ALBERT

Description: 〈p〉Publication date: July 2019〈/p〉 〈p〉〈b〉Source:〈/b〉 Heliyon, Volume 5, Issue 7〈/p〉 〈p〉Author(s): Sarvenaz Abolghassem, Shiva Molaei, Shahrzad Javanshir〈/p〉 〈div xml:lang="en"〉 〈h5〉Abstract〈/h5〉 〈div〉〈p〉In this paper, chitin (Ch) was extracted by an optimized method from cuttlebone of the Persian Gulf cuttlefish (Sepiidae, Cephalopoda). The extracted chitin was characterized by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) and thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA) which showed that the extracted chitin was in alpha form. The degree of N-acetylation (DA) and degree of substitution (DS) of α-chitin were calculated using titration method and FTIR spectroscopy and found to be 80–82% and 19.57 respectively. The α-Chitin was used as biomolecules for the preparation of nanostructured Ch/ZnO via a hydrothermal method. The obtained nanocomposite was characterized using FT-IR, XRD, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) analysis. The antimicrobial aspect of Ch/ZnO nanocomposite was previously proposed. In this paper, attempt was made to add the catalytic feature to these traits. For this purpose, the nanostructured Ch/ZnO was used as reusable nanocatalyst in the green and efficient synthesis of Benzo[a]pyrano(2,3-c)phenazine derivatives thru a four components microwave aided domino reaction. Eco-friendly, easy work up and separation of the nanostructured catalyst are some of the highlighted features this protocol.〈/p〉〈/div〉 〈/div〉

Description: 〈p〉Publication date: July 2019〈/p〉 〈p〉〈b〉Source:〈/b〉 Heliyon, Volume 5, Issue 7〈/p〉 〈p〉Author(s): Zurel S. Costa, Cristiano T. Meneses, Bruno Castro, Fabiane S. Serpa, Elton Franceschi, Gustavo R. Borges, Cláudio Dariva, Giancarlo R. Salazar-Banda〈/p〉 〈div xml:lang="en"〉 〈h5〉Abstract〈/h5〉 〈div〉〈p〉The formation of scales in the petroleum industry, such as those composed of calcium and barium sulfates, may reduce productivity since these sediments can partially or totally obstruct the pipes. The mitigation of these inorganic precipitates can be accomplished by using scale inhibitors or by non-intrusive physical technologies. Here, we investigated the influence of magnetic field on the incrustations of barium sulfate by analyzing the concentration of barium and sulfate ions, the solution flow rate, the capillary tube geometry, and the magnetic field intensity in a homemade experimental unit supported on the monitoring of the dynamic differential pressure. The results show that the saline concentration and the flow rate of the solutions and the geometry of the capillary tube have a significant influence on the dynamics of barium sulfate incrustation. The presence of the magnetic field tends to prolong the induction time of the barium sulfate precipitation. A semi-empirical model was used to describe the effect of the studied variables on the barium sulfate incrustation behavior. The X-ray diffraction data of the precipitated particles analyzed using the Rietveld method suggest that the use of the magnetic field favor the formation of more crystalline particles and with smaller crystallite size than those formed in the absence of a magnetic field. Optical and scanning electron microscopy measurements also corroborate with these findings. The results from this study suggest that magnetic fields can be of interest in practical crystallization processes of barium sulfate and successfully applied to decrease the speed of barium sulfate incrustation in pipelines.〈/p〉〈/div〉 〈/div〉

