Current Trends in Biotechnology and Pharmacy

Development Optimization and Evaluation of Lipid-Based Nanoparticles of Apixaban by Melt Emulsification Method

Krishna Wagele — 2025-08-20

Apixaban is a US FDA-approved molecule recommended for stroke prevention, thromboembolism, deep vein thrombosis, and pulmonary embolism. The elevated lipophilicity and poor bioavailability of Apixaban restricted their therapeutic efficacy. The present research focused on the advances of solid lipid nanoparticles (SLN) of Apixaban for greater therapeutic efficacy and also to deliver sustained released action. The SLN was developed by the melt emulsification method. The compatibility of Apixaban was assessed with the lipids by FTIR and DSC. Among the several lipids, glyceryl monostearate was chosen as the best lipid and polyethylene glycol 200 as surfactant. The optimization of SLN was carried out by Box-Behnken design involving the concentration of lipid (X1), surfactant (X2), and sonication time (X3) as independent factors. The therapeutic efficacy of SLN was achieved through the particle size (Y1) and entrapment efficiency (Y2) as a dependent factor. The optimized batch F6 showed a particle size of 243.9 nm, zeta potential of -20.8 mV, and PDI value of 0.372. The drug entrapment efficiency was highest in F6 was 83.69 %. The in-vitro drug released showed sustained action for about 24 hours. The scanning electron microscopy confirmed the lyophilized powder in the nanoscale range (111.3 nm to 255.3 nm).

In-silico Estimation of Flavonoids through Molecular Docking and Assessment of ADMET properties as DPP-IV inhibitor in the treatment of Diabetes Mellitus

A.Mohamed Anas — 2025-08-20

Flavonoids are polyphenolic compounds identified in greater quantities in plants, fruits, and vegetables with varying proportions. Their subgroups comprise six main classes, including flavanols, flavones, flavanones, and isoflavones. The focus of the work was to identify their receptor-drug interactions against dipeptidyl peptidase IV (DPP-IV) enzymes through in-silico drug design. Their chemical structure was drawn using ACD labs Chemsketch and energy minimized using Avogadro energy minimization software. To test the binding interaction and mode of flavonoids with the DPP-IV receptor, molecular docking simulations were executed using AutoDock Tools 4.2v, and ADMET predictions were performed. The overall quality of the protein chosen for performing docking analysis was assessed using ERRAT and the score of the model was around 98.386%. Among the 19 flavonoids used in this experiment for in-silico studies, their binding energy was calculated using Autodock. Molecular docking analysis revealed quercetin and kaempferol as the most promising candidates based on their low binding energy of -9.3 and -9.2 kcal/mol, respectively. These compounds demonstrated strong molecular interactions through H-bonding and other hydrophobic interactions with key amino acid residues (Pro475, Gly476, Met509, Pro510, Ser511, Lys512, Gln527, Ile529, Asp545, Asp556, Val558, Phe559, Arg560, Asn562, Ala564 and Thr565). Lipinski’s rule of five identified the drug-like behavior of the molecules and all the compounds were screened using the SWISS ADME software tool. Both quercetin and kaempferol exhibited optimal drug-like characteristics, and showed complete compliance with Lipinski’s rule, supporting their potential for therapeutic development.

Impact of Different Substrates on the Nutritional and Mineral Profile of Pleurotus florida: A Comparative Analysis

Nithish Pandiyarajan — 2025-08-20

Edible mushrooms have been used as a source of food extensively for quite a long time. They are rich in protein, vitamins and are known to possess several health-related benefits. Edible mushrooms have been cultivated using various agro-industrial wastes. Being saprophytes, the nutrient composition of the mushrooms is extensively reliant on the composition of the substrate. In this perspective, the present study was undertaken to assess the role of different substrates in deciding the yield and nutritional content of the oyster mushroom, Pleurotus florida. P. florida was cultivated using different substrates such as rice straw, sugarcane bagasse, sawdust, groundnut shell and onion peel wastes using solid-state fermentation under controlled conditions. Further, the harvested mushrooms were subjected to morphological analysis and nutritional labeling such as crude protein, total carbohydrates, crude fiber, total lipids, and ash content using standard analytical methods. Mineral content such as calcium, magnesium, sodium, potassium, iron, zinc, manganese, copper, nickel, and selenium were estimated using Inductively Coupled Plasma – Mass Spectroscopic analysis. From the results, it can be concluded that the substrates used for mushroom cultivation not only affect the yield but also the nutritional and mineral profiles of the mushrooms. Hence, this strategy can be effectively adopted for the fortification of mushrooms thereby improving the bioavailability of required minerals for promotion of health and well-being.

