Scholarly Publications
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This community showcases the academic contributions of faculty and researchers at Banaras Hindu University (BHU) and provides a year-wise compilation of publications across disciplines. Institutional Repository BHU
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PublicationReview Cold hearts and dark minds: a systematic review and meta-analysis of empathy across dark triad personalities(Frontiers Media SA, 2025) Meenakshi Shukla; Niti UpadhyayIntroduction: This systematic review and meta-analysis explored cognitive and affective empathy differences across Dark Triad traits—Narcissism, Machiavellianism, and Psychopathy. Methods: Registered on PROSPERO and following PRISMA guidelines, PubMed, Scopus, Science Direct, ProQuest, and Google Scholar were searched for studies published until June 2024. Risk of bias was evaluated using Egger’s test and Rank correlation test, along with risk-of-bias plots (Robvis) for quality assessment. Results: Fourteen studies (N = 5,328) met the inclusion criteria. Meta-analysis showed Narcissism was negatively associated with affective empathy (r= -.134, p<.05) but not significantly linked to cognitive empathy (r=.061, p=.215), while Machiavellianism had a significant negative correlation with both cognitive (r= -.089, p<.05) and affective empathy (r= -.291, p<.0001). Psychopathy demonstrated the strongest negative association with affective empathy (r= -.347, p<.0001). Moderate-to-high heterogeneity was found across all analyses (I2 range: 40.56% - 94.03%). Discussion: This review underscores differential empathy profiles across Dark Triad traits, with significant affective empathy deficits in Psychopathy and Machiavellianism and the complex role of cognitive empathy in Narcissism and Machiavellianism. Further research should examine situational and subtype -specific factors influencing empathy in Dark Triad traits to enhance theoretical understanding and inform interventions. Systematic review registration: https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?ID=CRD42024559533, identifier CRD42024559533. © © 2025 Shukla and Upadhyay.PublicationReview Exploring the Benefits of Nutrition of Little Millet: Unveiling the Effect of Processing Methods on Bioactive Properties(John Wiley and Sons Inc, 2025) Annu Kumari; Pardeep Kumar Sadh; Ajay Kamboj; Babli Yadav; Anil Kumar; Subbarayan Sivakumar; Surekha; Baljeet Singh Saharan; Basanti Brar; Chhaya Goyal; Sanju Bala Dhull; Joginder Singh DuhanMany terrible illnesses and disorders that modern man is dealing with today were not even known to ancient man. The only factor contributing to this disastrous situation is dietary habits. Thus, by avoiding and controlling them, replacing meals high in empty calories with nutrient-dense millets helps to alleviate the combined burden of contemporary metabolic illnesses and malnutrition. Because millet contains various nutrients, including proteins, minerals, lipids, vitamins, phytochemicals, dietary fiber, and complex carbohydrates, it positively impacts the immune system. Among whole millets, little millet (Panicum sumatrense) is one nutritious millet that contributes significantly to the supply of macro- and micronutrients and bioactive substances, including phenols, tannins, and phytates. However, some processing techniques, such as germination, fermentation, milling, and extrusion, impact little millet’s nutrients and bioactive chemicals by increasing or decreasing these phytochemicals. These nutrients and bioactive substances have physiological and beneficial properties related to health, such as weight management, antioxidants, antidiabetics, anticancer, antiobesity, and cardiovascular disease potential. It is also beneficial in preventing the risk of inflammatory, antirheumatic, and chronic disorders, as it possesses various value-added bioactive compounds such as kaempferol, luteolin, and apigenin. Little millet also contains some antinutrients such as tannins, oxalate, trypsin inhibitors, and phytate. These substances bind to the necessary nutrients, rendering them unavailable or limiting their utilization. The nutrients, processing effects, bioactive compounds, and health advantages of these compounds in little millet are all summarized in this paper. © © 2025 Annu Kumari et al. Journal of Food Biochemistry published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.PublicationReview Harnessing fungal biotechnology for sustainable management of arsenic contamination in agricultural ecosystems(Canadian Science Publishing, 2025) Mariya Naseem; Richa Raghuwanshi; Praveen Chandra Verma; Rudro Deo Tripathi; Pankaj Kumar SrivastavaArsenic (As) pollution of agricultural soil is of major concern due to its negative impacts on the human population worldwide, with exposure mainly occurring through food chain contamination. To alleviate As toxicity in humans, researchers have focused on restricting its entry into the food chain. Fungi are promising candidates for soil As detoxification as they possess different mechanisms to reduce As bioavailability in the soil through biosorption, bioaccumulation, biotransformation, and biomethylation/biovolatilization. The As-remediating potential of fungal strains can be improved by various biotechnological approaches, viz., protoplast-mediated