Kirandeep Kaur

By Atamjit Singh and Kirandeep Kaur

Among the emerging nanotechnology, nanoparticles get much attention due to their unique physicochemical, optical, electrical, and thermal activities. Nowadays, extensive research on silver nanoparticles is going on due to their wide applicability in different fields. Silver nanoparticles possess excellent anticancer as well as antimicrobial efficacy (hence found major and wide applications as antimicrobial, wound healing, antidiarrheal, and antifungal agents). A huge and advanced perspective of silver nanoparticles is found in environmental hygiene and sterilization due to their magnificent disinfectant properties. The other major applications of silver nanoparticles include diagnostic (as biological tags in biosensors, assays, and quantitative detection), conductive (in conductive inks, pastes, and fillers), optical (metal-enhanced fluorescence and surface-enhanced Raman scattering), and household (pesticides and wastewater treatment) applications. The present review consists of an exhaustive detail about the biological and physical applications of silver nanoparticles along with the analysis of historical evolution, the present scenario, and possible future outcomes.

Part of the book: Engineered Nanomaterials

By Kirandeep Kaur, Atamjit Singh, Shivani Attri, Danish Malhotra, Aditi Verma, Neena Bedi and Preet Mohinder Singh Bedi

Management of diabetic foot remains a major challenge for healthcare system. Though wound healing is a multiphase process and involved multiple biomarkers that acts in stepwise manner, pathophysiology diabetic foot ulcers is still not much clear and need standardization. Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) are often linked with non-healing characteristic of diabetic foot ulcers. They play vital roles in various phases of healing process. Major functions are removal of damaged extracellular matrix in inflammatory phase, breakdown of capillary basement membrane prior to angiogenesis and facilitation in fibroblast migration during proliferation phase. For efficient healing, these enzymes are needed in certain amount only. Imbalance of these enzymes leads to excessive degradation which has been linked with the non-healing nature of diabetic ulcers. This chapter will shed light on the role of MMP’s in various phases of wound healing and the inhibitors of MMP’s from natural as well as synthetic origin. It would help researchers and physicians to the understand nature of diabetic foot more clearly and design of strategies for diabetic foot management.

Part of the book: The Eye and Foot in Diabetes

By Atamjit Singh, Kirandeep Kaur, Pallvi Mohana, Avneet Kaur, Komalpreet Kaur, Shilpa Heer, Saroj Arora, Neena Bedi and Preet Mohinder Singh Bedi

Staphylococcus aureus is the most ubiquitous microorganism in both environment as well as animals and exists as commensal and pathogenic bacterium. In past few years it has been emerged as a superbug causing serious burden on healthcare system. This bacterium has been found to be the most resistant one toward most of the antibiotics due to its rapid structural and genetic modifications. This chapter will shed light on various types of molecular mechanisms responsible for resistance of Staphylococcus aureus showcasing how it has been emerged as a superbug. Moreover, the recent approaches which include exploring of different drug targets keeping in view the structural and functional behavior of the Staphylococcus aureus has also been discussed.

Part of the book: Insights Into Drug Resistance in Staphylococcus aureus