LC–MS and GC-MS-based bioactive metabolites profiling of endophytic bacterium from Humulus lupulus and production of Indole-3-acetic acid

Sohail Khan — 2025-08-20

There is a global effort to discover natural compounds that can augment plant growth and replace synthetic chemicals. Phytohormones have been extensively employed in the development and cultivation of diverse types of cash crops. The global population has witnessed sustained yearly growth in the past decades, resulting in an increased demand for food. Consequently, advancements in weed production have become fundamental. Synthetic weed control chemicals are pervasively employed to regulate crops; however, their excessive usage contributes to environmental pollution, the buildup of harmful residues in water and soil, toxicity to mammals, and the emergence of herbicide resistance. Several synthetic phytohormones Various types of synthetic phytohormones have been synthetically created. However, the severe toxicity of these synthetic hormones frequently results in the curtailment of plant growth. Indole-3-acetic acid (IAA), a hormone in the auxin group, is crucial in regulating diverse growth-related processes in plants. The present investigation reveals the endophytic bacterium Bacillus Cereus SKAM2 associated with the highly valued plant Humulus lupulus and investigates its metabolites in agriculture and medicine. Furthermore, the dried extract was characterized using GC-MS and LC-MS. The identified compounds have been documented to demonstrate notable bioactive compounds. Our results indicated that endophytic bacteria from Humulus lupulus have great potential to produce indole-3-acetic acid and bioactive secondary metabolites.

Bioinformatics analysis to identify effect on silencing LIX1L gene in Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Delphin R.D — 2025-08-20

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a prevalent and aggressive liver cancer with high morbidity and mortality rates, often associated with hepatitis B and C virus infections. In this study, RNA sequencing data from HCCLM3 cells transfected with siLIX1L or siControl were analyzed to identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and their functional implications. Using the HISAT2 pipeline, we identified a total of 746 DEGs, including 312 upregulated and 434 downregulated genes. Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analyses revealed significant enrichment in biological processes such as angiogenesis, cell proliferation, cell migration, and apoptosis. Protein–protein interaction (PPI) network and module analyses identified 20 hub genes and 4 clusters, which were predominantly associated with cancer-related pathways. Of these hub genes three (TP53, STAT3, VEGFA) were upregulated, while 17 (HSP90AA1,HIF1A,NOTCH1, PLK1, CD44, TGB1, TOP2A, FGF2, RAD51, MKI67, PXN, TCP1, NPM1, RRM2,ANLN,CDC20,TPN11) were downregulated in siLIX1L-transfected samples. These results showed that HCCLM3 cells transfected with siLIX1L strongly reduced HCC cell proliferation compared to control cells. The results suggest that targeting LIX1L could be an effective strategy for mitigating the progression of Hepatocellular Carcinoma. However, further research, including in vitro and in vivo studies, is necessary to fully validate LIX1L as a therapeutic target and to understand the underlying mechanisms of its role in HCC

Computational Study on Marine Algae-Derived Octaphlorethol A as a Potential Inhibitor of Beta-Secretase for Alzheimer’s Therapy

Bhukya Venkatesh — 2025-08-20

Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that mainly affects people above the age of 65 years. Current treatments focus to reduce the symptoms of the disease but do not target the cause. In the current study, we targeted on the β-secretase belonging to the amyloidogenic pathway. Secondary metabolites from marine organism are often unexplored. In the current study, we explored about 202 such metabolites to check their potential to inhibit β-secretase. A library of secondary metabolite structures was downloaded from the PubChem database. The three-dimensional protein structures - β-secretase (PDB ID: 1M4H) was downloaded from PDB database. The ligands and the proteins were subjected to energy minimization using UCSF Chimera software employing an AMBER force field. Molecular docking was performed to evaluate the binding affinity of ligands against the β-secretase using AutoDock Vina. Semagacestat was used as standard. Post dock analysis was performed using Ligplot plus and PLIP server. ADMET analysis was performed using SWISS ADME and PROTOX II servers. Among the 202 compounds, Octaphlorethol-A showed higher binding affinity towards the enzymes β-secretase when compared to standard. In addition, molecular dynamic simulation studies confirmed that the compounds form relatively stable complex than the standard drug. Moreover, the ADMET analysis indicates that octaphlorethol-A could be chosen as a potential drug candidate. In the future, these compounds could be used as potential leads and evaluated via in-vitro and in-vivo experimental studies to validate the results.

