Journal Pre-proof J o u r n a l P r e -p r o o f Acknowledgements: AbstractThe novel Coronavirus disease 2019 is caused by SARS-CoV-2, which is the causative agent of a potentially fatal disease that is of great global public health concern. The outbreak of COVID-19 is wreaking havoc worldwide due to inadequate risk assessment regarding the urgency of the situation. The COVID-19 pandemic has entered a dangerous new phase. When compared with SARS and MERS, COVID-19 has spread more rapidly, due to increased globalization and adaptation of the virus in every environment. Slowing the spread of the COVID-19 cases will significantly reduce the strain on the healthcare system of the country by limiting the number of people who are severely sick by COVID-19 and need hospital care. Hence, the recent outburst of COVID-19 highlights an urgent need for therapeutics targeting SARS-CoV-2. Here, we have discussed the structure of virus; varying symptoms among COVID-19, SARS, MERS and common flu; the probable mechanism behind the infection and its immune response. Further, the current treatment options, drugs available, ongoing trials and recent diagnostics for COVID-19 have been discussed.We suggest traditional Indian medicinal plants as possible novel therapeutic approaches, exclusively targeting SARS-CoV-2 and its pathways.

Globally cancer is a disease which severely effects the human population. There is a constant demand for new therapies to treat and prevent this life-threatening disease. Scientific and research interest is drawing its attention towards naturally-derived compounds as they are considered to have less toxic side effects compared to current treatments such as chemotherapy. The Plant Kingdom produces naturally occurring secondary metabolites which are being investigated for their anticancer activities leading to the development of new clinical drugs. With the success of these compounds that have been developed into staple drugs for cancer treatment new technologies are emerging to develop the area further. New technologies include nanoparticles for nano-medicines which aim to enhance anticancer activities of plant-derived drugs by controlling the release of the compound and investigating new methods for administration. This review discusses the demand for naturally-derived compounds from medicinal plants and their properties which make them targets for potential anticancer treatments.

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Hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)) in water is a proven carcinogen to different internal and external organs of the living organisms. There are different human activities incorporated to the anthropogenic sources in the environment enriching Cr(VI) of high concentration in the water system above the regulatory level. The physical, chemical and biological properties of chromium favour the dissolution in the water environment. This concerns the environmental researcher to tackle and mitigate. Chemical or biological techniques or a combination of the two have been used to remove Cr(VI) from polluted waters. Biological techniques include integrated bioremediation, such as the primary processes of direct bioreduction and biosorption, and secondary processes of microbial fuel cell, biostimulation, surface modified dry biomass and biochar adsorption, and engineered biofilm and cell free reductase. These techniques are used by a wide range of living organisms including bacteria, fungi, plants, plant leaves, plant nuts and algae. This group of living organisms transform and remove Cr(VI) from water during the cellular metabolisms, extracellular activities, physical and chemical adsorptions on the cell surface, and photosynthesis. Variation of different physical, chemical and environmental parameters affecting the efficiency of the bioremediation process have impacted on the design of bioreactors. There has been a recent development of a microbial fuel cell which use the proximity of Cr(VI) reduction as a cathode half cell for the generation of renewable energy and simulation of its' removal from water.

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In this work, the biodegradation of the crude oil by the potential biosurfactant producing Bacillus subtilis A1 was investigated. The isolate had the ability to synthesize degradative enzymes such as alkane hydroxylase and alcohol dehydrogenase at the time of biodegradation of hydrocarbon. The biosurfactant producing conditions were optimized as pH 7.0, temperature 40°C, 2% sucrose and 3% of yeast extract as best carbon and nitrogen sources for maximum production of biosurfactant (4.85 g l-1). Specifically, the low molecular weight compounds, i.e., C10–C14 were completely degraded, while C15–C19 were degraded up to 97% from the total hydrocarbon pools. Overall crude oil degradation efficiency of the strain A1 was about 87% within a short period of time (7 days). The accumulated biosurfactant from the biodegradation medium was characterized to be lipopeptide in nature. The strain A1 was found to be more robust than other reported biosurfactant producing bacteria in degradation efficiency of crude oil due to their enzyme production capability and therefore can be used to remove the hydrocarbon pollutants from contaminated environment.