Dye-Mediated Photo-Oxidation Biomaterial Fixation: Analysis of Bioinductivity and Mechanical Properties of Bovine Pericardium for Use in Cardiac Surgery

Extracellular matrix bioscaffolds can influence the cardiac microenvironment and modulate endogenous cellular mechanisms. These materials can optimize cardiac surgery for repair and reconstruction. We investigated the biocompatibility and bioinductivity of bovine pericardium fixed via dye-mediated photo-oxidation on human cardiac fibroblast activity. We compared a dye-mediated photo-oxidation fixed bioscaffold to glutaraldehyde-fixed and non-fixed bioscaffolds reported in contemporary literature in cardiac surgery. Human cardiac fibroblasts from consenting patients were seeded on to bioscaffold materials to assess the biocompatibility and bioinductivity. Human cardiac fibroblast gene expression, secretome, morphology and viability were studied. Dye-mediated photo-oxidation fixed acellular bovine pericardium preserves human cardiac fibroblast phenotype and viability; and potentiates a pro-vasculogenic paracrine response. Material tensile properties were compared with biomechanical testing. Dye-mediated photo-oxidation fixed acellular bovine pericardium had higher compliance compared to glutaraldehyde-fixed bioscaffold in response to tensile force. The biocompatibility, bioinductivity, and biomechanical properties of dye-mediated photo-oxidation fixed bovine pericardium demonstrate its feasibility as a bioscaffold for use in cardiac surgery. As a fixed yet bioinductive solution, this bioscaffold demonstrates enhanced compliance and retains bioinductive properties that may leverage endogenous reparative pathways. Dye-mediated photo-oxidation fixed bioscaffold warrants further investigation as a viable tool for cardiac repair and reconstruction.     

新型无VOC可再生成膜助剂

特殊的高纯度脂肪酸酯及其混合物可用于制备较低气味,无VOC,可再生的成膜助剂.这种成膜助剂可以提高极低VOC涂料中乳液的效果.实验证明:与非再生成膜助剂相比,该新产品不仅能降低配方的综合成本,还能明显提高性能.     

Electron field emission from <Emphasis Type=Italic>sp</Emphasis><Superscript>2</Superscript>-induced insulating to metallic behaviour of amorphous carbon (<Emphasis Type=Italic>a</Emphasis>-C) films

The influence of concentration and size of sp ² cluster on the transport properties and electron field emissions of amorphous carbon films have been investigated. The observed insulating to metallic behaviour from reduced activation energy derived from transport measurement and threshold field for electron emission of a-C films can be explained in terms of improvements in the connectivity between sp ² clusters. The connectivity is resulted by the cluster concentration and size. The concentration and size of sp ² content cluster is regulated by the coalescence of carbon globules into clusters, which evolves with deposition conditions.     

Impact of aluminum oxide nanopowder on thermal,optical and surface properties of polysiloxane-aluminum oxide composites as elastomeric thermal pad for light emitting diode application

ABSTRACT

Virgin polysiloxane and aluminum oxide nanopowder (10%–50%) reinforced polysiloxane composite films were prepared and its thermal, optical, surface properties were investigated. Polysiloxane/aluminum oxide (Al₂O₃) (50%–50%) composite film sample exhibit high thermal conductivity (k – 0.26 W/mK) and UV absorption, decreased junction temperature (ΔT_J = 25.69°C at 700 mA) and thermal resistance (?R_th-tot = 12.41 K/W at 700 mA) compared to virgin polysiloxane film. Overall, the prepared composites can be used as an alternate elastomer thermal pad for efficient thermal management as well as UV blocking encapsulant for future UV-free LED application development.     