Exploring the Anti-Hepatocarcinogenic Efficacy of Launaea sarmentosa in NDEA-Induced Wister Albino Rats

Soumya Kiran Mishra — 2025-08-20

Launaea sarmentosa (Asteraceae) rich in alkaloids, flavonoids and glycosides has traditionally popular therapeutic virtues, particularly in treating cancer. This work was aimed to assess the anticancer efficacy of aerial part of Launaea sarmentosa extracted with ethanol (EELS) against hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) induced by N-Nitrosodiethylamine (NDEA)+phenobarbital+ CCl₄ in Wister albino rats. Firstly, pharmacognostical parameters of the plant was established followed by in vitro antioxidant studies. Successively, in vitro and in vivo anticancer survey of EELS (100, 200 and 400 mg/kg) was performed correspondingly in HepG2 cells and NDEA-induced HCC in Wister albino rats along with detailed biochemical, morphological and histopathological assessment. EELS administration (14 days) reinstated the altered body weight to normalcy and prevented subsequent rise of liver weight as a prognostic marker in HCC. The in vitro study presented promising antioxidant action of EELS correlating with in vivo results (enzymatic, non-enzymatic antioxidants and lipid peroxidation). A remarkable reduction in hepatic biomarkers (ALP, ALT, and AST) as well as inflammatory biomarkers (IL-1β and TNF-α) were observed in EELS-treated animals in a concentration-dependent manner. Finally, histopathological investigation of the liver tissue showed restoration of typical tissue skeleton along with reduced expression of proliferative markers on EELS administration as compared to untreated HCC animals. Outcome of this experiment have established anti-hepatocarcinogenic capacity of EELS, thereby advocating its use along with conventional therapies for HCC.

In-silico Estimation of Flavonoids through Molecular Docking and Assessment of ADMET properties as DPP-IV inhibitor in the treatment of Diabetes Mellitus

Ejiro ProsperAwhin — 2025-08-20

ChitinThe present study was carried out to extract and characterize chitin from selected mollusk (periwinkles, oysters, cowries, and water snails) shell wastes. The extraction of chitin from the shells of the selected mollusks was carried out by the chemical method. The characterization of extracted chitin was carried out using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), and Scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The chitin yield from these shells ranged from 57.95 % to 70.9 % on a dry-weight basis. Analyses using XRD, FT-IR, and SEM confirmed that the chitin obtained was of the α-form. Using XRD, the extracted chitin’s crystallite size and crystallinity index varied between 29.16 nm and 40.8 nm, and 16.73% to 44.36%, respectively. FTIR analysis revealed characteristic peaks at 1684.8 cm⁻¹ (C=O stretching, amide I) and 1785.4 cm⁻¹ (C=O stretching in the NHCOCH₃ group). SEM images showed a rough surface texture and a fibre-like structure of the extracted chitin. These findings indicate that the α-chitin produced can enhance mechanical interlocking, when used in composite materials, potentially enhancing bonding with substances. The findings of this study suggest that chitin is not only abundant in mollusk shell wastes, but the obtained chitin also possesses favourable structural properties for various applications.

Immunoinformatic-Based Design of a Multi-Epitope Vaccine Against Heartland Virus

Kanaka Durga Devi Nelluri — 2025-08-20

A developing tick-borne virus called Heartland virus (HRTV) is identified with febrile illness, and in a few cases, also with encephalitis. Most patients will recover fully but some are left with long-term fatigue and neurological sequelae. Recent epidemiologic data suggest increases in HRTV cases largely due to spreading tick populations and global climate change. There are still no vaccines nor specific antiviral treatments for the disease; a new prophylactic approach needs to be pursued against HRTV. This study used immunoinformatics to build a multi-epitope vaccination against HRTV. The goal of the HRTV nucleocapsid protein was to anticipate B- and T-cell epitopes. Identified epitopes were evaluated against conservancy, toxicity, allergenicity, and immunogenicity. Qualified epitopes were aligned to HLA alleles with the assurance of inducing robust immunity activation. These epitopes were assembled in a vaccine construct, with linkers and adjuvants enhancing immune response. Physicochemical analysis confirmed the vaccine’s immunogenicity, stability, and safety. Toll-like receptor-8 (TLR- 8) molecular docking and dynamics simulations confirmed the vaccine’s receptor-binding effectiveness. Efficient expression was guaranteed by codon optimization and in silico cloning into an Escherichia coli plasmid. According to preliminary findings, the suggested vaccine is safe, immunogenic, and stable for preventing HRTV. However, to confirm its safety profile and protective effects, more in vitro and in vivo research is needed.

Exploring the Multifaceted Applications of Streptosporangium terrae: From Antibacterial Activity to Microbial Fuel Cells

Venkatesh Sakthivel — 2025-08-20

The present study explored the dual potential of Streptosporangium terrae, isolated from the Western Ghats of Tamil Nadu, India, for antibiotic production and bioelectricity generation using microbial fuel cells (MFCs). The optimization of growth conditions, including pH, temperature, incubation time, and nutrient sources, was conducted to enhance the production of bioactive metabolites and electricity. Antibiotic sensitivity was tested against vancomycin, tetracycline, amikacin, and amoxicillin, revealing resistance to tetracycline and sensitivity to the other antibiotics tested. The antibacterial activity was evaluated against pathogenic strains such as Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus pyogenes, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Klebsiella oxytoca, and Proteus mirabilis. The secondary metabolites were characterized using FT-IR spectroscopy, which identified functional groups such as amines, alkenes, and carboxyl groups. The MFCs utilizing S. terrae demonstrated the conversion of chemical energy into electrical energy, with a peak voltage of 1.204 mV observed on the 5^th day. This study highlights the potential of S. terrae in sustainable energy production and antimicrobial applications, contributing to environmental sustainability.

