Kuvempu University

About: Kuvempu University is a education organization based out in Shimoga, India. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Cyclic voltammetry & Carbon paste electrode. The organization has 1575 authors who have published 2210 publications receiving 39755 citations. The organization is also known as: KU.

Probiotic Properties of Lactic Acid Bacteria Isolated From Neera: A Naturally Fermenting Coconut Palm Nectar.

Abstract: Probiotic bacteria were isolated from different traditional fermented foods as there are several such foods that are not well explored for their probiotic activities. Hence, the present study was conducted to find the potential of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) as probiotics that were isolated from the sap extract of the coconut palm inflorescence - Neera, which is a naturally fermented drink consumed in various regions of India. A total of 75 isolates were selected from the Neera samples collected aseptically in the early morning (before sunrise). These isolates were initially screened for cultural, microscopic, and biochemical characteristics. The initial screening yielded 40 Gram-positive, catalase-negative isolates that were further subjected to acid - bile tolerance with resistance to phenol. Among 40 isolates, 16 survived screening using analysis of cell surface hydrophobicity, auto aggregation with adhesion to epithelial cells, and gastric-pancreatic digestion for gastrointestinal colonization. The isolates were also assessed for antimicrobial, antibiotic sensitivity, and anti-oxidative potential. The safety of these isolates was evaluated by their hemolytic and deoxyribonuclease (DNase) activities. Based on these results, seven isolates with the best probiotic attributes were selected and presented in this study. These LAB isolates, with 51.91-70.34% survival at low pH, proved their resistance to gastric conditions. The cell surface hydrophobicity of 50.32-77.8% and auto aggregation of 51.02-78.95% represented the adhesion properties of these isolates. All the seven isolates exhibited good antibacterial and antifungal activity, showing hydroxyl-scavenging activity of 32.86-77.87%. The results proved that LAB isolated from Neera exhibited promising probiotic properties and seem favorable for use in functional fermented foods as preservatives.

Green synthesis of zinc doped cobalt ferrite nanoparticles: Structural, optical, photocatalytic and antibacterial studies

Abstract: The nanostructured zinc-doped cobalt ferrites (Zn x Co 1−x Fe2O4 where x ranges from 0.0 to 0.6 with the step of 0.2) were prepared by combustion method using curd as a green fuel. The prepared nanoparticles were further characterized using XRD, SEM with EDAX, TEM, FTIR, UV-DRS, and luminescence spectroscopy. From the XRD, it shows that these nanomaterials exhibit average crystallite size in the range ∼ 12-21 nm with inverse cubic spinel structure. The agglomerated and spherical structure of the nanoparticles is confirmed by SEM and TEM. The vibrational stretching modes of tetrahedral (582 cm−1) and octahedral (385 cm−1) sites were confirmed by FTIR. Further, density functional theory (DFT) analysis was carried out in order to study the electronic properties of cobalt ferrite and zinc-doped cobalt ferrite nanostructures. The band gap results for pure CoFe2O4 and Zn-doped CoFe2O4 nanoparticles were closer to the experimental values. The luminescence spectrum shows peaks correspond to violet, blue, green, yellow and orange emission. The photodegradation studies of obtained nanoparticles were evaluated for the degradation of Congo red and Evans blue dyes under visible light irradiation. Pure CoFe2O4 and Zn-doped CoFe2O4 nanoparticles were inspected against both gram-positive (Staphylococcus aureus) and the gram-negative (Salmonella typhi) bacteria for antibacterial studies. The gram-negative bacterium Salmonella typhi shows high antibacterial activity with the inhibition zone of Zn-doped CoFe2O4 (22 mm) compared to pure CoFe2O4 (16 mm)

Influence of tramadol [2-[(dimethylamino)methyl]-1-(3-methoxyphenyl) cyclohexanol hydrate] on corrosion inhibition of mild steel in acidic media

Abstract: Tramadol[2-[(dimethylamino)methyl]-1-(3-methoxyphenyl)cyclohexanol hydrate], a drug, was tested as a corrosion inhibitor for mild steel in 0.5 M HCl and 0.25 M H2SO4 separately at 300, 310 and 320 K using mass loss and galvanostatic polarization techniques. The percentage protection efficiencies were evaluated at different concentrations of the inhibitor at different temperatures. The protection efficiency increased with increase in inhibitor concentration and decreased with increase in temperature in both the acid solutions. Galvanostatic polarization studies showed that the inhibitor is of mixed type with a slight predominance of cathodic character. The inhibitor was more active in HCl than in H2SO4. The maximum protection efficiency approached 82.6% in the presence of 2.16 × 10−3 M inhibitor. Some samples of mild steel were examined by scanning electron microscopy. The inhibitor was found to adsorb on the mild steel surface according to the Langmuir adsorption isotherm. The thermodynamic functions of dissolution and adsorption processes were evaluated.