Browsing by Author "Piyush Vashistha"

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Algorithms for nature: integrating technology, ecology, and society for sustainable conservation
(Springer Medizin, 2025) Nishant Singhal; Harsh Vardhan; Rajul Jain; Piyush Vashistha; Aaysha Pandey; Naresh Kumar Wagri; Ashish Gaur
To safeguard ecosystems amid rapid global changes, strategies must link ecological knowledge with advancements in technology. Traditional ecological models often encounter challenges due to the inherent complexity and unpredictability of ecosystems, limiting their ability to guide large-scale, long-term decisions effectively. Emerging technologies such as optimization algorithms, artificial intelligence, and big data analytics provide ways to address these issues by improving forecasting, monitoring, and management in evolving environments. The application of these technologies has broadened to essential areas like ecological restoration, management of invasive species, carbon capture, fisheries management, and wildfire readiness, enhancing effectiveness, accuracy, and scalability in conservation efforts. Beyond technical improvements, the integration of algorithms with ecosystem science highlights the importance of aligning data-driven strategies with socio-ecological realities, where careful consideration of trade-offs between biodiversity, economic gains, and resilience is essential. This review points out that algorithmic methods do not replace ecological expertise but rather expand its scope, enabling innovative avenues for adaptive, inclusive, and sustainable conservation practices. By embedding computational innovations within ecological and social contexts, it reveals pathways to more effective strategies that can address the urgent challenges of biodiversity conservation in the 21st century. © The Author(s) 2025.
Polysaccharide-based functional materials for flexible electronics: A comprehensive review of synthesis strategies, functionalization, and applications
(Elsevier Ltd, 2025) Rajul Jain; Nishant Singhal; Harsh Vardhan; Piyush Vashistha; Yograj Bist; Aaysha Pandey; Naresh Kumar Wagri; Ashish Gaur
Polysaccharides, as abundant and renewable biopolymers, have increasingly attracted attention for their potential uses in flexible electronics due to their sustainability, adaptability, and versatile functionality. Natural polymers, including cellulose, chitosan, alginate, starch, and hemicellulose, exhibit key characteristics such as biodegradability, biocompatibility, and tunable mechanical properties, making them attractive choices for advanced technological applications. Advances in chemical modification, blending, and nano structuring have led to improvements in conductivity, durability, and flexibility, broadening their use in areas such as wearable sensors, medical devices, energy storage solutions, and smart packaging. Recent research highlights strategies to overcome inherent challenges like low conductivity and sensitivity to environmental changes through innovative composite designs and hybrid systems. This review provides a comprehensive examination of synthesis methods, functionalization techniques, and application pathways for materials derived from polysaccharides within the flexible electronics domain. It also addresses challenges related to scalability, stability, and regulatory considerations. Ultimately, this review illustrates how systems based on polysaccharides can bridge sustainability with technological advancement, establishing them as crucial materials for the creation of eco-friendly, high-performance, and commercially viable flexible electronic solutions. © 2025
Starch–biomacromolecule complexes: A comprehensive review of interactions, functional materials, and applications in food, pharma, and packaging
(Elsevier Ltd, 2025) Harsh Vardhan; Nishant Singhal; Piyush Vashistha; Rajul Jain; Yograj Bist; Ashish Gaur; Naresh Kumar Wagri
Starch, a plentiful and biodegradable polysaccharide, has become a flexible platform material due to its renewability, affordability, and ability to improve functionality by complexing with biomacromolecules. Even with its inherent benefits, native starch faces drawbacks like low mechanical strength, high moisture susceptibility, and limited thermal stability, which impede its effectiveness in challenging applications. To address these limitations, starch is progressively blended with proteins, lipids, and polysaccharides, resulting in starch-biomacromolecule complexes (SBCs) that exhibit altered physicochemical and functional characteristics. These interactions-spanning hydrogen bonding, hydrophobic association, covalent crosslinking, and thermodynamic stabilization-enhance viscosity, gelation behavior, structural stability, and barrier properties. This analysis methodically explores the molecular processes involved in starch-biomacromolecule interactions, emphasizing how these complexes can be designed to customize functional attributes. It also consolidates recent progress in the use of SBCs in food systems (texture alteration, nutritional improvement, and preservation), pharmaceuticals (medicine delivery, controlled release, and biomedical frameworks), and packaging (biodegradable films, barrier layers, and active systems). New strategies like nano structuring, bioactive encapsulation, and hybrid composites are also thoroughly examined regarding their capability to tackle processing difficulties, environmental pressures, and scalability concerns. This article highlights the significance of SBCs as next-generation biomaterials for sustainable innovations in the food, health, and packaging sectors by connecting essential insights with technological applications. © 2025