 s) and recovery time (30-45 s) of our sensors, for different concentrations of CO, are equivalent or less compared to those of commercially available metal-oxide sensors. Additionally, a highly stable baseline with minimal drift even after being operational for over 1.5 years is observed. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Al3+-Ion-Triggered Conformational Isomerization of a Rhodamine B Derivative Evidenced by a Fluorescence Signal - A Crystallographic Proof

A newly designed rhodamine B anisaldehyde hydrazone exhibits Al3+-ion-induced cis (L) to trans (L) conformational isomerization with respect to the xanthene moiety through a rotation about a N-N bond; the isomerization is indicated by a detectable naked-eye color change and a turn-on red fluorescence in 4-(2-hydroxyethyl)-1-piperazineethanesulfonic acid (HEPES) buffer (EtOH/Water 1:9 v/v; pH 7.4) at 25 degrees C. In support of this observation, detailed spectroscopic and physicochemical studies along with density function theory (DFT) calculations have been performed. This cis-to-trans conformational isomerization is due to Al3+ ion coordination, which induces this visual color change and the turn-on fluorescence response. To strengthen our knowledge of the conformational isomerization, detailed structural characterizations of the cis and trans isomers in the solid state were performed by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first structural report of both cis and trans conformational isomers for this family of compounds. Moreover, this noncytotoxic probe could be used to image the accumulation of Al3+ ions in HeLa and MCF-7 cell lines

A napthelene-pyrazol conjugate: Al(III) ion-selective blue shifting chemosensor applicable as biomarker in aqueous solution

A newly synthesized and crystalographically characterized napthelene-pyrazol conjugate, 1-(5-phenyl-1H-pyrazole-3-ylimino)-methyl]-naphthalen-2-ol (HL) behaves as an Al(III) ion-selective chemosensor through internal charge transfer (ICT)-chelation-enhanced fluorescence (CHEF) processes in 100 mM HEPES buffer (water-DMSO 5 : 1, v/v) at biological pH with almost no interference of other competitive ions. This mechanism is readily studied from electronic, fluorimetric and H-1 NMR titration. The probe (HL) behaved as a highly selective fluorescent sensor for Al(III) ions as low as 31.78 nM within a very short response time (15-20 s). The sensor (HL), which has no cytotoxicity, is also efficient in detecting the distribution of Al(III) ions in HeLa cells via image development under fluorescence microscope

A quinazoline derivative as quick-response red-shifted reporter for nanomolar Al3+ and applicable to living cell staining

A newly synthesized and structurally characterized quinazoline derivative (L) has been shown to act as a quick-response chemosensor for Al3+ with a high selectivity over other metal ions in water-DMSO. In the presence of Al3+, L shows a red-shifted ratiometric enhancement in fluorescence as a result of internal charge transfer and chelation-enhanced fluorescence through the inhibition of a photo-induced electron transfer mechanism. This probe detects Al3+ at concentrations as low as 1.48 nM in 100 mM HEPES buffer (DMSO-water, 1 : 9 v/v) at biological pH with a very short response time (15-20 s). L was applied to biological imaging to validate its utility as a fluorescent probe for monitoring Al3+ ions in living cells, illustrating its value in practical environmental and biological systems

Effect of metal oxidation state on FRET: a Cu(I) silent but selectively Cu(II) responsive fluorescent reporter and its bioimaging applications

Copper(II) and copper(I) complexes of a newly designed and crystallographically characterized Schiff base (HL) derived from rhodamine hydrazide and cinnamaldehyde were isolated in pure form formulated as Cu(L)(NO3)] (L-Cu) (1) and Cu(HL)(CH3CN)(H2O)]ClO4 (HL-Cu) (2), and characterized by physicochemical and spectroscopic tools. Interestingly, complex 1 but not 2 offers red fluorescence in solution state, and eventually HL behaves as a Cu(II) ions selective FRET based fluorosensor in HEPES buffer (1 mM, acetonitrile-water: 1/5, v/v) at 25 degrees C at biological pH with almost no interference of other competitive ions. The dependency of the FRET process on the +2 oxidation state of copper has been nicely supported by exhaustive experimental studies comprising electronic, fluorimetric, NMR titration, and theoretical calculations. The sensing ability of HL has been evaluated by the LOD value towards Cu(II) ions (83.7 nM) and short responsive time (5-10 s). Even the discrimination of copper(I) and copper(II) has also been done using only UV-Vis spectroscopic study. The efficacy of this bio-friendly probe has been determined by employing HL to detect the intercellular distribution of Cu(II) ions in HeLa cells by developing image under fluorescence microscope

Selective and Sensitive Turn-on Chemosensor for Arsenite Ion at the ppb Level in Aqueous Media Applicable in Cell Staining

A newly designed and structurally characterized cell permeable diformyl-p-cresol based receptor (HL) selectively senses the AsO33- ion up to ca. 4.1 ppb in aqueous media over the other competitive ions at biological pH through an intermolecular H-bonding induced CHEF (chelationenhanced fluorescence) process, established by detailed experimental and theoretical studies. This biofriendly probe is highly competent in recognizing the existence of AsO33- ions in a living organism by developing an image under a fluorescence microscope and useful to estimate the amount of arsenite ions in various water samples