Recent developments in barrier methods of contraception

Women have used contraceptive barriers for centuries, such as leaves, to prevent pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). Spermicides are used with at least 3 of the 5 modern female barrier methods -- the diaphragm, the cap, and the sponge. The thin domed rubber diaphragms lie diagonally across the cervix, the vault, and part of the anterior vaginal wall. Suction holds the cervical/vault caps in place. Women must be fitted for these 2 methods before use. Women can buy a small polyurethane sponge impregnated with 1 gram of nonoxynol-9 spermicide to cover the cervix over the counter. It has a high failure rate, however, since adequate instructions for insertion are not provided. The vaginal ring is not designed to fit into 1 fixed position in the vagina, yet probably spends most of its time in the posterior fornix. The ring continuously releases the levonorgestrel or a spermicide. The recently developed vaginal shield or female sheath has promise. It is a hollow tube made of strong elastic polyurethane. Since the era of the ancient Romans and Egyptians, men have used barriers made of such diverse material as animal bladders, silk, and lamb intestine, to protect against dirt and disease or for decoration. Condoms were 1st manufactured in the 1900s and had to be washed and dried following each act of intercourse. With the increase in STDs during World War II, condom distribution to the troops became standard practice. Today condoms come in a variety of colors, lengths, and strengths. Some have been coated with the spermicide nonoxynol-9 which protects against STDs. The condom follows oral contraceptives as the most popular form of contraceptive in the United Kingdom. A 1987 television campaign to promote barrier method use in light of the AIDS epidemic backfired. For example, it implied that diaphragms and sponges protect women from HIV.     

Recent developments in anti‐inflammatory natural products

Many of the inflammatory diseases are becoming common in aging society throughout the world. The clinically used anti‐inflammatory drugs suffer from the disadvantage of side effects and high cost of treatment (in case of biologics). Alternative to these drugs are traditional medicines and natural products, which offer a great hope in the identification of bioactive lead compounds and their development into drugs for treating inflammatory diseases. Since ancient times traditional medicines and phytopharmaceuticals are being used for the treatment of inflammatory and other disorders. The present review article describes anti‐inflammatory natural products derived from plants and marine sources reported during last decade. The compounds described belong to different chemical classes such as alkaloids, steroids, terpenoids, polyphenolics, phenylpropanoids, fatty acids and lipids, and various miscellaneous compounds. The attempt is also being made to enumerate the possible leads, e.g. curcumin, resveratrol, baicalein, boswellic acid, betulinic acid, ursolic acid, and oleanolic acid, for further development with the help of structure–activity relationship (SAR) studies and their current status. In addition SAR studies carried out on the anti‐inflammatory activity of flavonoid compounds and clinical studies performed on anti‐inflammatory natural products are also discussed. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Med Res Rev, 29, No. 5, 767–820, 2009     

Ileostomy products: an overview of recent developments

This article aims to give the reader a brief overview of recent developments in appliances for people with an ileostomy. After a brief background, the latest products that have been introduced to the market place will be discussed.     

Urostomy products: an update of recent developments

This article provides an overview of the recent developments in appliances for people with a urostomy. Following a short background, the products that may be useful for this patient group are discussed.     

An indirect analytical approach based on ATR-FTIR spectroscopy for determining the FFA content in vegetable oils

In this study, we developed a novel approach for determining a free fatty acid (FFA) in vegetable oils using attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectroscopy. FFA was converted to carboxylate species by a reaction with phthalimide potassium salt, and the linear relationship between FFA content and ATR-FTIR peak areas at 1541–1616 cm⁻¹ (1595 cm⁻¹ as baseline) was established. Results showed that the R² values obtained during calibration and validation were more than 0.99. The calibration method concurred to within ±0.035% over the range of 0.4% to 4.0% (quantitative determination of the percentage of FFA in oils, expressed as the percentage of oleic acid). In the calibration model, the root mean square error of prediction was 0.0104, the relative error was less than 0.246% and the relative average deviation was 0.386%, respectively. These indexes demonstrated that the calibration model has great accuracy, high precision and good stability. The indirect method established using ATR-FTIR has the advantages of excellent reproducibility, high exactitude, independent of oil type, simple operation and easy cleaning of the instrument surface. The slope of the verification equation between FFA prediction values and American Oil Chemists'' Society''s (AOCS) titration method was close to 1, R² value was more than 0.99. These indicators suggested that the proposed method and the AOCS method have a good correlation through AOCS titration and ATR–FTIR spectroscopy to determine validation samples parallel. In addition, for comparison, when the AOCS titration and ATR-FTIR spectroscopy methods were used for sample validation, the results indicated that the latter method is more reproducible, highly sensitive and has strong anti-disturbance. Therefore, the ATR-FTIR technique can be applied as a simple, highly sensitive, convenient and timely method for the analysis of FFAs in oils.

In this study, we developed a novel approach for determining a free fatty acid (FFA) in vegetable oils using attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectroscopy.     

经直肠超声引导前列腺活检方法发展近况

经直肠超声前列腺活检是主要确诊前列腺癌的方法,随着其广泛普及,也出现一些问题,主要是活检点数、次数及部位存在差异.本文从各种穿刺点数、重复活检、前列腺体积大小与活检、癌前病变活检等方面进行总结,试图找出一些规律.     

