Superswelling Microneedle Arrays for Dermal Interstitial Fluid (Prote)Omics

The noninvasive sampling of dermal interstitial fluid (ISF) for the monitoring of clinical biomarkers is a greatly appealing area of research. The identification of molecular biomarkers in biological fluids has been accelerated with -omics analyses but remains limited in ISF because of its time-consuming and complex extraction process. Here, the generation of microneedle (MN) patches made of superabsorbent acrylate-based hydrogels for the rapid sampling of dermal ISF is described to explore its proteome. In depth, iterative optimization allows the identification of novel acrylate-based compositions with the required chemical, mechanical, and biocompatibility properties allowing proteomic analysis of the extracted ISF for the first time after sampling with swelling MNs. The generated MN arrays show no cytotoxic effect, successfully cross the stratum corneum, and can collect up to 6 µL of dermal ISF in 10 min in vivo. Proteomics lead to the detection of 176 clinically relevant biomarkers in the collected samples validating the use of ISF as a relevant bodily fluid for disease monitoring and diagnostic. Importantly, it is discovered that extraction fingerprint is strongly dependent on the MNs chemistry, and thus specific biomarkers could be selectively extracted by tuning the composition of the patch, making the system versatile and specific.     

Relating catalyst structure and composition to the water–gas shift activity of Cu–Zn-based mixed-oxide catalysts

In order to investigate the effect of cerium oxide on Cu–Zn-based mixed-oxide catalysts four catalyst samples were characterized by means of XRD, in situ XANES and thermogravimetric analysis. The activity of the catalyst samples was tested for the forward water–gas shift reaction. Cerium oxide was found to increase the crystallinity of the ZnO phase indicating a segregation of the Cu and ZnO phases. The TOF of the water–gas shift reaction based on chemisorption data was found to be independent of composition and preparation conditions of the four catalyst samples. In contrast, the catalyst stability depends on composition and preparation conditions. Cerium oxide impregnated before calcination of the hydrotalcite-based Cu–Zn precursors leads to a more stable water–gas shift catalyst.     

Optical and structural properties of MOVPE grown GaxIn1−xAs/InP strained multiple quantum well atructures

This paper presents a study of the structural and optical properties of strained GaInAs/ InP multiple quantum well (MQW) structures fabricated by LP-MOVPE. The composition of the Ga _x In_1−x As films ranged fromx = 0.17 tox = 1.0 and was determined by sputtered neutral mass spectrometry (SNMS) on thick layers. The structures of the MQW samples with well widths from 1.5 to 5 nm were investigated by high resolution x-ray diffraction (HR-XRD). Simulations of the diffraction patterns showed that transition layers of approximately 2 monolayer (ML) thickness with high lattice mismatch exist at the interfaces. Photoluminescence (PL) measurements indicate well widths of a multiple of a monolayer with local variations of one monolayer. The PL peak energies vary smoothly with the Ga concentration. These results were confirmed by optical absorption measurements.     

Potential science-technology spillovers in regions: An insight on geographic co-location of knowledge activities in the EU

This article depicts some features of the geography of science and technology outputs in the EU, with a particular attention to regional “co-location” of these two pillars of the “knowledge-based society”. Economists have, for a decade, paid great attention to local “spillovers” stating that industrial firms often draw advantages from the presence of nearby academic centres. The presence in the same areas of strong academic and technological resources is both a condition and a result of science-technology interactions. Concentrating on publications and patents as proxies of the science and technology level in regions, we built a typology of regions according to their commitment to the two knowledge-base activities and then analysed the co-locations of science and technology from several points of view. A fine-grain lattice, mainly based on standard Nuts3 level, was used. Co-location, at the EU level, is not a general rule. A strong potential for spillover/ interaction does exist in the top-class regions which concentrate a high proportion of European S and T output. But for regions with a small/medium level of S&T activity, a divergence of orientations appears between a science-oriented family and a technology-oriented family, indicating an imbalance between local S and T resources. If we look at the S-oriented regions, whilst controlling for underlying factors, such as population and regional economic product, a significant geographic linkage between T and S appears. This suggests a trajectory of science-based technological development. A careful examination of S&T thematic alignments and specialisation is necessary to develop the hypothesis that fostering academic resources could increase the technological power along a growth path. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Institutional Performance And Social Capital: An Application To The Local Government Level

Abstract: A large and growing body of research is devoted to the effects of social capital on institutional performance. This literature reveals that societies characterized by higher levels of social capital tend to achieve superior performance. Still, enquiries to date predominantly concentrate on country‐level data or large sub‐national units. The primary purpose of this article is to extend the empirical work to the local government level, while retaining the use of objective data to gauge institutional performance. This use of local data has the advantage of increasing the data set available and provides a more stringent test of the effect of social capital because social capital is likely to vary less at lower levels of government. The results—based on an empirical analysis of 305 Flemish municipalities in 2000—support the view that social capital leads to government (out)performance also at the local level of government.     

The Multifunctional Sactipeptide Ruminococcin C1 Displays Potent Antibacterial Activity In Vivo as Well as Other Beneficial Properties for Human Health

The world is on the verge of a major antibiotic crisis as the emergence of resistant bacteria is increasing, and very few novel molecules have been discovered since the 1960s. In this context, scientists have been exploring alternatives to conventional antibiotics, such as ribosomally synthesized and post-translationally modified peptides (RiPPs). Interestingly, the highly potent in vitro antibacterial activity and safety of ruminococcin C1, a recently discovered RiPP belonging to the sactipeptide subclass, has been demonstrated. The present results show that ruminococcin C1 is efficient at curing infection and at protecting challenged mice from Clostridium perfringens with a lower dose than the conventional antibiotic vancomycin. Moreover, antimicrobial peptide (AMP) is also effective against this pathogen in the complex microbial community of the gut environment, with a selective impact on a few bacterial genera, while maintaining a global homeostasis of the microbiome. In addition, ruminococcin C1 exhibits other biological activities that could be beneficial for human health, as well as other fields of applications. Overall, this study, by using an in vivo infection approach, confirms the antimicrobial clinical potential and highlights the multiple functional properties of ruminococcin C1, thus extending its therapeutic interest.     

Hybrid crafting: towards an integrated practice of crafting with physical and digital components

With current digital technologies, people have large archives of digital media, such as images and audio files, but there are only limited means to include these media in creative practices of crafting and making. Nevertheless, studies have shown that crafting with digital media often makes these media more cherished and that people enjoy being creative with their digital media. This paper aims to open up the way for novel means for crafting, which include digital media in integrations with physical construction, here called ‘hybrid crafting’. Notions of hybrid crafting were explored to inform the design of products or systems that may support these new crafting practices. We designed ‘Materialise’—a building set that allows for the inclusion of digital images and audio files in physical constructions by using tangible building blocks that can display images or play audio files, alongside a variety of other physical components—and used this set in four hands-on creative workshops to gain insight into how people go about doing hybrid crafting; whether hybrid crafting is desirable; what the characteristics of hybrid crafting are; and how we may design to support these practices. By reflecting on the findings from these workshops, we provide concrete guidelines for the design of novel hybrid crafting products or systems that address craft context, process and result. We aim to open up the design space to designing for hybrid crafting because these new practices provide interesting new challenges and opportunities for future crafting that can lead to novel forms of creative expression.