Swati Pal, Author at SciWriteGlobal

Jan, 2020

Aspirin can reduce air pollution effect on lungs

Aspirin is widely used for treating headaches but do you know it can also have functional value in relieving your lungs from pollution damage? Recent research by scientists from Columbia Mailman School of Public Health, Boston University School of Medicine and Harvard Chan School of Public Health has revealed the potential aspects of aspirin in reducing the impact of pollution on lungs. The research has been published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.

Pollutants in the air can harm your body by causing severe damage to the lung cells. This mainly includes inflammation and irritation in the cells which can become more serious if not taken care of. It does make sense now why researchers choose aspirin as an agent to curb the menace of pollution. Aspirin is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAIDs) which has a defensive effect in response to inflammatory reactions in the body.

In the present research, scientists collected the data of more than 2000 male veterans belonging to the Boston area with an average age of 73 years. The functionality of the lungs of this cohort was evaluated to gain better insights for further comparative analysis (since 1960). Moreover, the data for air pollution was also analyzed (since 1955) regularly.

Researchers compared the functionality of the lungs of volunteers under the influence of NSAIDs and those who are not. They observed that the group with exposure to NSAID showed the reduced impact of particulate matter and black carbon on the lungs in comparison to those without NSAID administration. The study also considered other factors such as the health of the volunteers and smoking habits to come up with precise result analysis. The results were found to be consistent throughout the study sessions for all weekly air pollution measurements from the initial day of inspection until the day of the lung function test.

Researchers found that most of the volunteers consuming NSAID mainly used aspirin. This highlights the improved response observed among volunteers can be contributed by aspirin. However, other non-aspirin NSAIDs can also be explored to understand the overall effectiveness and association with a lung condition.

“Our findings suggest that aspirin and other NSAIDs may protect the lungs from short-term spikes in air pollution,” says corresponding author Xu Gao, a scientist in the Department of Environmental Health Sciences at the Columbia Mailman School. He added, “Of course, it is still important to minimize our exposure to air pollution, which is linked to a host of adverse health effects, from cancer to cardiovascular disease.”

The findings support the use of aspirin in overcoming the harm caused by pollution to the human lungs. Though the exact mechanism of working is not yet known, the study paves the path for the researcher to speculate and evaluate the role of NSAIDs in overcoming the inflammatory responses due to severe pollution exposure. Further detailed studies are needed to evaluate the impact and understand the mechanism at a molecular level.

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Jan, 2020

COVID 19: A battle between heat and humidity Vs Sunshine

Enhanced Thermostability and Anticancer Activity in Breast Cancer Cells of Laccase Immobilized on Pluronic-Stabilized Nanoparticles

Laccases are mainly found in fungi and plants known for catalyzing oxidation reactions. They are often named as multi-copper enzymes having a wide range of applications across a multitude of biotechnological processes. Though widely used the major challenge is the low stability of the free enzyme which often restricts its usability for industrial purposes. The development of new methods that can enhance the enzymatic activity is a need of time. In the present study, immobilization of trametes versicolor laccase on pH-responsive, pluronic stabilized silver nanoparticles (AgNPsTrp) was carried out. The results showed enhanced activity if enzyme upon stabilization of AgNPsTrp with amphiphilic copolymer Pluronic F127, this helps in changing the microenvironment of active site facilitating the improved activity. The results were confirmed using circular dichroism (CD) and fluorescence spectroscopy. Further analysis showed that lowering the activation energy and expanding the temperature window for substrate hydrolysis can play a crucial role in improving the enzyme activity. No change in the behavior of the nanocomposite indicated the stability of the enzyme as normal with the absence of any aggregation after immobilization. The efficiency of the nanocomposite in breast cancer cells- MCF-7 was observed which showed inhibition of cell proliferation by promoting cell apoptosis and beta-estradiol degradation. Further, qRT- PCR experiments were conducted to understand the underlying molecular mechanism hindering cell proliferation. The analysis showed a reduced level of mRNA levels of the anti-apoptotic genes and enhancement in level of pro-apoptotic genes. For example, BCL-2 and NF-kβ, and increase in levels of pro-apoptotic genes like p53. The entire study provides a new way of enhancing the enzymatic activity of Laccases and extending its subsequent applications.

