Background: Eucalyptus extracts and derivatives are natural substances with potent antimicrobial properties. This study investigated the in- vitro effects of non-nutritive sweeteners on the antifungal activity of alcoholic and aqueous Eucalyptus extracts against Candida albicans, a common oral pathogen. Materials and Method: Ten isolates of Candida albicans were isolated from dental students’ salivary samples. The alcoholic and aqueous extracts were prepared from fresh Eucalyptus leaves using maceration. The sensitivity of Candida albicans isolates to various concentrations of Eucalyptus extracts ranging from 50 to 250 (mg/mL) was evaluated via agar well diffusion method, while the agar streaking method was used to assess the minimum fungicidal concentration (MFC). In addition, the effect of non-nutritive sweeteners on the MFC of the extracts was investigated. Results: The Eucalyptus extract-sensitive Candida albicans isolates showed an increase in inhibitory zone width with increasing extract concentration. Regarding their antifungal effectiveness, clear disparities were observed among extract concentrations. Against Candida albicans, the MFC for Eucalyptus alcoholic extract was 75 mg/mL, but the MFC for Eucalyptus aqueous extract was 200 mg/mL. Notably, 15% stevia and 5% sucralose did not affect the antifungal effects of the Eucalyptus alcoholic extract. The antifungal effectiveness of the aqueous Eucalyptus extract against Candida albicans was unaffected by stevia and sucralose concentrations of up to 1%. Conclusion: Significant antimicrobial action against Candida albicans is shown in Eucalyptus extracts. Results indicated that stevia and sucralose at specific quantities could be utilized as sweeteners for Eucalyptus extracts in an efficient manner without impairing the extracts’ antifungal activity.
In this work, a novel biocatalytic process for the production of 7-methylxanthines from theobromine, an economic feedstock has been developed. Bench scale production of 7-methlxanthine has been demonstrated. The biocatalytic process used in this work operates at 30 OC and atmospheric pressure, and is environmentally friendly. The biocatalyst was E. coli BL21(DE3) engineered with ndmB/D genes combinations. These modifications enabled specific N7- demethylation of theobromine to 7-methylxanthine. This production process consists of uniform fermentation conditions with a specific metabolically engineered strain, uniform induction of specific enzymes for 7-methylxanthine production, uniform recovery an
... Show MoreThis research aims to improve the radiation shielding properties of polymer-based materials by mixing PVC with locally available building materials. Specifically, two key parameters of fast neutron attenuation (removal cross-section and half-value layer) were studied for composite materials comprising PVC reinforced with common building materials (cement, sand, gypsum and marble) in different proportions (10%, 30% and 50% by weight). To assess their effectiveness as protection against fast neutrons, the macroscopic neutron cross-section was calculated for each composite. Results show that neutron cross-section values are significantly affected by the reinforcement ratios, and that the composite material PVC + 50% gypsum is an effect
... Show MoreLasers, with their unique characteristics in terms of excellent beam quality, especially directionality and coherency, make them the solution that is key for many processes that require high precision. Lasers have good susceptibility to integrate with automated systems, which provides high flexibility to reach difficult zones. In addition, as a processing tool, a laser can be considered as a contact-free tool of precise tip that became attractive for high precision machining at the micro and nanoscales for different materials. All of the above advantages may be not enough unless the laser technician/engineer has enough knowledge about the mechanism of interaction between the laser light with the processed material. Several sequential phenom
... Show MoreAntibacterial substances belong to a group of compounds that attack dangerous microorganisms. Therefore, killing bacteria or reducing their metabolic activity will lessen their adverse effects on a biological system. They originated from either synthetic materials, microbes, or mold. Many of these medications treat the gram-negative bacteria from the critical precedence group, such as pseudomonas, carbapenem-resistant acinetobacter, and enterobacterales. This study aims to investigate the simultaneous analysis of specific antibacterial spectrophotometrically. The WHO maintains this list of priority infections with antibiotic resistance. Drug combinations in single dosage forms are becoming increasingly popular in the pharmaceutical industry
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