Box-Behnken Design a Key Tool to Achieve Optimized PCL/Gelatin Electrospun Mesh

Hybrid electrospun nanofibers of polycaprolactone (PCL)/gelatin are considered as drug-delivery systems for increasing the treatment efficacy in superficial (skin) wounds. Continuous delivery of therapeutic agents, skin extracellular matrix similarity, management of wound exudate, and antimicrobial barrier effect are the major advantages of electrospun nanofibers in skin applications. Additionally, combining the favorable properties of PCL and gelatin, regarding their biocompatibility, biodegradability and mechanical performance have been revealed promising parameters to be considered for blend in hybrid structures. However, the usual optimization protocol of nanofibers’ production in electrospinning is based on the observation of one-variable-at-time being this methodology expensive and time-consuming. Therefore, in this research work, a statistical model based on four input variables namely, the flow rate, the needle-working distance, the applied voltage, and the ratio of PCL in the solution, is developed to predict the behavior of nanofibers. The performance of nanofibers is monitored by measurements of fiber's diameter, mesh's thickness, and mesh's permeability. Overall, the model showed to be statistically significant (p-value < 0.05) and an independent analysis validated the predicted response for optimal condition. Finally, a delivery study is performed to evaluate the electrospun mesh performance as a drug carrier.     

The home environment in a nationwide sample of multi-family buildings in Sweden: associations with ocular,nasal, throat and dermal symptoms,headache, and fatigue among adults

Risk factors at home for ocular, nasal, throat and dermal symptoms, headache, and fatigue were studied in a nationwide questionnaire survey in Sweden, the BETSI study in 2006. Totally, 5775 adults from a stratified random sample of multi-family buildings participated. Associations between home environment factors and weekly symptoms were analyzed by multi-level logistic regression. In total, 8.3% had ocular symptoms; 11.9% nasal symptoms; 7.1% throat symptoms; 11.9% dermal symptoms; 8.5% headache and 23.1% fatigue. Subjects in colder climate zones had more mucosal and throat symptoms but less fatigue and ocular symptoms. Rented apartments had poorer indoor environment than self-owned apartments. Those living in buildings constructed from 1961 to 1985 had most symptoms. Building dampness, mold and mold odor were risk factors, especially headache and ocular symptoms. Lack of mechanical ventilation system was another risk factor, especially for headache. Environmental tobacco smoke (ETS), electric radiators, and crowdedness were other risk factors. Oiled wooden floors, recent indoor painting, and new floor materials were negatively associated with symptoms. In conclusion, building dampness, mold, poor ventilation conditions, crowdedness, ETS, and emissions from electric radiators in apartments in Sweden can increase the risk of ocular, nasal, throat and dermal symptoms, headache, and fatigue.     

A Thermo‐ and Moisture‐Responsive Zwitterionic Shape Memory Polymer for Novel Self‐Healable Wound Dressing Applications

Developing wound dressings that have strong adhesion strength without causing any conglutination to the wound site is still challenging. Herein, is proposed that zwitterionic shape memory polymers can be applied as promising candidates for wound dressing. Sulfobetaine methacrylate (SBMA) is copolymerized with 2,3‐dihydroxypropyl methacrylate (DHMA) in the presence of boric acid as a cross‐linking agent. The prepared material exhibits multi‐stimuli responsive shape memory behaviors: it can rapidly return to its initial shape upon heating to 90 °C, and a gradual recovery is also observed by absorbing moisture in humid environments. The shape memory effect can be well adjusted via incorporation of sodium chloride to induce the dissociation of electrostatic interactions between PSBMA chains, leading to reduced transition temperature and faster shape recovery rate. Moreover, the dynamic nature of boron ester bonds and electrostatic interaction endows the material with effective and rapid self‐healing ability. It is also demonstrated that the deployment process of the dressing that a sample with an initially circular shape can perfectly fit and tightly bind to the wound site after moisture‐induced shape recovery. The proposed zwitterionic polymer can possibly extend the application scope of shape memory polymers and pave a new way for the design of wound dressings.     

医用敷料用柔性金属电极的制备及其细胞毒性分析

为研究用于医用敷料的柔性金属电极的制备可行性和安全性,以涤纶非织造布为基布,通过丝网印刷技术,制备以锌为负电极、银为正电极的柔性微电流生物医用敷料。探讨了电极制备过程中的分散剂种类、分散剂含量及黏合剂含量对金属电极电学性能的影响,并分析了金属电极可能引起的细胞毒性问题。实验结果表明:丝网印刷技术能在基布表面均匀地负载锌、银微纳米颗粒;1%的羧甲基纤维素钠和0.5%的吐温-80分别作为锌、银颗粒的分散剂,能使金属颗粒具有良好的分散性;5%和15%的水性丙烯酸乳液分别作为锌、银金属电极的黏合剂,可使电极具有优良的电性能;当金属质量分数为0.5%~1.0%时,金属电极表现出良好的细胞相容性,可作为生物医用敷料为伤口提供外源性微电流。     

Sparse non-convex Lp regularization for cone-beam X-ray luminescence computed tomography

