Care for Child Development in Sultanate of Oman: Paving the road for children to develop on track

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Potential protein phycocyanin: an overview on its properties, extraction, and utilization

ABSTRACTCyanobacteria capable of oxygenic photosynthesis uses multiple pigments to efficiently convert light radiation energy to chemical energy in the form of ATP (Adenosine Tri-phosphate). A crucial pigment protein from its photosynthetic machinery called phycocyanin has been extensively studied for its immense application in fluorescent probe, food additives, nutraceutical applications, and silver-nanoparticles production. The present review provides a narrative amalgamation of the said applications and technologies to grow, extract, and purify the phycocyanin from various algal cultures. The expression of phycocyanin protein gene at the molecular level has been discussed for its potential to enhance the yield and stability. Furthermore, advantageous methods for the extraction and purification of phycocyanin from possible host cyanobacterial strains (Spirulina platensis, Cyanidium caldarium, Synechococcus vulcanus, Gracilaria chilensis, Polysiphonia urceolata, Thermosynechcoccus vulcanus, and Galdieria sulphuraria) such as physical, chemical and enzymatic methods are also compared to find the most efficient strategy in subsequent scientific applications. The comparative study also expects to ways to achieve sustainable development goal 3 i.e. good health & wellbeing

Banana Pseudostem: An Undiscovered Fiber Enriched Sustainable Functional Food

ABSTRACTAs a tropical fruit, the banana is one of the favorite fruits, and the banana herb only bears fruit once in its lifespan; it is chopped off after harvesting, and only 40% of it is adequately utilized, leaving the remaining 60% as trash rich in cellulose, hemicellulose, and natural fibers. The pseudostem accounts for 75% of the waste, with the rest accounting for 25%. The purpose of this paper is to raise important awareness about the bioactive chemicals found in banana pseudostems hence they can be considered as sustainable foods and their applications as culinary raw materials and in other sectors. Even though bulk waste is biodegradable, it causes many problems in our environment, so sustainable waste usage with proper management and utilization of the residues can not only help in the utilization of the bioactive and nutrient compounds present but also increase the economic and environmental issues associated with the problem. The banana pseudostem is used in various businesses as culinary ingredients, fibers, and hazardous removers. Even when used for heavy metal treatment in wastewater, the fiber in it is strong enough to manufacture cardboard and food packaging materials. Some pseudostem types can even be extracted for pectin and used as food additives. The powdered pseudostem is used to boost the nutritional content of numerous recipes. In summary, the banana pseudostem can be divided into two first the central core part that can be used as food raw material and other outer sheaths in various different industries

Characterization of Date Seed Powder Derived Porous Graphene Oxide and Its Application as an Environmental Functional Material to Remove Dye from Aqueous Solutions

This study aims to prepare graphene oxide (GO) from raw date seeds (RDSs), considered one of the available agricultural wastes in Saudi Arabia. The preparation method is done by the conversion of date seeds to lignin and then to graphite which is used in a modified Hummer’s method to obtain GO. The adsorption of insoluble phenothiazine-derived dye (PTZS) over raw date Seeds (RDSs) as a low-cost adsorbent was investigated in this study. X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) were used to characterize (RDSs). According to the calculations, Freundlich isotherms and pseudo-second-order accurately predicted the kinetic rate of adsorption. The adsorption ability was 4.889 mg/g, and the removal rate was 93.98% GO-date Seeds mass, 11 mg/L starting dye concentration, at a temperature of 328 K, pH 9, and contact length of 30 min by boosting the PTZS solution’s ionic strength. In addition, the computed free energies revealed that the adsorption process was physical. Thermodynamic calculations revealed that dye adsorption onto GO-date seeds was exothermic and spontaneous

Benefit-risk analysis of maintaining essential Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, and Child Health (RMNCH) services against risk of COVID-19 infection.

With the COVID-19 pandemic spreading across the world, its disruptive effect on the provision and utilization of non- COVID related health services have become well-documented. As countries developed mitigation strategies to help continue the delivery of essential health services through the pandemic, they needed to carefully weigh the benefits and risks of pursuing these strategies. In an attempt to assist countries in their mitigation efforts, a Benefit-Risk model was designed to provide guidance on how to compare the health benefits of sustained essential reproductive, maternal, newborn and child (RMNCH) services against the risk of SARS-CoV-2 infections incurred by the countries' populations when accessing these services. This article describes how two existing models were combined to create this model, the field-testing process carried out from November 2020 through March 2021 in six countries and the findings. The overall Benefit-Risk Ratio in the 6 countries analyzed was found to be between 13.7 and 79.2, which means that for every 13.7 to 79.2 lives gained due to increased RMNCH service coverage, there was one loss of a life related to COVID-19. In all cases and for all services, the benefit of maintaining essential health services far exceeded the risks associated with additional COVID-19 infections and deaths. This modelling process illustrated how essential health services can continue to operate during a pandemic and how mitigation measures can reduce COVID-19 infections and restore or increase coverage of essential health services. Overall, this Benefit-Risk analysis underscored the importance and value of maintaining coverage of essential health services even during public health emergencies, including the recent COVID-19 pandemic