Nanoparticles have wide applications in various fields due to their small size. Titanium dioxide nanoparticles are bright with high refractive index (n = 2.4) which makes them suitable for industry dealing with toothpaste, pharmaceuticals, coatings, papers, inks, plastics, food products, cosmetics and textile. Three crystalline phases of titanium dioxide, are anatase (tetragonal), rutile (tetragonal), and brookite (orthorhombic) in which brookite has no commercial value. Due to their self cleaning and antifogging property, they are used in the preparation of cloths, windows, tiles and anti-fogging car mirrors. Titanium dioxide nanoparticles also serve as environment sanitizing agent. Sol-gel route, flame hydrolysis, co-precipitation, impregnation and chemical vapor deposition like techniques are used for the synthesis of TiO 2 nanoparticles. Biosynthesis of titanium dioxide nanoparticles has gained wide interest among researchers due to its cost effective, eco-friendly and reproducible approach. The sol-gel route remediation of the titanium dioxide from the environment is an important step and it can be achieved by using physical processes like sedimentation and filtration. The biosynthesis of titanium dioxide nanoparticles can be used in comparison to chemical synthesis. The titanium dioxide nanoparticles have wide applications, viz., reducing toxicity of dyes and pharmaceutical drugs; waste water treatment; reproduction of silkworm; space applications; food industries; etc., and so have immense industrial importance. The applications of nanoparticles synthesized by biological approach will be advantageous for the industries; environment and agriculture.
Thionins are small, cysteine‐rich peptides that play an important role in plant defense, primarily through their interactions with membranes. Eight novel γ‐thionin peptides (CanThio1‐8) were isolated from the flower of Capsicum annuum. Sequence analysis revealed that the peptides cluster into three groups. A representative peptide from each group (CanThio1, 2, and 3) was used for experimental characterization. Interestingly, peptides were found to possess some cytotoxic activity against normal human embryonic kidney cell line but higher cytotoxicity against cancer cell line MCF‐7. CanThio3 peptide was chosen as a representative peptide to study the molecular mechanism of action on membranes. Microsecond timescale atomistic simulations of CanThio3 were performed in the presence of a POPC (1‐palmitoyl‐2‐oleoyl‐sn‐glycero‐3‐phosphocholine) lipid bilayer. Simulations revealed that CanThio3 interacts with the bilayer and causes lipid thinning in the vicinity. Nonpolar amino acids specific to the α‐core region of CanThio3 along with nonpolar residues in the γ‐core region are seen to interact with the lipid tails. The differences in the amino acid sequence of CanThio peptides in these regions explain the variability in cytotoxic activities. In summary, our results demonstrate the membrane‐mediated activity of a novel series of γ‐thionin peptides from C. annuum.
Lepidopteran insect pest Helicoverpa armigera is one of the most destructive pests of crop plants and several biotechnological approaches are being developed for its control. Plant defensins are small cationic and cysteine-rich peptides that play a role in plant defense. Ingestion of a defensin from Capsicum annuum (CanDef-20) induced a dose-dependent reduction in larval and pupal mass, delayed metamorphosis and also severely reduced fecundity and fertility in H. armigera. To understand the molecular mechanisms of CanDef-20 ingestion-mediated antibiosis in H. armigera larvae, a comparative transcriptomics analysis was carried out. Predominant downregulation of GOs represents serine-type endopeptidases, structural constituents of ribosomes and integral membrane components and differential upregulation of ATP binding, nucleus and translation, while up-regulation of nucleic acid binding represented by transposable elements, were detected. Different isoforms of lipase, serine endopeptidase, glutathione S-transferase, cadherin, alkaline phosphatase and aminopeptidases were found to be upregulated as a compensatory response to CanDef-20 ingestion. In vitro enzyme assays and qPCR analysis of some representative genes associated with vital cellular processes like metamorphosis, food digestion and gut membrane indicated adaptive differential regulations in CanDef-20 fed H. armigera larvae. We conclude that CanDef-20 ingestion affects insect metabolism in a number of ways through its interaction with cell membrane, enzymes, cytoplasmic proteins and triggering transposon mobilization which are linked to growth retardation and adaptive strategies in H. armigera.
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