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Jan, 2020

Cellulase and Xylanase synergism in industrial biotechnology

In recent years, many studies have been carried out which shows tremendous benefits of biocatalyst when compared to chemical catalysts. Biocatalyst helps in carrying out reactions in an environment-friendly manner while providing a high level of selectivity, specificity, and low energy consumption. Two of the most widely used enzyme as biocatalyst are cellulose and xylanase wherein the former is considered to be the 3^rd highest used enzyme. Many of the industrial applications require the use of both the enzyme in combination such as bioethanol production, removal of ink in waste paper industries, food processing industries, feed processing, removal of fibers from the textile materials, pulp production, pharmaceuticals and many more. Cellulose and xylanase are mainly produced by microorganisms which increases the demands of these microorganisms in the market. In this review, are discussing the synergistic application of both cellulose and xylanase enzyme as biocatalyst in various industries. Besides this, the paper also discusses the potential applications and requirements of microbial systems producing such enzymes. The paper highlights the future prospects associated with the further development of these enzymes as a coherent part of various industrial processes.

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Dec, 2019

Antibodies Targeting Influenza Viruses – A Hope for Universal Vaccine

Succession of physiological stages hallmarks the transcriptomic response of fungus Aspergillus niger to lignocellulose

Gaining insights about the mechanism of lignocellulose degradation by fungi is one of the pathbreaking discoveries for renewable-based biotechnology, specifically for the production of hydrolytic enzymes. Many detailed studies are available which evaluates fungal degradation when the expression levels of CAZyme reach its peak. However, the basic understanding of how fungi survive on lignocelluloses is still under the pipeline. This paper uses Aspergillus niger to explore its responses against six different substrates playing role in biofuel production. The responses to Miscanthus were compared with wheat straw, in isolation and in combination with ionic & hydrothermal feedstock pretreatment. A metabolic model is mapped using a thorough evaluation of genome-wide transcriptome in combination with defined targeted transcripts and protein analyses. The exposure to different substrates showed enhancement in fatty acid oxidation and lipid metabolism transcripts. Strains with deletion of farA (ortholog of the fatty acid beta-oxidation transcriptional regulator) showed the reduced expression level of genes encoding lignocelluloses degradative CAZyme, indicating the role of beta-oxidation in mediating the adaptation to lignocelluloses. Activation of novel secondary metabolite gene clusters was noticed at the later life stages which are of great consideration due to their importance in synthesis of bioactive compounds. The entire study highlights that substrate composition and structure influence plays a critical role in mediating responses of fungi to lignocellulose. The study also shows the presence of different physiological stages in fungal responses which are mostly conserved across different substrates.

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Dec, 2019

Cell therapy for central nervous system disorders: Current obstacles to progress

No wonder there is an urgent need for new therapeutic developments having clinical application in treating the disorders associated with the central nervous system. In light of this, various studies are under pipeline which focuses on diseases like Parkinson’s, traumatic brain injury, stroke, and many more. Developments have been carried out where cell therapy using induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS) have been used as a breakthrough. The use of induced pluripotent stem cells for neurorestoration through transplantation has paved a new path in the clinical applications treating neurological disorders. Besides this, iPS cells for long have served as a robust biological system for the development of various therapeutic drugs. Thus, providing deeper insights into the pathological conditions and potential mechanism for its treatment. Even after many recent advances in cell therapies using iPS, the mesenchymal stem cells derived from adult tissues remain one of the popular options as the donor for cell transplantation. In this review article, the breakthrough research made using cell therapy for neurological disorders is discussed along with a detailed understanding of the obstacles in clinical application of therapy and subsequent solutions.

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Dec, 2019

Spray-Dried Hierarchical Aggregates of Iron Oxide Nanoparticles and Their Functionalization for Downstream Processing in Biotechnology.