Description: 〈p〉Publication date: July 2019〈/p〉 〈p〉〈b〉Source:〈/b〉 Heliyon, Volume 5, Issue 7〈/p〉 〈p〉Author(s): Vanessa Cristina Estevam Bittencourt, Ana Maria dos Santos Moreira, Jeferson Gomes da Silva, Antônio Frederico de Freitas Gomides, Cibele Velloso-Rodrigues, Regina Gendzzelevski Kelmann, Leonardo Meneghin Mendonça, Ivana Silva Lula, Ângelo Márcio Leite Denadai〈/p〉 〈div xml:lang="en"〉 〈h5〉Abstract〈/h5〉 〈div〉〈p〉The aim of this work was to synthesize and characterize the inclusion compounds formed by the complexation of β-cyclodextrin (βCD) with insecticides from the class of benzoylphenylureas (BPUs), named novaluron (NOV) and diflubenzuron (DIF), beyond evaluate their larvicidal activity against 〈em〉Aedes aegypti〈/em〉 larvae. Solid state characterization by FTIR showed changes in the main peaks of BPUs and βCD, suggesting the formation of inclusion compounds in solid phase. DTA and TGA thermal analysis showed changes in temperatures of BPUs decomposition as result of molecular interactions. 〈sup〉1〈/sup〉H NMR experiments allowed to observe the occurrence of interactions in solution through changes in chemical shifts of BPUs aromatic hydrogens. However, the presence of H–H intermolecular correlations in 2D ROESY was found only for the DIF/βCD complex, suggesting different topology for each complex. Such hypothesis was corroborated by thermodynamic analysis using ITC, which showed different profile of titration curves, beyond endothermic and exothermic interactions for NOV/βCD and DIF/βCD complexes, respectively. DLS titrations of BPUs or BPUs/βCD DMSO solutions in aqueous solution demonstrated that the spontaneously formed hydrophobic nanoprecipitates (HNPs) have different profile of sizes depending on the BPU/βCD system, corroborating also with the hypothesis about the existence of different topologies for each complex. Finally, the HNPs of inclusion compounds showed to be more efficient than free BPUs, allowing proposing a new insecticide formulation.〈/p〉〈/div〉 〈/div〉

Description: 〈p〉Publication date: July 2019〈/p〉 〈p〉〈b〉Source:〈/b〉 Heliyon, Volume 5, Issue 7〈/p〉 〈p〉Author(s): Maiko Hayashida, Tsuyoshi Miyaoka, Keiko Tsuchie, Tomoko Araki, Muneto Izuhara, Shoko Miura, Misako Kanayama, Koji Ohtsuki, Michiharu Nagahama, Ilhamuddin Abdul Azis, Rostia Arianna Abdullah, Muhammad Alim Jaya, Ryosuke Arauchi, Sadayuki Hashioka, Rei Wake, Toshiko Tsumori, Jun Horiguchi, Arata Oh-Nishi, Masatoshi Inagaki〈/p〉 〈div xml:lang="en"〉 〈h5〉Abstract〈/h5〉 〈div〉 〈p〉A reduction of GABAergic markers in postmortem tissue is consistently found in schizophrenia. Importantly, these alterations in GABAergic neurons are not global, which means they are more prevalent among distinct subclasses of interneurons, including those that express the calcium binding protein parvalbumin.〈/p〉 〈p〉A decreased expression of parvalbumin in the hippocampus is a consistent observation not only in postmortem human schizophrenia patients, but also in a diverse number of rodent models of the disease.〈/p〉 〈p〉Meanwhile, previously we reported that the congenital hyperbilirubinemia model rats (Gunn rats), which is a mutant of the Wistar strain, showed behavioral abnormalities, for instance, hyperlocomotor activity, deficits of prepulse inhibition, inappropriate social interaction, impaired recognition memory similar with several rodent models of schizophrenia. Several animal studies linked the importance of palvalbumin in relation to abnormal hippocampal activity and schizophrenia-like behavior.〈/p〉 〈p〉Here, we show that parvalbumin positive cell density was significantly lower in the CA1, CA3 and the total hippocampus of Gunn rats (congenital hyperbilirubinemia model rats) compared to Wistar control rats. The correlations between serum UCB levels and loss of PV expression in the hippocampus were also detected. The decreases in the PV-expression in the hippocampus might suggest an association of the behavioral abnormalities as schizophrenia-like behaviors of Gunn rats, compared to the Wistar control rats.〈/p〉 〈/div〉 〈/div〉

