Fruits and vegetables are the highly used food products amongst the horticultural crops. These items are consumed uncooked, nominally cooked or fully cooked, according to their nature and cooking process. With the change in diet habits and rising population, the production, as well as the processing of horticultural crops, has exponentially improved to meet its increasing demand. A large amount of peel waste is generated from fruit and vegetable-based industries and household kitchen and has led to a big nutritional and economic loss and environmental problems. Processing of fruits and vegetables alone generates a significant waste, which amounts to 25–30% of the total product. Most common wastes include pomace, peels, rind and seeds, which are highly rich in valuable bioactive compounds such as carotenoids, enzymes, polyphenols, oils, vitamins and many other compounds. These bioactive compounds show their application in various industries such as food to develop edible films, food industries for probiotics and other industries for valuable products. The utilization of these low-cost waste horticultural wastes for producing the value-added product is a novel step in its sustainable utilization. The present review intends to summarize the different types of waste originating from fruits as well as vegetables peels and highlight their potential in developing edible films, probiotics, nanoparticles, carbon dots, microbial media, biochar and biosorbents.

Carbon nanomaterials confined with metal single-atom have shown great potential in electrocatalysis because of their unique physicochemical properties such as high-effeciency, high-mass activity, and maximum atom-utilization for the reactions involved...

Conifers have long been recognized for their therapeutic potential in different disorders. Alkaloids, terpenes and polyphenols are the most abundant naturally occurring phytochemicals in these plants. Here, we provide an overview of the phytochemistry and related commercial products obtained from conifers. The pharmacological actions of different phytochemicals present in conifers against bacterial and fungal infections, cancer, diabetes and cardiovascular diseases are also reviewed. Data obtained from experimental and clinical studies performed to date clearly underline that such compounds exert promising antioxidant effects, being able to inhibit cell damage, cancer growth, inflammation and the onset of neurodegenerative diseases. Therefore, an attempt has been made with the intent to highlight the importance of conifer-derived extracts for pharmacological purposes, with the support of relevant in vitro and in vivo experimental data. In short, this review comprehends the information published to date related to conifers’ phytochemicals and illustrates their potential role as drugs.

The use of metallic nanoparticles in engineering and biomedicine disciplines has gained considerable attention. Scientists are exploring new synthesis protocols of these substances considering their small size and lucrative antimicrobial potential. Among the most economical techniques of synthesis of metallic nanoparticles via chemical routes, which includes the use of chemicals as metal reducing agents, is considered to generate nanoparticles possessing toxicity and biological risk. This limitation of chemically synthesized nanoparticles has engendered the exploration for the ecofriendly synthesis process. Biological or green synthesis approaches have emerged as an effective solution to address the limitations of conventionally synthesized nanoparticles. Nanoparticles synthesized via biological entities obtained from plant extracts exhibit superior effect in comparison to chemical methods. Recently, conifer extracts have been found to be effective in synthesizing metallic nanoparticles through a highly regulated process. The current review highlights the importance of conifers and its extracts in synthesis of metallic nanoparticles. It also discusses the different applications of the conifer extract mediated metallic nanoparticles.