Explore the vast range of titles available.

Polyethylene and Polyester materials are resistant to degradation and a significant source of microplastics pollution, which is an emerging concern. In the present study, the potential of a dumped site bacterial community was evaluated. After primary screening, it was observed that 68.5% were linear low-density polyethylene, 33.3% were high-density, and 12.9% were Polyester degraders. Five strains were chosen for secondary screening, in which they were monitored by FTIR, SEM and weight loss degradation trials. Major results were observed for Alcaligenes faecalis (MK517568) and Bacillus cereus (MK517567), as they showed the highest degradation activity. Alcaligenes faecalis (MK517568) degrades LLDPE by 3.5%, HDPE by 5.8% and Polyester by 17.3%. Bacillus cereus (MK517567) is better tolerated at 30 °C and degrades Polyester by 29%. Changes in infrared spectra indicated degradation pathways of different strains depending on the types of plastics targeted. Through SEM analysis, groves, piths and holes were observed on the surface. These findings suggest that soil bacteria develop an effective mechanism for degradation of microplastics and beads that enables them to utilize plastics as a source of energy without the need for pre-treatments, which highlights the importance of these soil bacteria for the future of effective plastic waste management in a soil environment.

Plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) are the residents of rhizosphere that are known to influence plant growth and survival through the production of various regulatory chemicals under a variety of circumstances. This growth promotion is accomplished by both direct and indirect means. Direct effects of PGPR encompass two major activities, that is, Bio-fertilization (Enhancement of nutrient uptake including nitrogen and phosphorous primarily) and phytostimulation (Production of plant growth promoting hormones). Indirect effects of PGPR are majorly contained within their ability as biocontrol agents that antagonize the growth and survival of phytopathogens either by the production of antagonizing chemicals (Local antagonism) or by the induction of systemic resistance throughout the plant against pathogens. The understanding of such diverse growth promoting abilities of PGPR has led to their application as potent biofertilizers for sustainable agriculture. However, further analyses of the agro-ecosystem with complex biotic and abiotic mechanisms should not be overlooked for their extensive commercial applications and future prospects.

This study has compared the use of standard water quality overlay techniques with that of Getis-Ord Gi* statistical techniques for visualizing the spatial distribution of water quality parameters in an unconfined aquifer beneath the city of Lahore in Pakistan. The non-uniformly distributed groundwater sampling points were uniformly transformed to a grid of evenly distributed values to apply Getis-Ord Gi* statistics. An optimized neighborhood distance value of 700 m was determined for the Getis-Ord Gi* assessment, showing that the aquifer is regionally continuous and there are no barriers to lateral groundwater flow. This statistical approach was initially applied to individual parameters and was found to better define hotspots than that of the conventional method. Similarly, the use of Getis-Ord Gi* values improved the assessment of hotspots of water quality index (WQI) values than conventional overlay techniques.

Ensuring access to safe drinking water remains a significant public health challenge in developing countries. This study systematically investigates coliform contamination in Lahore’s municipal water supply, examining its public health implications, correlation with waterborne disease symptoms, and public perception of water quality. A systematic sampling approach was employed across 381 locations to assess water quality, with water samples analyzed for coliforms and Escherichia coli contamination. Coliform contamination was detected in several areas, including Chungi Amar Sidhu, Charar, Kirianwala, Kharas Mohalla, Shareefpura, Mustafaabad, and Kot Khawaja Saeed. To enhance data robustness, focused case studies with larger sample sizes were conducted in identified hotspots. The average coliform concentration and the percentage of affected households varied significantly across locations, with Shareefpura (3941.4 CFU/ml) and Mustafaabad (1668.2 CFU/ml) exhibiting the highest contamination levels. Mustafaabad also had the highest percentage of affected households (60.3%). Public perception of water quality varied significantly across areas, generally aligning with contamination levels. A Chi-Square Test for Independence showed a significant association between location and public perception (χ 2  = 180.7, df = 20, P < 0.0001). Spearman’s Rank Correlation revealed a moderate negative correlation between contamination and perception scores, suggesting that sensory cues and historical knowledge influence perception. This study provides critical insights for public health interventions and urban water management policies, highlighting the need for systematic water quality monitoring, infrastructure upgrades, and community awareness programs to mitigate public health risks associated with microbial contamination in urbanizing regions.

In wireless sensor networks (WSNs), sensor nodes are randomly distributed to transmit sensed data packets to the base station periodically. These sensor nodes, because of constrained battery power and storage space, cannot utilize conventional security measures. The widely held challenging issues for the network layer of WSNs are the packet-dropping attacks, mainly sinkhole and wormhole attacks, which focus on the routing pattern of the protocol. This thesis presents an improved version of the second level of the guard to the system, intrusion detection systems (IDSs), to limit the hostile impact of these attacks in a Low Energy Adaptive Clustering Hierarchy (LEACH) environment. The proposed system named multipath intrusion detection system (MIDS) integrates an IDs with ad hoc on-demand Multipath Distance Vector (AOMDV) protocol. The IDS agent uses the number of packets transmitted and received to calculate intrusion ratio (IR), which helps to mitigate sinkhole attacks and from AOMDV protocol round trip time (RTT) is computed by taking the difference between route request and route reply time to mitigate wormhole attack. MATLAB simulation results show that this cooperative model is an effective technique due to the higher packet delivery ratio (PDR), throughput, and detection accuracy. The proposed MIDS algorithm is proven to be more efficient when compared with an existing LEACH-based IDS system and MS-LEACH in terms of overall energy consumption, lifetime, and throughput of the network.