Iron oxide nanoparticles are known to be used for their exorbitant properties in a multitude of fields. It has huge applications in mining industries, biomedicine, wastewater treatment, protein purification, food processing and much more. In the present study, researchers tried to unfold the understanding of iron oxide nanoparticles structuring using spray drying method. The study showed the formation of micrometer size aggregates having magnetic property comparable to that of individual nanoparticles. Besides this, researchers found that the superparamagnetic property of the multicore structure formed was not lost. The changes in the aggregates through the addition of silica-based nanoparticles in the suspension showed significant control of the resulting magnetization by altering the iron oxide content. Interestingly, it was observed that the changes in silica content to only 20% brought significant alteration in the morphology of iron oxide nanoparticles. Wherein the inflated like shape of the pure iron oxide nanoparticles was observed to be converted into a spherical structure. These aggregates with different magnetization can be separated in a column under the influence of the magnetic field provided by an attached permanent magnet. These iron oxide aggregates are coupled with a ligand containing nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA) groups that can be used to purify 6-histidine tagged proteins. The present studies show the purification of protein A using this mechanism. The major benefit of this new purification system under the influence magnetic field is the high degree of recyclability. The system can be used effectively without losing much protein.

Source

Dec, 2019

Application of CRISPR/Cas9-mediated gene editing for the development of herbicide-resistant plants.

Authors: Yun-Jeong Han, Jeong-Il Kim

The development of herbicide-resistant plants is the need of time to help the agriculture economy move ahead. Lack of this trait in plants can impact their growth during herbicide applications leading to loss of crops. Imparting herbicide-resistant traits using genetic engineering will not only help plants/ crops survive better but also control the unwanted weeds. For these reasons, researchers are developing new methods and technologies to pass on herbicide resistance traits in plants. The CRISPR/Cas9 based gene-editing technology is considered to be highly precise and effective to carry out modification at genetic levels offering great efficiency in enhancing the crops. In the present study, the researchers used CRISPR based gene-editing technology to confer herbicide-resistant traits in plants by targeting genes such as 5-enolpyruvylshikimate-3-phosphate synthase (EPSPS), acetolactate synthase (ALS), splicing factor 3B subunit 1 (SF3B1), and cellulose synthase A catalytic subunit 3 (CESA3). Besides this, researchers also added additional candidate genes to enhance the herbicide resistance properties of plants through inducing mutations using the CRISPR Cas9 gene-editing tool.

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Dec, 2019

Tips for beginners to learn scientific writing skills

Writing and science cannot exist in isolation. Instead, you can say that it is an indispensable part of scientific research as it forms the foundation of communicating the research work. No wonder this speaks a lot about the value of learning scientific writing skills. But questions often arise like where to begin from? Should one undergo a course? Or start practicing on their own? Well, in this blog we are trying to address these questions. We are sharing some important tips and considerations that can benefit beginners as well as experienced people to improve their scientific writing skills.

Begin with daily write-ups:

One of the best ways of learning writing is ‘To Write’. You must practice every day to become good at scientific writing. Initially, it may seem complicated but once you start practicing, you will find that your skills are improving day by day. If you find difficulty in writing science-related topics, you can choose to start with topics of your choice. Doesn’t matter whether it is related to the field or not as at the initial stage you need to focus on building the habit of writing. If you are not able to give special time to your writing skills then start using opportunities in daily life. For example, use social media postings. Twitter is considered to be the best option because you have limited space to write about a thought. This forces you to present an idea in the most concise and crisp manner without losing the true essence.

Raise the right questions:

Powerful and interesting writing is characterized by properly structured content. For this, you must raise questions such as – What? Where? When? Why? Who? How?

Fetching answers to these questions at the beginning of writing will help in charting down the scientific content in a precise manner. This way, you will be able to focus on the scientific idea and demands of readers more efficiently. However, one should only raise relevant questions that help in expanding the understanding of the scientific concept.

For example: To draft a write-up on the CRISPR-Cas system, one can raise the following questions to structure the content –

What is the CRISPR- Cas system?
Why it is in the news?
From where the system has originated
How it is helping the researchers develop new techniques?
What are its applications?
What are the expected future developments?

