Visva-Bharati University

This paper deals with a detailed investigation into the boundary layer flow of a kerosene-based ferro-nanofluid (Fe₃O₄) thin film over an unsteady expandable sheet, taking into account the effects of Arrhenius activation energy, aligned magnetic fields, and nonlinear thermal radiation.Also, the role of chem. reactions, non-uniform heat source/sink and convective boundary conditions are thoroughly explored.The conservation of momentum, energy, and mass diffusion equations seem to be complex and nonlinear, making it difficult to solve with some conventional anal. methods.Arrhenius activation energy provides deeper insight into chem. kinetics at the liquid-solid interface, which is relevant in catalytic processes where surface reactions greatly depend on the system′s performance.The study employs numerical bvp4c solver based on the three-stage Lobatto-IIIA method, given the limitations of conventional anal. methods for this problem.It is observed that as the volume fraction of ferroparticles increases, velocity and temperature gradients are enhanced, indicating improved heat and mass transfer characteristics.The increase in thermal radiation leads to a reduction in the temperature gradient.Further, the temperature gradient rises with an increment in the non-uniform heat source/sink parameter and Prandtl numberThe rate of mass transport was enhanced by the rise in the Schmidt number

Exposure to environmental estrogens can disrupt the ovarian endocrine/autocrine/paracrine axis, affecting epigenetic programming and reproductive health. Bisphenol A (BPA), a monomer of polycarbonate plastics and a prototypical endocrine disruptor, has documented effects on ovarian dysfunction; however, its influence on follicular signalling before ovulation remains underexplored. This study investigates BPA's mechanistic influence on zebrafish ovulatory function, focusing on its dual impact as a nuclear progestin receptor (PGR) antagonist and an estrogen receptor (ER) agonist. Results indicate chronic (45 days) BPA exposure at environmentally relevant concentrations (1, 10, 100 μg/L) promotes significant changes in gonadosomatic index (GSI), maturational competence, the yield of ovulated (metaphase II-arrested) eggs and post-ovulatory follicles in BPA-exposed females. Alterations in gonadotropin receptors (fshr, lhcgr), steroidogenic enzyme genes (star, cyp11a1, hsd3b2, p450c17, cyp19a1a, 20β-hsd) and insulin-like growth factors (igf1, igf3) indicate impaired follicular signalling. BPA attenuation of PGR expression in pre-ovulatory follicles aligns with its impeded nuclear translocation, potentially influencing downstream ovulatory gene transcription. Molecular docking analysis indicates a stable BPA-PGR binding, correlating with downregulated ovulatory genes (pla2g4aa, ptgs2a, ptgs2b, ptgesl, and ptger4b), and matrix metalloproteinases (adam8b, adamts9, and mmp9) expression. BPA-exposed follicles fail to mature and ovulate following 17,20β-P (MIS) treatment in vitro, suggesting interference with MIS-PGR interaction. Network toxicology analysis highlights BPA's role in ovulatory dysfunction via the ER/epigenetics/PGR cascade. Finally, BPA-driven disrupted ERα/β homeostasis aligns with alterations in follicular DNA methylation and histone modifications, revealing a global epigenetic shift exacerbating ovarian insufficiency.

We herein computationally designed a metal-free graphitic carbon nitride/γ-boron nitride (g-CN/γ-BNyne) heterostructure as a promising photocatalyst for overall water splitting and sustainable hydrogen fuel production. The heterostructure shows type-II band energy alignment and significant optical absorption in UV and near-visible regions. The studies on excited state dynamics show that the low nonadiabatic coupling between the VBM and CBM in the heterostructure and the faster decoherence time (22.28 fs) extend the electron-hole (e-h) recombination time to 261.52 ps, giving enough time for the photogenerated carriers to take part in redox reactions. The boron atoms of the γ-BNyne surface act as Lewis acid sites, which effectively trap water molecules, resulting in the consequent oxygen evolution, and simultaneously the g-CN surface also promotes the hydrogen evolution reaction. Thus, this work presents a design for a potential metal-free type-II photocatalyst for carrying out both oxygen and hydrogen evolution reactions simultaneously.