Preparation,structural, and electrical studies of polyaniline/ZnFe2O4 nanocomposites

Polyaniline/ZnFe₂O₄ nanocomposites were synthesized by a simple and inexpensive one‐step in situ polymerization method in the presence of ZnFe₂O₄ nanoparticles. The structural, morphological, and electrical properties of the samples were characterized by wide angle X‐ray diffraction (WAXD), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). WAXD and SEM revealed the formation of polyaniline/ZnFe₂O₄ nanocomposites. Infrared spectroscopy indicated that there was some interaction between the ZnFe₂O₄ nanoparticles and polyaniline. The dc electrical conductivity measurements were carried in the temperature range of 80 to 300 K. With increase in the doping concentration of ZnFe₂O₄, the conductivity of the nanocomposites found to be decreasing from 5.15 to 0.92 Scm⁻¹ and the temperature dependent resistivity follows ln ρ(T) ∼ T^−1/2 behavior. The nanocomposites (80 wt % of ZnFe₂O₄) show a more negative magnetoresistance compared with that of pure polyaniline (PANI). These results suggest that the interaction between the polymer matrix PANI and zinc nanoparticles take place in these nanocomposites. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2011     

Interleukin-1 Induces the Release of Lubricating Phospholipids from Human Osteoarthritic Fibroblast-Like Synoviocytes

(1) Background: Synovial fluid (SF) from knee joints with osteoarthritis (OA) has increased levels of phospholipids (PL). We have reported earlier that TGF-ß and IGF-1 stimulate fibroblast-like synoviocytes (FLS) to synthesize increased amounts of PLs. The current study examined whether IL-1ß induces the release of PLs in FLS and the underlying mechanism. (2) Methods: Cultured human OA FLS were treated with IL-1ß alone and with pathway inhibitors or with synthetic liver X receptor (LXR) agonists. Cholesterol hydroxylases, ABC transporters, apolipoproteins (APO), LXR, sterol regulatory binding proteins (SREBPs), and 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A reductase (HMGCR) were analyzed by RT-PCR, Western blot, and ELISA. The release of radiolabeled PLs from FLS was determined, and statistical analysis was performed using R (N = 5–9). (3) Results: Like synthetic LXR agonists, IL-1ß induced a 1.4-fold greater release of PLs from FLS. Simultaneously, IL-1ß upregulated the level of the PL transporter ABCA1 and of cholesterol hydroxylases CH25H and CYP7B1. IL-1ß and T0901317 stimulated the expression of SREBP1c, whereas only T0901317 enhanced SREBP2, HMGCR, APOE, LXRα, and ABCG1 additionally. (4) Conclusions: IL-1ß partially controls PL levels in OA-SF by affecting the release of PLs from FLS. Our data show that IL-1ß upregulates cholesterol hydroxylases and thus the formation of oxysterols, which, as natural agonists of LXR, increase the level of active ABCA1, in turn enhancing the release of PLs.     

Simulation of temperature distribution by finite element analysis on different components of the EXAFS beamline at INDUS-II synchrotron source

An extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) beamline is being developed for the INDUS-II synchrotron source. Several optical and mechanical components of the beamline are exposed to high intensity synchrotron radiation while in operation. The temperature rise on different components of the beamline on exposure to the synchrotron beam has been simulated by finite element analysis. Design of the cooling mechanism for each of these components has been carried out and estimation of the temperature rise has also been done incorporating the cooling mechanism.     

Quantification of organophosphate insecticides and herbicides in vegetable samples using the “Quick Easy Cheap Effective Rugged and Safe” (QuEChERS) method and a high-performance liquid chromatography-electrospray ionisation-mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) technique

A Quick Easy Cheap Effective Rugged and Safe (QuEchERS) extraction was developed and followed by selective analysis using a liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry method for the quantification of eighteen pesticides in vegetable samples. This method was accurate (?99.5%), and it exhibited limits of detection and quantification values in the 0.006-0.091 and 0.020-0.314 μg kg⁻¹ ranges, respectively. Furthermore, the coefficients of variations (?0.9999) were less than 1% at the low μg kg⁻¹ end of the method. Mean recoveries ranged between 94% and 102%, and relative standard deviations were below 10%. Based on these results, the methodology was proven to be highly efficient, robust, and suitable for monitoring the maximum residue limits (MRL) compliance of a wide range of commodity/pesticide combination. This method was successfully applied to the analysis of vegetable samples that were collected from different government farmers’ markets and street shops in urban areas. The presence of target pesticides was found in the range of 0.016 and 50.85 μg kg⁻¹.