You will notice that the answer to these questions helps to make the content well organized. To explain further, the answer to the first question can be used to introduce about the CRISPR technology, answer to subsequent questions can form the body of the article while the answer to last question (future development) can form a part of way forward, conclusion or future prospects, which end your content on a good note.

Read about what you want to write

Another important consideration to improve writing skills is extensive reading. You can read articles, blog posts, research papers and other similar content in your niche area. This will help you learn different styles and patterns followed by the writer. Try reading the same topic from multiple sources. For example, read articles on CRISPR Cas from different websites. You will understand the pattern of writing, what points to focus, and you can even get to learn some new findings.

Reading extensively about a topic of interest will help you gain a good knowledge of it, reducing the chances of misinformation. However, always read from reliable and credible sources, even if you are reading from some random source make sure to find the reference that supports the statements.

Stick to simple words

People often have a perception that a good article consists of jargons but this is not true. Instead, an article must be easy to understand, it should easily communicate the idea of a writer to the readers. For this, one should prefer using simple and less complicated words. Writing in a way that can be easily understood by readers not only fetches their attention but also comforts them with your writing style. This allows a reader to finish off the entire article, which is otherwise left unread.

Writing is an art and it takes time to gain due expertise in it but it’s not impossible. Just start writing every day, and you can see the improvement in your skills. Implement the above-mentioned points while drafting the content and writing it down. Remember every great writer once started like this, so are you. Keep aside the fear and begin the journey of building scientific writing skills, which in the future can even help you fetch good writing jobs.

Dec, 2019

How to Write a Great Title?

No matter how much effort you have taken to write an article or research paper, if the same effort is not reflected in your title it’s of no use. Though it may seem to you that writing a great title will take only a fraction of time, but it’s not true. Instead, it is one of the major driving parts of the entire work. One should spend quality time on the title because it is the first thing that a reader will observe. If you are not able to catch the attention of the reader through your title or are not able to convey about the topic through it and your entire effort goes into waste.

A title is the starting point of any article, paper, essay or any other write-up, where the writer highlights the intention or directs the reader about the content. We all are living in an era of digitization where almost everyone searches relevant articles using multiple search engines. If you have ever observed there will be a lot of articles with a similar title that you are looking for, but you choose the one which attracts you the most and serves the purpose of your search. The question often arises here that in such a sea of information and online content, how to make your work stand different? What importance does a title play? Can a great title attract a good number of readers? Well, this article will help you share some tips and insights to write a great title and answer the above questions in brief.

Begin with a rough draft

It is best to start any article by giving a title first. It helps you stay directed while writing the rest of the body and conclusion of the article. Writing a research paper or article is a lengthy process. It might happen sometimes that you may divert from the original topic. To prevent this, it is always best to write a rough title initially and make corrections once the entire paper or article has been written.

Choose from different types of title

The titles of the research paper, essays and articles can be categorized into a number of types. As per Hartley (2008) there are as many as 13 variants of the titles. However, we will here enlist three common types of variants mostly used to convey the true essence of the topic.

Declarative titles – As the name suggests in such title you convey the major idea, findings or conclusion of the articles. For example, ‘A study shows naturotherapy based treatments overcome weight gain issues’.
Descriptive titles – Here you try to describe the entire idea behind the article or the write-up while keeping the conclusion part hidden. For example, ‘Effectiveness of CRISPR based gene editing therapy to cure blood disorders’. Here the title describes the context of the article that it discusses about the CRISPR technology but does not reveals if it is successful in treating the disorders.
Interrogative titles – These types of titles are one of the best ways to catch the attention of the readers. Here you convey the idea behind the article in the form of a question. For example – ‘How to write a great title’, this is an interrogative title. Here you know the article discusses tips and guidance for writing a good title for an article or research paper. Moreover, most of the readers search content in interrogative forms such as what is CRISPR, How CRISPR gene editing can transform disease treatment and much more.

