Global concerns are rising due to complications associated with the use of chemical agents and antibiotic resistance. Consequently, research focus has shifted towards the quest for effective agents of biological origin. The aim of the present study was to assess the antioxidant and antimicrobial potentials of aqueous and organic extracts derived from various parts of Alcea kurdica. Different parts of A. kurdica were obtained and prepared into leaf, flower and root powders. The powders were extracted with aqueous and organic solvents. The antimicrobial activity of these extracts was assessed against bacterial pathogens using the agar well-diffusion assay. Additionally, the antioxidant effects of the extracts were evaluated using the DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) and resazurin dye scavenging assays. The results showed dose-dependent antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli for both the organic and aqueous leaf and floral extracts. Furthermore, an antioxidant effect (>80%) was also observed for the organic and water extracts of the flowers, leaves and roots of the plant at the highest concentration (500 µg/ml), as compared to ascorbic acid, which served as the positive control using both the DPPH and resazurin methods. The findings of this study highlighted that A. kurdica can be considered a rich source of potential antioxidant and antibacterial agents, warranting future investigation to identify its active ingredients.
The thermal performance of a flat-plate solar collector (FPSC) using novel heat transfer fluids of aqueous colloidal dispersions of covalently functionalized multi-walled carbon nanotubes with β-Alanine (Ala-MWCNTs) has been studied. Multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) with outside diameters of (< 8 nm) and (20–30 nm) having specific surface areas (SSAs) of (500 m2/g) and (110 m2/g), respectively, were utilized. For each Ala-MWCNTs, waterbased nanofluids were synthesized using weight concentrations of 0.025%, 0.05%, 0.075%, and 0.1%. A MATLAB code was built and a test rig was designed and developed. Heat flux intensities of 600, 800, and 1000 W/m2; mass flow rates of 0.6, 1.0, and 1.4 kg/min; and inlet fluid temperatures of 30, 40, an
... Show MoreMS Elias, RGM AL-helfy, Plant Archives, 2019
It is challenging to remove antibiotics from water bodies, as they are among the most widespread contaminants in the environment, particularly with conventional wastewater treatment methods, due to their persistence and low biodegradability. The current study examined the use of nanoscale zero-valent iron to remove antibiotics. Conocarpus leaf extract, which is primarily composed of polyphenols like flavonoids and tannins, was employed as a green source to prepare Fe/Cu nanoparticles, which can act as an eco-friendly reducing agent. The nanoparticles were immobilized onto silica sand (SS), forming SS-Fe/Cu nanocomposite to remove tetracycline (TC) and ciprofloxacin (CIP) from aqueous solutions. The structural characteristics
... Show MoreBackground: Klebsiella pneumoniae shows varying degrees of resistance to antibiotic treatment; this resistance arises from multiple mechanisms, including the increased expression of multidrug (MDR) efflux pumps. An efflux pump inhibitor (EPI) is required to overcome this challenge and restore the effectiveness of antibiotics against the present MDR K. pneumoniae. Objective: To investigate the synergistic effect of the EPI Phenylalanine-Arginine β-Naphthylamide (PaβN) and Ciprofloxacin (CIP) on the expression of efflux pump genes AcrAB-TolC, isolated from CIP-resistant K. pneumoniae. Methods: 50 isolates of K. pneumoniae were collected from five different hospitals in Baghdad, Iraq. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values
... Show MoreThe study aims to examine the classroom activities of the developed English course (Flying High) for the high school first-grade students, identify creative thinking skills appropriate for this grade, and show the extent the classroom activities involve these skills from the female- teachers ‘point of view. The study adopted the descriptive survey method. The study community consists of all (50) English female-teachers who teach high school first grade in Arar city during the academic year (1440 -1441 A.H, the first semester). The study was applied to all respondents. The researcher used a questionnaire as a study tool. The study revealed that the female-teachers reported their disagreement and refusal of the classroom activities in th
... Show MoreThis study shows that it is possible to fabricate and characterize green bimetallic nanoparticles using eco-friendly reduction and a capping agent, which is then used for removing the orange G dye (OG) from an aqueous solution. Characterization techniques such as scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDAX), X-Ray diffraction (XRD), and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) were applied on the resultant bimetallic nanoparticles to ensure the size, and surface area of particles nanoparticles. The results found that the removal efficiency of OG depends on the G‑Fe/Cu‑NPs concentration (0.5-2.0 g.L-1), initial pH (2‑9), OG concentration (10-50 mg.L-1), and temperature (30-50 °C). The batch experiments showed
... Show MoreActivated carbon derived from Ficus Binjamina agro-waste synthesized by pyro carbonic acid microwave method and treated with silicon oxide (SiO2) was used to enhance the adsorption capability of the malachite green (MG) dye. Three factors of concentration of dye, time of mixing, and the amount of activated carbon with four levels were used to investigate their effect on the MG removal efficiency. The results show that 0.4 g/L dosage, 80 mg/L dye concentration, and 40 min adsorption duration were found as an optimum conditions for 99.13% removal efficiency. The results also reveal that Freundlich isotherm and the pseudo-second-order kinetic models were the best models to describe the equilibrium adsorption data.