Explore the vast range of titles available.

Exploring the new catalytic systems for the reduction of organic and inorganic pollutants from an indispensable process in chemical, petrochemical, pharmaceutical and food industries, etc. Hence, in the present work, authors motivated to synthesize bare reduced graphene oxide (rGO), polyaniline (PANI), three different ratios of rGO-PANI (80:20, 50:50, 10:90) composites and rGO-PANI (80:20, 50:50, 10:90) supported mono (Pd) & bimetallic [Pd: Au (1:1, 1:2, 2:1) ] nanocomposite by a facile chemical reduction method. Also, it investigated their catalytic performances for the reduction of organic/inorganic pollutants and antimicrobial activities. All the freshly prepared bare rGO, PANI, three different ratios of rGO-PANI (80:20, 50:50, 10:90) composites and rGO-PANI (80:20, 50:50, 10:90) /Pd & Pd: Au (1:1, 1:2, 2:1) nanocomposite hybrid catalysts were characterized using UV-Vis, FT-IR, SEM, FE-SEM, EDAX, HR-TEM, XRD, XPS and Raman spectroscopy analysis. Among them, an optimized best composition of rGO-PANI (80:20) /Pd: Au (1:1) bimetallic nanocomposite hybrid catalyst exhibits better catalytic reduction and antimicrobial activities than other composites, as a result of strong electrostatic interactions between rGO, PANI and bimetal (Pd: Au) NPs through a synergistic effect. Hence, an optimized rGO-PANI (80:20) /Pd:Au (1:1) bimetallic nanocomposite catalyst would be considered as a suitable catalyst for the reduction of different nitroarenes, organic dyes, heavy metal ions and also significantly inhibit the growth of S. aureus, S. Typhi as well as Candida albicans and Candida kruesi in wastewater.

This work reports the synthesis of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) using aqueous extract of Plumbago auriculata, and evaluates their antibacterial and larvicidal activities. The synthesized silver nanoparticles were characterized by various spectroscopy techniques, such as FTIR, XRD, TEM, EDX, Zeta potential, and DLS. The synthesized AgNPs exhibited significant antibacterial activity against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, such as Bacillus subtilis, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, and Klebsiella pneumoniae. Furthermore, synthesized nanoparticles inhibited the fourth instars larvae of Aedes aegypti and Culex quinquefasciatus at the concentration of 45.1 and 41.1 µg/mL respectively. Results of dose-dependent studies showed that synthesized nanoparticles were also effective at low concentrations. Molecular docking studies performed with the salivary protein and odorant-binding protein of Aedes aegypti and Culex quinquefasciatus demonstrated that the naphthoquinone compound plumbagin exhibited reliable binding affinity towards the two enzymes. The findings thus reveal that the plant extract and its nanoparticles can be a better alternative to available chemicals to control mosquitos.

The objective of this work is to develop cost-effective, reliable, and large-scale production of metallic nanoparticles (NPs) by adopting green chemistry principles for industrial applications. In that view, we have studied the phytochemical reducibility of silver nitrate by making use of Calotropis Procera (Ait.) R. Br root extract, and based on its medicinal properties, an attempt was made to evaluate the therapeutic potentials of silver (Ag) NPs containing this plant extract towards the clinical strains of bacteria. The optimization studies on reducing the potentials were done considering the concentration, pH, temperature, and reaction period of both the extract and the metal precursor. The nanoarchitecture elements were interpreted using visual, spectroscopic, and microscopic analyses cohorting the antibacterial potentials towards the clinically significant strains. The antimicrobial activity exercised by these Ag NPs towards 10 different strains of medically important bacteria at a given concentration was proved to be significant. The antimicrobial potential was further validated quantitatively, and the MIC/MBC concentration values were determined. Finally, the cytotoxicity of Ag NPs when tested against the HEPK cell line indicated that the metal-phytochemical moiety exhibited the maximum therapeutic efficacy and thereby paving the way for the development of disruptive technologies in the field of nanomedicine.