Cone-beam X-ray luminescence computed tomography (CB-XLCT) is an attractive hybrid imaging modality, and it has the potential of monitoring the metabolic processes of nanophosphors-based drugs in vivo. However, the XLCT imaging suffers from a severe ill-posed problem. In this work, a sparse nonconvex L_p (0?p?L₁ regularization. Further, an iteratively reweighted split augmented lagrangian shrinkage algorithm (IRW_SALSA-L_p) was proposed to efficiently solve the non-convex L_p (0?p?p-values (1/16, 1/8, 1/4, 3/8, 1/2, 5/8, 3/4, 7/8) in both 3D digital mouse experiments and in vivo experiments. The results demonstrate that the proposed non-convex methods outperform L₂ and L₁ regularization in accurately recovering sparse targets in CB-XLCT. And among all the non-convex p-values, our L_p(1/4?p?相似文献   

Reproducible,biocompatible medical materials from biologically derived polysaccharides: Processing and Characterization

Natural polysaccharides like chitosan and dextran have garnered considerable interest in biomedical applications due to their biocompatibility, biodegradability, and nontoxicity. Nonetheless, the development of a reproducible class of medical devices from these materials is challenging and has had limited success. Chitosan and dextran are inherently variable and synthesis using these materials is prone to inconsistencies. In this study, we put forward a robust product development regimen that allows these natural materials to be developed into a reproducible class of biomaterials. First, an array of validated characterization methods (Proton Nuclear Magnetic Resonance, titrations, Ultraviolet spectroscopy, Size Exclusion Chromatography—Multi-Angle Light Scattering, Size Exclusion Chromatography—Refractive Index, and proprietary methods) were developed that allowed rigorous specifications to be set for unprocessed chitosan and dextran, chitosan and dextran intermediates, and chemically modified materials—acrylated chitosan (aCHN) and oxidized dextran (oDEX). Second, a robust and reproducible synthesis scheme involving various in-process controls was developed to chemically modify the unprocessed polysaccharides. Third, purification methods to remove byproducts and low-molecular-weight impurities for both aCHN and oDEX were developed. The study presents a viable strategy for converting variable, natural materials into a reproducible class of biomaterials that can be applied in various biomedical applications. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2020 , 137, 48454.     

国内外医用防护服结构与功能的比较与分析

为优化医用防护服的结构设计,拓宽材料来源,提高其防护功能,对近期国内外医用防护服构造及功能的研究进展进行综述分析。对比了5种常用医用防护服面料的优缺点,比较了中国、美国和欧盟医用防护服标准以及世界主流品牌医用防护服性能的差异。聚四氟乙烯复合面料在满足防护要求的同时,舒适性更好;液体阻隔性是影响防护服防护功能的主要因素;医用防护服应满足中指圈设计、自粘合式拉链门襟以及胶条密合边缝的前沿设计要求。最后针对医用防护服亟待解决的问题,从国家、技术、防护服本身3个层面对医用防护服未来发展方向进行展望。     

Electrical discharge dressing of honing stones

Honing processes require a systematic preparation and a regeneration of the honing tool to guarantee a sufficient cutting behaviour and prevent unintended wear of the tool. These dressing processes are particularly important for the regeneration of the macro- and microscopic topography of the honing stones. The established method of manual shaping subsequent to a cylindrical grinding process demands a high skill level, a great amount of non-productive time and is not reproducible.In this paper the preparation of honing stones by use of electrical discharge machining (EDM) is presented. The aim is to ensure an automatic, systematic and reproducible process of resetting the bond of honing stones. Different tool electrode materials were analysed systematically for two different bond specifications of the honing stones. EDM process parameters were studied within a design of experiments (DoE) strategy and a subsequent effect analysis to assure the identification of most appropriate EDM process parameters. After this procedure various cycles of long-stroke honing processes were carried out. As a result, the new approach makes it possible to prepare honing stones with reproducible sharpness and macroscopic topography within an automated process. The dressing time t_d was reduced by 88 % compared to the established method.     

Using a hybrid two‐stage DEA model to analyze the profitability and marketability of medical manufacturing firms

The purpose of this study is to develop a modification of the model developed by Chen and Zhu in 2004. Calculating stage and overall efficiencies precisely and consistently has become a major challenge of the two‐stage DEA model. However, most other models do not calculate the optimality of intermediates. Although the model developed by Chen and Zhu measures the optimality of intermediates, the calculated efficiency scores still have some shortfalls. The modified model, named the hybrid two‐stage DEA model, fills the gap between calculating the optimality of intermediates and the consistency of overall efficiency scores. In addition to obtaining an accurate measurement for the optimality of intermediates, the model confines efficiency scores to a range from zero to one (a ratio efficiency score). In an empirical evaluation, we use data from 64 medical manufacturing firms to test the performance of the hybrid model and offer recommendations for the industry.     

医用防护服用非织造材料的研究进展

为推进非织造材料在医用防护材料领域的应用,系统综述了医用防护服用非织造材料的发展及新型非织造防护材料的种类和应用。介绍了纺粘非织造材料、熔喷非织造材料、纺粘-熔喷-纺粘复合非织造材料和闪蒸非织造材料的制备方法与防护特性,然后分别从覆膜非织造材料、复合非织造材料和功能非织造材料3个方面分析新型非织造防护材料的原理及性能特点,重点剖析不同防护材料的结构及其对病毒阻隔性和吸湿透气的影响。阐述了基于智能监测、温湿度调节和自消毒、自清洁智能材料在防护服上的应用,指出医用防护服未来有望向高防护性、高舒适性和智能化发展。