Description: 〈p〉Publication date: July 2019〈/p〉 〈p〉〈b〉Source:〈/b〉 Heliyon, Volume 5, Issue 7〈/p〉 〈p〉Author(s): Anastasiia S. Boiko, Irina A. Mednova, Elena G. Kornetova, Arkadiy V. Semke, Nikolay A. Bokhan, Anton J.M. Loonen, Svetlana A. Ivanova〈/p〉 〈div xml:lang="en"〉 〈h5〉Abstract〈/h5〉 〈div〉 〈h6〉Background〈/h6〉 〈p〉Schizophrenia is associated with a lowered life expectancy due to cardiovascular disease. This is, at least in part, related to an increased vulnerability to the development of metabolic syndrome (MetS) in patients with schizophrenia. The dysregulation of apolipoproteins (Apos) may also play a role in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia via their effect on cerebral cholesterol processing.〈/p〉 〈/div〉 〈div〉 〈h6〉Aim〈/h6〉 〈p〉The aim of this study was to investigate serum Apos A1, C3, E, A2 and C2 concentration in schizophrenia patients with or without MetS in comparison to healthy donors.〈/p〉 〈/div〉 〈div〉 〈h6〉Methods〈/h6〉 〈p〉After obtaining informed consent, 53 patients with a diagnosis of paranoid schizophrenia according to ICD-10 criteria (F20) were included. Patients were divided into two groups with (N = 26) and without (N = 27) MetS according to the criteria of the International Diabetes Federation. The control group included 20 mentally and physically healthy subjects. Serum Apos A1, A2, C2, C3 and E were measured using xMAP technology (Luminex).〈/p〉 〈/div〉 〈div〉 〈h6〉Results〈/h6〉 〈p〉Serum ApoA1 was significantly decreased in patients with schizophrenia compared to healthy subjects (p = 0.002); ApoA2 was lower in patients without MetS in comparison to patients with MetS (p = 0.017) and the levels of ApoC3 and ApoC2 were increased in patients with schizophrenia with MetS in comparison with the control group and also with patients without MetS. No other significant differences were established concerning the other assayed apolipoproteins.〈/p〉 〈/div〉 〈div〉 〈h6〉Conclusions〈/h6〉 〈p〉In line with literature data the results of our study suggest that while disturbances in ApoA1 level may play a role in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia, ApoA2, ApoC2, ApoC3 and ApoE may be primarily related to metabolic imbalance.〈/p〉 〈/div〉 〈/div〉

Description: 〈p〉Publication date: July 2019〈/p〉 〈p〉〈b〉Source:〈/b〉 Heliyon, Volume 5, Issue 7〈/p〉 〈p〉Author(s): Sagar S. Arya, Mansi M. Sharma, Ratul K. Das, James Rookes, David Cahill, Sangram K. Lenka〈/p〉 〈div xml:lang="en"〉 〈h5〉Abstract〈/h5〉 〈div〉〈p〉Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a serious concern in pathogenic bacteria. As a new approach to addressing AMR, we report here the green synthesis of vanillin capped gold nanoparticles (VAuNPs) using the popular flavouring molecule vanillin (C〈sub〉8〈/sub〉H〈sub〉8〈/sub〉O〈sub〉3〈/sub〉) as a reducing and capping agent. Physicochemical characterization revealed that the synthesised VAuNPs were stable and crystalline in nature. VAuNPs were non-bactericidal even at high concentration (〉2000 μg/ml). The antibiotic potentiation activity was studied in combination with seven widely used antibiotics against extremely drug resistant (XDR) 〈em〉Pseudomonas aeruginosa〈/em〉. Major reductions in minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC, 10–14-folds) of the antibiotics meropenem (10 fold) and trimethoprim (14 fold) were observed in the presence of VAuNPs (50 μg/ml). Furthermore, it was found that VAuNPs in combination with meropenem or trimethoprim provided 1.5–3-fold better potentiation effects than that of vanillin alone. Use of an ethidium bromide agar cart wheel assay indicated that VAuNPs can block the activity of efflux pumps. High reduction in the MIC of antibiotics was therefore attributed to the efflux pump repression activity of VAuNPs. Further, RT-qPCR of clinically relevant MexAB-OprM efflux pump components showed down-regulation in 〈em〉mexB〈/em〉 and 〈em〉OprM〈/em〉 transcripts in VAuNPs treated 〈em〉P. aeruginosa〈/em〉 clinical isolates. Our results reveal that VAuNPs impart susceptibility to the last line antibiotics meropenem, trimethoprim and few widely used antibiotics in XDR 〈em〉P. aeruginosa〈/em〉 clinical isolates that display resistance to these antibiotics. Therefore, this study indicate the ability of VAuNPs and vanillin to be used as antibiotic adjuvants for inhibiting bacterial efflux pumps to potentiate antibiotics for addressing AMR problem affecting human health and environment.〈/p〉〈/div〉 〈/div〉