Length of the title

Another important point to consider while writing a title is its length. As per standard guidelines, it is suggested that any title between 8-11 words is good. You must avoid too short titles ranging between 3-4 words, as they rank poorly on the search engine. So if you want your article or paper to be easily available to the readers, follow the standard guidelines. Moreover, in a study it is found that title with 8 words had 21% more clicks than others. 8 to 10 words long title is the medium length, wherein the idea can be conveyed very easily to the reader. Too long titles make it less attractive and boring whereas too short title does not convey the idea properly. Any article with an 8-10 word title is considered to be the best and a great way of capturing the eyes of the readers.

Way Ahead

Each of the above-said points is very useful in writing a great title. However, depending upon the type of content you are writing the demands of the title may change. In the case of research papers, articles and other related scientific content above said guidelines stand true but in case of other content such as presentations, press releases, blogs, and more the demand may change. Though there won’t be much significant change, as you can follow the three common variants of titles mentioned above that fits into almost any content. So what are you waiting for? Give it a try today and write an amazing title. Let us know in the comment if it helped you in any way. You can also share your way of writing an amazing title. You can also see another great blog on ‘How to write a good introduction’.

Dec, 2019

How to Write a Good Introduction?

An introduction is a part of an article, research paper or any other write-up which has to be crisp, catchy and comprehensible, as you just have a few seconds to captivate the interest of your reader. If you skip on to write an attractive introduction your write-up may end up like other content which is hardly read by anyone. Obviously, no one wants to take that chance, therefore knowing how to write a good introduction that holds your reader and interests him to read the write-up completely is something worth to know.

Your efforts for the initial few lines can decide whether a reader will read the rest hundreds of lines. Well, if you are struggling to write a great introduction for your articles and research papers then here we are sharing some important considerations to help you move ahead.

Keep it broader initially then narrow down: Start the main passage with a broad description of the idea or context of the research work and later on narrow it down to the core idea of the topic. This helps in positioning the sequels of an idea in a well-defined manner rather than haphazardly. Moreover, this way you can cover up all the necessary points to be mentioned in the introduction. This allows positioning the research work or any idea within the boundaries of your expectations and making it accessible to the readers in a comprehensible form.

Why should I read this? Try finding this answer: Once you have created a rough draft covering the broader aspects of the write-up, try to narrow it down by asking why you should read it? Does the introduction highlight what mentioned in the title? Does it maintains the flow of the explanation from one sentence to another or can a reader comprehend it easily without putting many efforts? Answers to these questions will be able to cover up the points necessary to capture the attention of the reader addressing why one should read it.

Catch the eyeballs at first sight: It is often said that if your first line of the content is catchy and relatable there high chances that a reader will stick to your write-up. But the question arises on how to make an introduction catchy at first sight? Well here are a few things that you can follow:

Starts the introduction with an anecdote – Hook the reader’s interest at first sight by giving a hint about the article using an intriguing narrative. You can use any famous saying with proper credits or make your own.
Start with the numbers – Not every time you have something relatable to make it attractive using an anecdote. In such cases try using statistics, wherein you can highlight the issue or any idea with earlier references. For example, while writing an article for PCOS condition, you can start with highlighting the severity of the condition with few stats such as ‘1 in 10 women suffer from PCOS’.
Create a story: Another way is to create a story to which the reader can relate to. Here you can start on a personal note (in case of articles and blogs) or give scientific background (in case of research papers and related technical content) with proper references. For example, when writing for Ebola virus you can highlight from where the virus first originated and how it was transferred from bats to humans etc.
Ask questions: One of the old and best ways to hook your reader’s interest is to question them. This helps in creating a curiosity in the minds of readers that forces them to know the answers, making them read the content thoroughly.

Keep it short and crisp: Compose a crisp and concise introduction. Dispose of filler words and expressions. It’s great to practice multiples times to get into the flow of writing crisp sentences while keeping in mind to capture the reader’s eye in the opening section.

We hope that the above-mentioned points aid you in learning writing an effective introduction that helps in captivating the interest of your readers. If you are interested in knowing more tips then you must visit our blog on ‘Tips for beginners to learn scientific writing skills’. Also, if you seek any special help in writing research work and other documentation involving scientific writing feel free to connect with our team.

Author: Swati Pal

Jan, 2020

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