ACE2 Engagement In Virus Internalization Could Lead to Reduced Efficiency of RAAS Pathway Causing Hyponatremia as Negative Prognostic Factor Among COVID-19 patients

Komal Tomar — 2025-08-20

SARS-CoV-2 utilizes host ACE2 for cleaving S1 subunit of Spike Protein for its entry into the cell. This can lead to reduced cell surface availability of ACE2, affecting the efficient maintenance of RAAS pathway resulting into poor reabsorption of Sodium in kidney leading to hyponatremia. Our study of 1940 cases showed that in recovered patients (Year 2020), 23.5% had hyponatremia of which 25.9% had many comorbidities. Among deceased patients, 44.1% had hyponatremia as single morbidity factor. In year 2021, among recovered patients 16.8% had hyponatremia, whereas among the deceased patients, 31.2 % reported hyponatremia of which 73.9 % had hyponatremia as single co-morbidity associated with death. We report hyponatremia as the single negative prognostic factor and more importantly the possible fact that hyponatremia could be caused due to engagement of ACE2 in virus internalization, thereby impacting efficiency of RAAS pathway responsible for sodium reabsorption.

Sinapine and Sinapic acid Impart Anti-Inflammatory Effects in Dextran Sulfate Sodium-Induced Experimental Murine Ulcerative Colitis

Raneem Ismail Alkhaleel — 2025-08-20

Ulcerative colitis is an inflammatory bowel disease that affects a significant population and remains as one of the major public health concerns worldwide. Individuals with ulcerative colitis are at a higher risk of developing various other diseases including colon cancer. Several efforts are underway in the discovery of new small molecules for the treatment of ulcerative colitis due to adverse effects and the limited efficacy of existing therapeutic agents. In the present study, the effect of sinapine (SC) and sinapic acid (SA) (bioactive compounds found in plants of the family Brassicaceae) was examined on dextran sulfate sodium (DSS)- induced colitis in mice models. The onset of ulcerative colitis was evidenced by the reduction in the colon length, rectal bleeding, loose stool, elevated myeloperoxidase activity in colon tissue extracts, and increased pro-inflammatory cytokines, reactive oxygen species (ROS), and catalase activity in the serum of colitis mice. The per os administration of SA and SC demonstrated a significant reduction of disease activity index as witnessed by the restoration of colon length, reduced rectal bleeding, and consistent stool. Furthermore, SA and SC were found to decrease the myeloperoxidase activity in the colon tissue extracts. Also, there was a significant reduction in the levels of proinflammatory cytokines (IL-1β and IL-6), ROS, and catalase activity in the serum of colitis mice. The histochemical analysis demonstrated that SA and SC restored the architecture of the crypt and mucosa, which otherwise displayed hyperplasia with necrosis and submucosal inflammation in the colitis mice. The bioactivity of SA and SC was comparable with sulfasalazine and etacept. In conclusion, SA and SC were demonstrated as potent anti-inflammatory

Pulmonary Route of Targeted Ivermectin Delivery to SARS-CoV-2 in Lungs of COVID-19 Patients Based on Nanotechnology Approach

Annas Binarjo — 2025-08-20

Although it is evidenced to exhibit virucidal activity against SARS-CoV-2, ivermectin has not been recommended for COVID-19 therapy due to the negative result in clinical trials. It is predicted that oral administration of the conventional formulation is unsuccessful in achieving the minimum inhibitory concentration in the alveolar lining fluid of COVID-19 patients. The development of lung-targeting drug delivery systems needs to be performed. Several studies to develop the inhalation delivery of ivermectin have been published. This review aims to examine the potential of delivery carriers and technology to administer ivermectin via the pulmonary route to reach the minimum inhibitory concentration against SARS-CoV-2 revealed in in vitro studies. Nebulizer technology of solution, nanoemulsion, or nanomicellar formulation, as well as Dry Powder Inhaler of engineered particle powder, freeze-dried product of nanostructured lipid carriers or solid lipid nanocarriers, has the potential to deliver ivermectin, achieving alveoli in sufficient concentration equal to about 5 μM of in vitro result. This review can be a point of view in conducting research to develop ivermectin target-oriented drug delivery systems.