Description: 〈p〉Publication date: July 2019〈/p〉 〈p〉〈b〉Source:〈/b〉 Heliyon, Volume 5, Issue 7〈/p〉 〈p〉Author(s): Emiliano Felici, Chien C. Wang, Cristian Casado, Ana Vicario, Víctor Pereyra, María R. Gómez〈/p〉 〈div xml:lang="en"〉 〈h5〉Abstract〈/h5〉 〈div〉〈p〉In this paper, a green analytical methodology based on fluorescence derivatization is proposed for the anti-helminthic drug monitoring ivermectin as environmental emergent contaminant. After sample clean-up, ivermectin was converted into a highly fluorescent derivative through a catalytic oxidation process followed by dehydration and tautomerization. Under optimal experimental conditions, a linear response was obtained for ivermectin within the range 0.38–600 μg L〈sup〉−1〈/sup〉, with detection and quantification limits of 0.11 and 0.38 μg L〈sup〉−1〈/sup〉, both values are lower than other previously reported. This method has been applied for ivermectin determination in environmental water samples at trace levels, showing its potential for contamination monitoring.〈/p〉〈/div〉 〈/div〉

Description: 〈p〉Publication date: July 2019〈/p〉 〈p〉〈b〉Source:〈/b〉 Heliyon, Volume 5, Issue 7〈/p〉 〈p〉Author(s): Zemenu Bires, Sahil Raj〈/p〉 〈div xml:lang="en"〉 〈h5〉Abstract〈/h5〉 〈div〉〈p〉This study has investigated the factors that determine the conservation of one of the major ecosystem in Ethiopia, Lake Tana Biosphere Reserve, using primarily quantitative followed by qualitative approach to provide adequate results of the problem under study. The study has employed the descriptive design and a total of 305 samples from rural households (n = 159) and tourism-related enterprises (n = 146) were selected based on a stratified random sampling technique. Samples were drawn based on their direct attachment either in their livelihood and possess a responsibility to the study area. Data were collected through questionnaires, observation, focus group discussion, unstructured interview and secondary data was consulted. Exploratory factor analysis was used to extract dimensions for environmental awareness. Binary logistic regression was used to analyze data using SPSS version 23. Ten Socio-demographic variables of samples were used as an independent variable and environmental conservation dimensions as dependent variables. The result revealed that out of the 10 variables employed in the analysis, six variables were found significant. Hence, marital status, household size, income source, household income, membership to club and resident location were found to be significant. Qualitative analysis revealed wrong reports for political consumption driven little government attention and lack of integrated natural resource management policy and plan were major factors hindering conservation. A vivid and holistic destination management policy making with enough room to stakeholders' involvement shall be a prior task for the government for better conservation of the ecosystem and sustainable development.〈/p〉〈/div〉 〈/div〉