transformation, restriction enzyme-mediated integration, CRISPR Cas9, etc. These techniques coupled with appropriate selection criteria and their validation through extensive in vitro and in situ (field) trials would result in genetically improved novel fungal strains that can be applied to As-contaminated agricultural fields for alleviating As toxicity in agro-ecosystems. © 2025, Canadian Science Publishing. All rights reserved.PublicationReview Anti-leishmanial therapies: overcoming current challenges with emerging therapies(Taylor and Francis Ltd., 2025) Santhanam Sundar; Prasoon Madhukar; Rajiv KumarIntroduction: Leishmaniasis, including visceral, cutaneous, and mucocutaneous forms, present a major health challenge in tropical regions. Current antileishmanial medications has significant limitations, creating a critical need for novel therapies that are safe and cost-effective with a shorter duration of treatment. Areas Covered: This review explores the critical aspects of existing antileishmanial therapy and targets for future therapeutic developments. It emphasizes the need for new treatment options due to drug resistance, low success rates, toxicity, and high prices associated with current medications. The different forms of leishmaniasis, their clinical manifestations, the challenges associated with their treatment and emerging treatment options are explored in detail. Expert Opinion: The first anti-leishmanial drug pentavalent antimony (SbV) was invented more than 100 years back. Since then, this compound has been used for all forms of leishmaniasis worldwide. For more than 70–80 years after discovery of SbV, no new antileishmanial drugs were developed, reflecting the lack of interest from academia or pharma industry. All three new treatments (Amphotericin-B, paromomycin and miltefosine) which underwent the clinical trials were repurposed drugs. The current pipeline for antileishmanial drugs is empty, with LXE 408 being the only potential drug reaching phase II clinical trial. © 2025 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.PublicationReview Targeting c-MYC G-Quadruplexes for Cancer Treatment with Small Molecules(Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute (MDPI), 2025) Prasanth Thumpati; Sachchida Nand Rai; Chandrabhan Prajapati; Ramakrishna Kakarla; Santosh Kumar SinghNovel therapies are required due to the rising cancer burden. Conventional chemotherapeutics tend to be particularly toxic, but there is a promising alternative for oncogenes, such as c-MYC. Often overexpressed in many cancer types, the potential c-MYC oncogene seems essential to the development of cancer. Targeting c-MYC protein directly was limited, but these DNA structures composed of guanine-rich sequences suppress c-MYC transcription. This review discusses recent advances in developing small compounds that selectively bind to and stabilize c-MYC G-quadruplexes (G4). These molecules have also shown promise for the inhibition of c-MYC signaling and inhibition of tumor growth, suggesting that G-quadruplex targeting could be a promising therapeutic for cancer. © 2025 by the authors.PublicationReview Tree-ring inferred natural hazards studies from western Himalaya, India: a review(Springer Nature, 2025) Sadhana Vishwakarma; Krishna G. Misra; Vikram Singh; Ravi Shankar Maurya; Sandhya Misra; Nandita GhoshalNatural hazards increasingly threaten lives, settlements, and environments globally, with their frequency rising due to climate change driven by global warming and deforestation. High-altitude regions like the Himalayas face heightened risks of floods, droughts, and glacial lake outbursts. Observational records show reduction in rainy days but more intense precipitation events, alongside accelerated glacial retreat, driving rivers to dangerous levels. Tree-ring-based studies were conducted in the western Himalaya to comprehend the severity of past natural hazards and facilitate policy-making and community awareness. These studies utilized records of floods, snow avalanches, and glacial fluctuations. However, river flow reconstructions proved inadequate in identifying flash flood activities. Understanding natural hazards occurrence, frequency, and magnitude is crucial for effective hazard assessment and management. Tree rings, forming annually in trees, serve as invaluable records of historical environmental conditions. A high-resolution database from tree-ring analysis helps to understand historical events and suggests strategies to mitigate natural hazards. Analyzing tree-rings provides insights into the dynamics and recurrence of natural hazards. The review paper emphasizes the critical role of dendrogeomorphology and dendrochronology in reconstructing historical natural hazards and advancing scientific understanding, which can advise more effective risk mitigation and sustainable development strategies. © Indian National Science Academy 2025.PublicationReview Morpho-taxonomical notes on some Rhizophydium species (Rhizophydiaceae, Rhizophydiales) of North India(Horizon e-Publishing Group, 2025) Manish Kumar Dubey; Ram Sanmukh UpadhyayIn the present study, seven chytrid species from the genus Rhizophydium, specifically Rhizophydium annulatum, R. coronum, R. condylosum, R. elyense, R. keratinophilum, R. sphaerotheca and R. utriculare were collected from north India and are briefly described. The