[en] To assess the efficacy and safety, essential (Cl, Co, Cr, Fe, K, Mn, Na, Se, Zn), toxic (As, Br, Hg, Sb,) and other elements (Ba, Ce, Cs, Eu, Rb, Sc) were determined in Emblica officinalis (EO), Terminalia belerica (TB) and Terminalia chebula (TC) using instrumental neutron activation analysis. These herbs contain K as a major element, while Co, Cr and Na in EO, Fe, K and Mn in TB and Cl and Zn in TC are the highest. - Highlights: • Emblica officinalis,Terminalia belerica and Terminalia chebula have been analyzed using INAA. • All three seeds contain K as major element. • This baseline data that can be used in future research for medicinal preparations

[en] Synthetic antithyroid agents act through inhibition of enzyme or by making stable charge transfer (CT) complex with iodine. Iodine acts as s-acceptor and the synthetic compound as n-donor. Study of CT complexation of various drugs with iodine using UV/visible spectroscopy has revealed a positive correlation between the formation constant (Kc) and in vivo an activity. Some alkyl derivatives of 9H-purine-6-thiol were synthesized and evaluated in vitro as well as in vivo for potential antithyroid effects. The compounds exhibited 1:1 charge transfer complexation with iodine and have quite high values of formation constants. The blood assays of rats treated with these compounds and histological study of the thyroid tissues indicated the hyperactivity of gland. These compounds are expected to have lesser side effects as the sulfa group, a cause of toxicity in many medicines, is blocked. Phenyl derivative proved to be the most potent antithyroid agent comparable with methimazole. (author)

[en] Samples of sand and manufactured building materials collected from the Rawalpindi/Islamabad area have been analyzed for the primordial natural radionuclides ²³⁸U, ²³²Th and ⁴⁰K using γ-ray spectrometry. The uranium and thorium contents have also been determined by instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA). The specific activities of these radionuclides in the samples are compared with those of the world averages for soil. The comparison shows that, of the nine samples analyzed, only the three brick samples have higher activities than the world averages for soil. The specific activities in these materials, having a radium equivalent activity of less than 370 Bq kg^-1, when evaluated for radiological effects show that all materials meet the external γ-ray dose limitation of 1.5 mSv y^-1. The γ-spectrometric and INAA techniques complemented each other well in this study

[en] Drought stress has a significant challenge to crop growth, reproduction, and yield in arid regions. Microbes associated with desert plants offer a promising solution by enhancing moisture and nutrient uptake, mitigating water stress, and ultimately boosting crop growth and yield. In this study, the bacteria isolated from the rhizosphere of native plant Aerva javanica, found in the Cholistan desert, were assessed for their effectiveness to promote chickpea seedlings growth. A total of 21 drought tolerant rhizobacterial strains were isolated and characterized, with a focus on their ability to produce exopolysaccharide (EPS) and 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid-deaminase (ACC-deaminase) under water-deficit conditions. These conditions were simulated using polyethylene glycol (PEG) 6000 in the growth medium. Notably, strains CD23 and CD21 exhibited the highest EPS production ability, yielding 10.9 and 10.4 mg L-1 of EPS, respectively, under PEG-induced drought stress however, a minute reduction in EPS production was observed under normal conditions. Similarly, ACC-deaminase activity was significant, measuring 3.2 and 3.2 μM mg-1 protein for strains CD23 and CD21, respectively. Further assessments were conducted to evaluate the drought tolerance of these strains at various PEG-6000 levels in jar trials. The strains CD23 and CD21 demonstrated promising results in enhancing chickpea growth. Subsequently, through partial gene sequencing of the 16S rRNA, these strains were identified as Acinetobacter sp. strain CD21 (accession number: MW829536) and Klebsiella sp. strain CD23 (accession number MW829537). The production of ACC-deaminase and EPS by these desert rhizobacteria may serve as crucial indicator for the development of inoculants that can promote chickpea growth under water-deficit conditions. (author)

[en] Instrumental Neutron Activation Analysis (INAA) and Atomic Absorption Spectrometry (AAS) were applied for the analysis of toxic elements (Hg, Se, As, Pb, Cd and Br). in different species of fish commonly consumed in Pakistan, as fish is also an indicator of the aquatic environment. Comparison of our values with the literature values is given. The weekly dietary intake of toxic elements through these species has been estimated, which is well below the tolerance limit. The reliability of the techniques has been established by the use of standard reference materials. (author)

[en] IAEA and NBS biological certified reference materials have been analyzed by instrumental neutron activation analysis and concentration of 17 elements was determined. The elements determined were either completely missing or their certified values were not given in the original compilations. For quality assurance of our work, a comparison of data on missing trace elements in some of the CRMs has been presented. It seems that second round of analysis for the certification of these elements would be useful. (author). 11 refs., 6 tabs

[en] Indoor pollution in residences, offices, schools and other buildings is widely recognized as a serious environmental risk to human health. The concern about indoor exposures stems from the fact that most of the people spend around 90% of their time indoors. The presence of primordial radionuclides in building materials is a source of indoor radioactive pollution. Continuous exposure to even low level radiation may adversely affect human health. Environmental protection agencies world-wide are working on the legislation to set upper limits for the natural radiation exposure in new constructions. It is, therefore, mandatory to determine the concentration of naturally occurring radionuclides in building materials. Most of the countries are working to assess the amount of natural radioactivity in building materials in order to evaluate possible radiological hazards and to set safety limits. (orig.)

[en] Rapid radiochemical neutron activation analysis (RNAA) procedures were developed and employed to the determination of 36 trace impurities in high purity titanium and tungsten. Anion exchange column chromatography procedures were developed for the sequential group chemical separation of various elements, which helped in reducing the spectral interferences and improving the sensitivity of the method. The procedure is simple and requires a very short time to separate the elements in three groups for radiometric assay. To determine very low contents of uranium and thorium, ²³⁹Np and ²³³Pa as activation products were separated using anion-exchange and coprecipitation methods. The impurity contents were found to be low; therefore, their deleterious effects would be negligible

[en] It has been established that essential trace elements are vitally important for biochemical systems, whereas toxic elements if present in relatively higher amounts adversely affect these systems. Trace elements reach the human body mainly through foodstuffs. The different articles contain varying amount of toxic and essential elements. It is therefore necessary to asses the adequacy and safety of the diet by determining the base-line levels of these elements. In continuation of our previous work, some varieties of pulses and spices were analyzed using neutron activation technique. Among the four varieties of pulses lentil (lens esculenta) was found to contain higher amounts of essential elements and lower amounts of toxic elements. The daily intake of essential and toxic elements through pulses was estimated and compared with the suggested values. The estimated intake of essential elements is adequate and that of toxic elements is well below the tolerance limit. In spices cumin and caraway seeds were found to contain relatively higher amounts of essential as well as toxic elements. The studies showed that food spices were additional source of trace element intake. (author)

[en] Neutron activation analysis was used for the determination of 29 trace impurities is high-purity semiconductor grade Ge and Si. In order to determine very low contents of uranium and thorium, ²³⁹Np and ²³³Pa activation products were separated using anion exchange and LaF₃ coprecipitation methods. The impurity contents were found to be very low, and therefore their adverse effects would be negligible. (author) 20 refs.; 4 tabs