Description: 〈p〉Publication date: July 2019〈/p〉 〈p〉〈b〉Source:〈/b〉 Heliyon, Volume 5, Issue 7〈/p〉 〈p〉Author(s): Yogendra Kumar, Panchanan Pramanik, Dipak Kumar Das〈/p〉 〈div xml:lang="en"〉 〈h5〉Abstract〈/h5〉 〈div〉〈p〉Some electrodes for efficient detection of paracetamol and dopamine were developed from nano sized material of cobalt ferrite (np-CoFe〈sub〉2〈/sub〉O〈sub〉4〈/sub〉) and manganese ferrite (np-MnFe〈sub〉2〈/sub〉O〈sub〉4〈/sub〉). These oxides were synthesized by combustion method using cobalt nitrate, manganese acetate and ferric nitrate as precursors in the presence of sugar and ethanolamine. The crystallite size, shape and morphology of nano material were characterized by X-ray diffraction pattern (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) techniques. The crystallite sizes of synthesized nano-particles (nps) were in the range from 10 to 12 nm (calculated using Debye-Scherrer equation) with cubic crystal system. These particles were utilized as electrode modified with graphite for simultaneous detection of paracetamol and dopamine through cyclic voltammetry and Differential pulse voltammetry techniques and was found to be superior to reported literatures. The minimum detection limit of paracetamol and dopamine at CoFe〈sub〉2〈/sub〉O〈sub〉4〈/sub〉/GP electrode were 250 nM and 350 nM while at MnFe〈sub〉2〈/sub〉O〈sub〉4〈/sub〉/GP electrode it was 300 nM and 400 nM, respectively. Both the electrodes exhibited the linearity range from3 μM to 200 μM & 3 μM–160 μM for paracetamol and 3 μM–180 μM & 5 μM to 200 for dopamine, respectively. Two oxidation peaks of paracetamol and dopamine were well separated in phosphate buffer (pH = 6) in mixture with 100 mVs〈sup〉-1〈/sup〉 and 50 mVs〈sup〉-1〈/sup〉 scan rate for cyclic voltammetry and Differential pulse voltammetry, respectively. Both the electrodes demonstrated satisfactory results in real samples of paracetamol and dopamine.〈/p〉〈/div〉 〈/div〉

Description: 〈p〉Publication date: July 2019〈/p〉 〈p〉〈b〉Source:〈/b〉 Heliyon, Volume 5, Issue 7〈/p〉 〈p〉Author(s): Ahmed A. Abdurahman, Eshetu E. Chaka, Mohammed H. Bule, Kamal Niaz〈/p〉 〈div xml:lang="en"〉 〈h5〉Abstract〈/h5〉 〈div〉 〈h6〉Background & aim〈/h6〉 〈p〉Concurrent estimates on the magnitude and evidence on the determinants of complementary feeding (CF) practices in Ethiopia are currently disparate. Hence, this systematic review and meta-analysis assessed the magnitude and determinants of CF among children age 6–23 months in Ethiopia.〈/p〉 〈/div〉 〈div〉 〈h6〉Methods〈/h6〉 〈p〉Studies from various databases published until July 2018 were identified, selected, extracted and assessed for risk of bias by two authors independently. A random-effects model was used to pool the prevalence and odds ratios (ORs).〈/p〉 〈/div〉 〈div〉 〈h6〉Results〈/h6〉 〈p〉26 studies with 17, 383 children were included. The pooled prevalence estimate of timely initiated CF, minimum dietary diversity (DD), minimum meal frequency and minimum acceptable diet were 61.0%, 18.0%, 56.0%, and 10.0% respectively. The pooled prevalence of timely initiation and minimum DD were higher in Northern Ethiopia. On the other hand, except for the minimum meal frequency, all the three core indicators of CF were better in urban than rural settings. Child age, maternal and/or paternal education, paternal involvement, maternal DD, antenatal and postnatal care, and place of delivery were the main determinants that can increase appropriate CF practices.〈/p〉 〈/div〉 〈div〉 〈h6〉Conclusion〈/h6〉 〈p〉The reported estimates of the prevalence of core CF indicators in Ethiopia remained poor. Therefore, the authors would like to acknowledge the effort that has been done by the minister of health and its partners including Alive & Thrive to improving CF practices in the country, however, these programs should be done more thoroughly, and scaled up by applying and adapting tested, proven approaches and tools in contexts.〈/p〉 〈/div〉 〈/div〉