Tensile testing of tubular vascular grafts produced by thermal compression fusion of flat collagenous materials

A novel process of fusion bonding for the production of vascular grafts has been investigated. This process, based on the application of pressure and heat in a sophisticated way, has been used for the bonding of the longitudinal edges of flat dermal sheep collagen into tubular forms. The method produces continuous overlapping joints which are expected to overcome the problem of coagulation, as occurs in grafts produced by suturing. The values of the measured shear strength of the bond vary from 750 +/- 30 kPa to 940 +/- 32 kPa, depending on tube diameter and overlap length (n = 5). These values are much higher than calculated values of the stress in thin-walled tubes caused by a high static blood pressure, indicating a high safety factor for the fusion-bonded vascular grafts.     

Removal of background label in immunocytochemistry with the apolar lowicryls by using washed protein A–gold-precoupled antibodies in a one-step procedure

Antiserum mixed with protein A–gold produces aggregates that can be washed by centrifugation and redissociated by ultrasonication. These precoupled antibodies are used for immunocytochemical labeling in a one-step procedure and reveal a very low background on sections of material embedded in polar and apolar Lowicryls. Controls have shown that the background label stems from serum components with only one protein A binding site and is discarded during the wash steps of the precoupling procedure.     

Anti-Acanthamoeba activity of contact lens solutions

AIMS: This study was undertaken to investigate the effects of contact lens disinfecting solutions on strains of Acanthamoeba from the United Kingdom and southern Africa and to compare the results with those of other researchers. No information was previously available for southern African isolates. METHODS: 11 contact lens solutions were tested on cysts of 10 strains of Acanthamoeba. RESULTS: Not all solutions used in the study were effective, with some for hard and gas permeable contact lenses being more satisfactory than those for soft contact lenses. The most effective of the gas permeable and hard contact lens solutions tested was Transoak (0.01% (wt/vol) benzalkonium chloride), which killed cysts of all strains within 4 hours of exposure. Oxysept 1 (31 mg hydrogen peroxide/ml) was the best soft contact lens solution tested. It eliminated cysts of certain strains within 4 hours, whereas cysts of other strains were only inactivated within either 8 or 72 hours. CONCLUSIONS: Manufacturers should be aware of the killing time for Acanthamoeba by contact lens solutions and should provide appropriate guidelines for the use thereof. The killing time for cysts of the African and UK isolates studied is, in general, similar. Therefore, it must in the present state of knowledge be assumed that usage guidelines suggested in the UK are also appropriate for travellers to South Africa and for local residents in South Africa.     

Creation and boundary evaluation of CSG-models

This paper deals with one particular type of solid model representation. Constructive solid geometry (CSG) describes solids in terms of primitive shapes combined by Boolean operators. The goal of this paper is to present an algorithm suitable for the visualization of a given CSG-object for verification purposes. To accomplish this, the CSG representation is to be converted into a polygonal boundary representation (B-Rep), which allows the easy display of the solid's visible edges and surfaces. An algorithm performing this conversion is called a boundary evaluator. This paper describes the fundamental concepts leading to this new algorithm and presents some examples.The boundary evaluator described here follows the following steps: (1) A polygonal mesh is created that covers the primitive shapes. (2) Interfering polygons are repertedly subdivided until the resulting mesh contains the intersection curves between the primitives. (3) The location and validity of all polygons must be determined since only valid polygons reflect the solid's final shape. (4) Adjoining coplanar polygons are collected and merged by deleting their common edges. The final result of this procedure is a consistent, nonredundant polygon mesh describing the given solid model. Now the object may be displayed by simple perspective plots, by isometric projections, by hidden line drawings, or through the use of hidden surface removal techniques as color-shaded pictures. The algorithm presented here has been successfully used to create a variety of renderings of various CSG-models. The interpretation, display, and validation of computer-generated CSG models is essential for the successful use of such models in the engineering design process.     

Long-term soil accumulation of potentially toxic elements and selected organic pollutants through application of recycled phosphorus fertilizers for organic farming conditions

The pollutant input and the risk of contamination by long-term application of recycled P fertilizers (RPFs) in European agricultural soils were estimated by a mass balance approach. Calculations based on literature data were carried out for the potentially toxic elements (PTEs) Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, Zn and for the persistent organic pollutants (POPs) PCBs, PAHs and polychlorinated dibenzo-dioxins and -furans. The PTE accumulation estimation during 200 years of fertilizer application, equivalent to 11 kg P ha^?1 year^?1, the mean P export via harvested products on European stockless organic farms, regarded soil background concentrations and proposed threshold concentrations. For PTEs, inputs were fertilizer application, atmospheric deposition and liming, output processes were leaching and crop harvest. The effect of varying site conditions was assessed by considering two precipitation excess (F) values and two soil pH values. For POPs, fertilizer application and the half-life time were considered. The PTE accumulation risk was low for most RPFs. For the analysed POPs no accumulation was found. The highest accumulation was found for all PTEs at pH 7 and F = 0.1 m year^?1, the lowest at pH 5 and F = 0.3 m year^?1. A high P concentration in fertilizers resulted in a low PTE flow per unit of P. Composts had the highest PTE accumulation risk due to lowest P contents. Struvite, meat and bone meal, digestate of catering waste, ash and biosolids would be better suited as P fertilizers. The use of fertilizers should be regulated based on their pollutant-to-nutrient ratio.