Insights into the use of metal complexes of thiourea derivatives as highly efficient adsorbents for ciprofloxacin from contaminated water

Synthesis, crystal structure and Hirshfeld Surface analysis of benzamide derivatives of thiourea as potent inhibitors of α-glucosidase in-vitro

Benzamide based structural analogues 1-15 were synthesized, and evaluated for α-glucosidase inhibition activity in vitro for the first time. Compounds 1-9 were found to be known, while compounds 10-15 were found to be new. However, to the best of our knowledge we are reporting α-glucosidase inhibitory activity of these bezamide derivatives of thiourea for the first time. Compounds 1, 3, 6-8, 10-14 were found to be potent inhibitors of α-glucosidase within IC₅₀ range of 20.44-333.41 µM, in comparison to the standard inhibitor, acarbose (IC₅₀ = 875.75 ± 2.08 µM). Mode of the enzyme inhibition was determined on the basis of kinetic studies which demonstrated that compounds 8, and 10 were non-competitive and competitive inhibitors of α-glucosidase enzyme, respectively. These compounds were also evaluated for their DPPH radical scavenging activity, and cytotoxicity against 3T3 mouse fibroblast cell lines. All synthesized compounds showed a significant to moderate DPPH radical scavenging activity and appeared to be non-cytotoxic except compound 9 which showed cytotoxicity against 3T3 normal mouse fibroblast cell lines. A single crystal X-ray and Hirshfeld Surface analysis of a representative compound is also presented.

Characterization of activated bentonite clay mineral and the mechanisms underlying its sorption for ciprofloxacin from aqueous solution

The presence of emerging pollutants such as hazardous chemicals, pharmaceuticals, pesticides, and endocrine-disrupting chemicals in water sources is a serious concern to the environment and human health. Thus, this study focused on exploring the interaction mechanisms between ciprofloxacin (CIP) (antibiotic) and clay (a low-cost adsorbent) during sorption process. Acid activation technique was opted for modifying natural bentonite (NB) to enhance the adsorptive removal of CIP from water. The BET surface area analysis revealed that acid-activated bentonite (AAB) possessed more than two fold higher surface area as compared to NB. Combining pH_zpc measurements, effect of solution pH and CIP speciation revealed that CIP sorption onto bentonite is highly dependent on solution pH. Kinetic studies confirmed that CIP sorption mechanism was chemisorption which included ion-exchange and surface complexation mechanisms. The mechanism of CIP sorption onto AAB was successfully explored with the assistance of characterization techniques. Maximal monolayer sorption capacity of AAB was found to be 305.20 mg/g, compared to 126.56 mg/g for NB. Reusability studies demonstrated that AAB could be reused successfully up to 5 cycles. Furthermore, column studies showed satisfactory results confirming that AAB can be successfully used in continuous mode for practical applications.

Biosorptive interaction of alkaline modified Dialium guineense seed powders with ciprofloxacin in contaminated solution: central composite, kinetics, isotherm, thermodynamics, and desorption

This work evaluated the use of Dialium guineense seed waste (DGS) and its sodium hydroxide modified form (NH-DGS) as biosorbent for ciprofloxacin (CPF) from synthetic solution as well as the desorption potentials. Central composite design (CCD) was applied for optimization of the alkaline treated biosorbent by response surface methodology using design expert. Both biosorbents were characterized by FTIR, SEM, EDX, and BET analysis. The CCD showed NaOH concentration of 0.46 M and temperature of 96 °C to be effective for optimized modification of NH-DGS. Optimum removal of CPF was obtained at pH 6.0, contact time 120 min, temperature 300 K, and dosage of 0.1 g. The Freundlich model gave the best fit compared to the other isotherms tested with R² values >0.97951. NH-DGS exhibited a maximum uptake capacity of 120.34 mg/g higher than some reported adsorbents for CPF. The pseudo-second-order model was suitable in the fitting of the kinetic data. A non-spontaneous process was obtained for CPF biosorption on DGS which became spontaneous after alkaline treatment. Over 84% desorption of CPF was achieved on both biosorbents using 0.3 M HCl which envisaged the use of NH-DGS as an efficient material for treatment of waters contaminated with CPF.

Analysis, occurrence and removal of pharmaceuticals in African water resources: A current status

Pharmaceuticals are organic compounds used in medicines for alleviation of pain. Since 2017, there has been a steady increase on the availability of information on contamination of water resources caused by pharmaceuticals in some African countries. Thus far, most environmental monitoring studies of pharmaceuticals are conducted in South Africa while there is still no available data in majority of the African countries. Therefore, the knowledge on the presence of pharmaceuticals in African water resources is still lacking. In an attempt to provide more information in this aspect, this review article seeks to critically evaluate the progress made thus far by the African scientists in the environmental monitoring and assessment of pharmaceuticals. The most studied groups of pharmaceuticals in Africa are non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, antibiotics, antiretroviral drugs and steroid hormones. Various remediation studies for selected pharmaceuticals in Africa are documented in literature. In the present review, the challenges facing the African researchers or countries on providing more scientific data on the occurrence of pharmaceuticals in water are discussed. Furthermore, the gaps and recommendations for future work are given.