Biodegradation of phenol by the yeast Candida tropicalis: an investigation by NMR spectroscopy.

The process of phenol biodegradation by the yeast Candida tropicalis NCIM 3556 in aqueous medium was studied by (1)H, (13)C, and DOSY NMR techniques. Samples at regular intervals were centrifuged to separate the cells, and (1)H spectral data were collected at 400 MHz. Though a gradual decrease in the concentration of phenol was observed, after an incubation period of ~8 h, formation of any intermediate products could not be detected. Experiments carried out with uniformly (13)C-labeled phenol also failed to detect formation of any carboxylic acid intermediates during degradation. The studies indicated that the phenol was completely degraded to carbon dioxide and water in approximately 20 h. Self-diffusion coefficient measurements showed that the lifetime of phenol in the bound form is too small to impart any change in its diffusion behavior and the intermediates formed are converted to carbon dioxide and water at a very fast rate.

CNS Depressant Activity of Ethanol Extract of Sterculia guttata seeds in mice.

Shade dried, powdered seeds of Sterculia guttata were extracted using a Soxhlet extractor with ethanol. Ethanol was removed under reduced pressure and dried to obtained crude extract. This extract was evaluated for its effect on behavioral changes, exploratory activity and barbiturate-sleeping time, using appropriate standard methods in mice. The extract exhibited dose-dependent CNS depressant activity.

Barium hexaaluminate nanowhiskers synthesized by novel sol-gel process in reverse micellar media.

Barium hexaaluminate (BHA) synthesized by coupling of sol-gel process in reverse microemulsions shows a unique nanowhisker morphology and high surface area, which are retained after calcination at 1300 degrees C.