descriptions are accompanied by photographs illustrating their morphological and taxonomical characteristics. Notably, R. annulatum, R. elyense and R. utriculare represent the first records of these species in the Indian mycobiota. © The Author(s).PublicationReview Effectiveness of laser photobiomodulation therapy in pulpotomy of primary teeth: A systematic review(Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications, 2025) Mohammad Kamran Khan; Deepa Gurunathan; Ramanandvignesh Pandiyan; Aman KumarSeveral medicaments and techniques for pulpotomy procedures in primary teeth have been employed over the years. However, none of the approaches has been ideal for pulpotomy so far and has shown various shortcomings. Still, a quest for the ideal pulpotomy agent or technique has been in progress through scientific studies. In modern endodontics, there is a rise in another promising, noninvasive, and nonablative form/mode of laser called as photobiomodulation therapy (PBMT). Several studies have investigated the PBMT use in pulpotomy procedures in deciduous teeth. However, there is no published systematic review (SR) in this regard. Hence, the current SR was commenced with the aim to comprehensively and systematically explore and critically appraise the existing literature to unveil the evidence about its efficacy in pulpotomy of deciduous teeth. This SR was conducted in compliance with PRISMA guidelines. Its protocol was registered in PROSPERO. Each step of SR including literature search, risk of bias (RoB) assessment using the JBI tool, and quality of evidence assessment using the Grading of Recommendation, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) approach was performed by the review authors independently. Fourteen studies (n = 14) were found eligible as per predetermined inclusion criteria. RoB in the majority of included studies was low; however, the overall quality of evidence from included randomized controlled trials (RCTs) was found low. Most studies reported favorable outcomes using laser PBMT either alone or in combination with certain pulp-capping medicaments for pulpotomy of primary teeth. However, there is still a need for more high-quality RCTs to verify or substantiate its use as an alternative or adjuvant pulpotomy technique in primary teeth. © 2025 Journal of Indian Society of Pedodontics and Preventive Dentistry.PublicationReview Use of AI-methods over MD simulations in the sampling of conformational ensembles in IDPs(Frontiers Media SA, 2025) Souradeep Sil; Ishita Datta; Sankar BasuIntrinsically Disordered Proteins (IDPs) challenge traditional structure-function paradigms by existing as dynamic ensembles rather than stable tertiary structures. Capturing these ensembles is critical to understanding their biological roles, yet Molecular Dynamics (MD) simulations, though accurate and widely used, are computationally expensive and struggle to sample rare, transient states. Artificial intelligence (AI) offers a transformative alternative, with deep learning (DL) enabling efficient and scalable conformational sampling. They leverage large-scale datasets to learn complex, non-linear, sequence-to-structure relationships, allowing for the modeling of conformational ensembles in IDPs without the constraints of traditional physics-based approaches. Such DL approaches have been shown to outperform MD in generating diverse ensembles with comparable accuracy. Most models rely primarily on simulated data for training and experimental data serves a critical role in validation, aligning the generated conformational ensembles with observable physical and biochemical properties. However, challenges remain, including dependence on data quality, limited interpretability, and scalability for larger proteins. Hybrid approaches combining AI and MD can bridge the gaps by integrating statistical learning with thermodynamic feasibility. Future directions include incorporating physics-based constraints and learning experimental observables into DL frameworks to refine predictions and enhance applicability. AI-driven methods hold significant promise in IDP research, offering novel insights into protein dynamics and therapeutic targeting while overcoming the limitations of traditional MD simulations. © © 2025 Sil, Datta and Basu.PublicationReview Recent Advancements in Glycosylation Reactions: An Access to Privileged C- and S-glycosides(Bentham Science Publishers, 2025) Ram Pratap Pandey; Bindu Tiwari; Anand Kumar Pandey; Nazar HussainGlycosylation reactions are central to carbohydrate chemistry due to their broad applications in drug development and biological probes. Despite presenting significant challenges and often requiring substantial amounts of promoters, these reactions yield value-added products of immense biological importance. The incorporation of transition metal catalysis in glycosylation reactions offers advantages, such as mild reaction conditions and enhanced selectivity. Currently, synthetic chemists are particularly interested in C- and S-glycosides because their glycosidic linkages exhibit greater metabolic stability compared to the more vulnerable O-glycosides. This review aims to explore recent advances in the synthesis of various structurally diverse and biologically relevant C- and S-glycosides, covering literature from 2019 to 2024. © 2025 Bentham Science Publishers.