The primary goal of the presented cross-sectional observational study was to determine the clinical and demographic risk factors for adverse coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outcomes in the Pakistani population. We examined the individuals (n = 6331) that consulted two private diagnostic centers in Lahore, Pakistan, for COVID-19 testing between May 1, 2020, and November 30, 2020. The attending nurse collected clinical and demographic information. A confirmed case of COVID-19 was defined as having a positive result through real-time reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) assay of nasopharyngeal swab specimens. RT-PCR testing was positive in 1094 cases. Out of which, 5.2% had severe, and 20.8% had mild symptoms. We observed a strong association of COVID-19 severity with the number and type of comorbidities. The severity of the disease intensified as the number of comorbidities increased. The most vulnerable groups for the poor outcome are patients with diabetes and hypertension. Increasing age was also associated with PCR positivity and the severity of the disease. Most cases of COVID-19 included in this study developed mild symptoms or were asymptomatic. Risk factors for adverse outcomes included older age and the simultaneous presence of comorbidities.

The focus of the current study was the use of sewage wastewater to obtain PHA from a co-culture to produce a sustainable polymer. Two halotolerant bacteria, Bacillus halotolerans 14SM (MZ801771) and Bacillus aryabhattai WK31 (MT453992), were grown in a consortium to produce PHA. Sewage wastewater (SWW) was used to produce PHA, and glucose was used as a reference substrate to compare the growth and PHA production parameters. Both bacterial strains produced PHA in monoculture, but a copolymer was obtained when the co-cultures were used. The co-culture accumulated a maximum of 54% after 24 h of incubation in 10% SWW. The intracellular granules indicated the presence of nucleation sites for granule initiation. The average granule size was recorded to be 231 nm; micrographs also indicated the presence of extracellular polymers and granule-associated proteins. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis of the polymer produced by the consortium showed a significant peak at 1731 cm−1, representing the C=O group. FTIR also presented peaks in the region of 2800 cm−1 to 2900 cm−1, indicating C-C stretching. Proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1HNMR) of the pure polymer indicated chemical shifts resulting from the proton of hydroxy valerate and hydroxybutyrate, confirming the production of poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxy valerate) (P3HBV). A 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl-2H-tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay showed that the copolymer was biocompatible, even at a high concentration of 5000 µg mL−1. The results of this study show that bacterial strains WK31 and 14SM can be used to synthesize a copolymer of butyrate and valerate using the volatile fatty acids present in the SWW, such as propionic acid or pentanoic acid. P3HBV can also be used to provide an extracellular matrix for cell-line growth without causing any cytotoxic effects.

is a major opportunistic pathogen that causes a wide range of human infections. Currently available therapeutic agents are limited for treating these fungal infections due to multidrug resistance as well as their nonbiodegradability, poor biocompatibility and toxicity. In order to battle these limitations, we have synthesized a polymeric system as microcarriers to deliver the antifungal drug. The objective of the present study was to immobilize MgO/CuO nanocomposite and nystatin-loaded MgO/CuO nanocomposites in nontoxic, nonimmunogenic, biodegradable and biocompatible sodium alginate microspheres for the first time. Nanoparticle-loaded sodium alginate microspheres were prepared by ionotropic gelation technique using calcium chloride as a cross-linker. Synthesized microspheres were characterized using standard characterization techniques and were evaluated for biological activity against MDR strain of . Characterization of microspheres by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy confirmed loading of Nys-MgO/CuO NPs, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) revealed rough spherical beads with a highly porous surface having an average size in the range of 8-10 µm. X-ray diffraction (XRD) analyzed its semicrystalline structure. Entrapment efficiency of Nys-MgO/CuO NPs was 80% and release kinetic study revealed sustained and prolonged release of drug in pH 5.5. Flow cytometry analysis showed yeast cell death caused by Nys-MgO/CuO MS exhibits late apoptotic features. In cytotoxicity assay 5-14 mg of microspheres did not cause hemolysis. Microspheres reduced virulence traits of such as germ tube and biofilm formation were compromised at concentration of 5 mg/mL. Antimicrobial assessment results revealed a pronounced inhibitory effect against . The in vitro experiments have shown promising results based on good stability, Nys-MgO/CuO NP-encapsulated microspheres can be used as a prolonged controlled release system against MDR pathogenic .

This article deals with the sequential conformable linear equations. We have focused on the solution techniques of these equations and particularly on the controllability conditions of the time-invariant system. For the controllability conditions and results, we have defined the conformable controllability Gramian matrix, the conformable fundamental matrix, and the conformable controllability matrix.

Great attention has been paid to the projects’ success, which is the core of project management. It is not surprising that much research is being done in this area, as several factors contribute to the project’s success. However, the moderating effect of top management support (TMS) on the relationship between transformational leadership (TL) and project success (PS) has not been investigated before. This study aims to examine whether the relationship between a project manager’s transformational leadership and project success is moderated by top management support. This study uses a post-positivism philosophical objective to investigate the theoretical model. A cross-sectional time-lagged survey design was used to collect quantitative data. Data was collected using a structured questionnaire from 273 team members, project managers, and stakeholders working in Pakistan’s public sector. The factor and hierarchical regression analysis were used for analysis. Our results showed that TL and TMS significantly impacted project success. Moreover, we found that TMS moderates the relationship between TL and PS.