引物原位杂交标记方法和应用的新进展(英文)

对引物原位杂交标记 (PRINS)方法及在人类染色体疾病研究、诊断应用中的最新进展作一综述。引物原位杂交标记是一种新的分子细胞遗传学方法 ,因该法能提供快速 (1-4h)、准确及高效的结果 ,正作为荧光原位杂交的替代或补充的方法在人类染色体研究中加以应用。多色引物原位杂交标记方法的发展使得同时研究若干个染色体目标成为可能。根据使用引物的不同 ,它可检测重复区段 (着丝点、端粒或Alu家族 )和单拷贝序列 /基因。该法可应用于出生前、出生后或胚胎移植前的中期及间期细胞的临床诊断 ,其在染色体研究和临床诊断中的重要作用可分为 :①识别数目变异 (三体 2 1,13和 18,特纳氏综合症 ) ;②染色体标记的检测 ;③亚端粒缺失的快速区别 ;④微缺失综合症的诊断 (PraderWilli,Angelman和DiGeorg等综合征 ) ;⑤精子中的染色体研究 ;⑥胚胎移植前甄别普通非整倍体 ;⑦癌症细胞遗传学研究。     

Engineering tendon and ligament tissues: present developments towards successful clinical products

Musculoskeletal diseases are one of the leading causes of disability worldwide. Among them, tendon and ligament injuries represent an important aspect to consider in both athletes and active working people. Tendon and ligament damage is an important cause of joint instability, and progresses into early onset of osteoarthritis, pain, disability and eventually the need for joint replacement surgery. The social and economical burden associated with these medical conditions presents a compelling argument for greater understanding and expanding research on this issue. The particular physiology of tendons and ligaments (avascular, hypocellular and overall structural mechanical features) makes it difficult for currently available treatments to reach a complete and long‐term functional repair of the damaged tissue, especially when complete tear occurs. Despite the effort, the treatment modalities for tendon and ligament are suboptimal, which have led to the development of alternative therapies, such as the delivery of growth factors, development of engineered scaffolds or the application of stem cells, which have been approached in this review. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Catalytic conversion of ethane to valuable products through non-oxidative dehydrogenation and dehydroaromatization

Chemical utilization of ethane to produce valuable chemicals has become especially attractive since the expanded utilization of shale gas in the United States and associated petroleum gas in the Middle East. Catalytic conversion to ethylene and aromatic hydrocarbons through non-oxidative dehydrogenation and dehydroaromatization of ethane (EDH and EDA) are potentially beneficial technologies because of their high selectivity to products. The former represents an attractive alternative to conventional thermal cracking of ethane. The latter can produce valuable aromatic hydrocarbons from a cheap feedstock. Nevertheless, further progress in catalytic science and technology is indispensable to implement these processes beneficially. This review summarizes progress that has been achieved with non-oxidative EDH and EDA in terms of the nature of active sites and reaction mechanisms. Briefly, platinum-, chromium- and gallium-based catalysts have been introduced mainly for EDH, including effects of carbon dioxide co-feeding. Efforts to use EDA have emphasized zinc-modified MFI zeolite catalysts. Finally, some avenues for development of catalytic science and technology for ethane conversion are summarized.

This review examines the catalytic ethane dehydrogenation and dehydroaromatization in terms of characteristics of active sites and their reaction mechanisms.     

Off-line analysis in the manganese catalysed epoxidation of ethylene-propylene-diene rubber (EPDM) with hydrogen peroxide

The epoxidation of ethylene-propylene-diene rubber (EPDM) with 5-ethylidene-2-norbornene (ENB) as the diene to epoxidized EPDM (eEPDM) creates additional routes to cross-linking and reactive blending, as well as increasing the polarity and thereby the adhesion to polar materials, e.g., mineral fillers such as silica. The low solubility of apolar, high molecular weight polymers in the polar solvents constrains the catalytic method for epoxidation that can be applied. Here we have applied an in situ prepared catalyst comprising a manganese(ii) salt, sodium picolinate and a ketone to the epoxidation of EPDM rubber with hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) as the oxidant in a solvent mixture, that balances the need for polymer and catalyst/oxidant miscibility and solubility. Specifically, a mixture of cyclohexane and cyclohexanone is used, where cyclohexanone functions as a co-solvent as well as the ketone reagent. Reaction progress was monitored off-line through a combination of Raman and ATR-FTIR spectroscopies, which revealed that the reaction profile and the dependence on the composition of the catalyst are similar to those observed with low molar mass alkene substrates, under similar reaction conditions. The combination of spectroscopies offers a reliable method for off-line reaction monitoring of both the extent of the conversion of unsaturation (Raman) and the extent of epoxidation (FTIR) as well as determining side reactions, such as epoxide ring opening and further, aerobic oxidation. The epoxidation of EPDM described, in contrast to currently available methods, uses a non-scarce manganese catalyst and H₂O₂, and avoids side reactions, such as those that can occur with peracids.

Epoxidation of ethylene-propylene-diene rubber (EPDM), based on 5-ethylidene-2-norbornene, to epoxidized EPDM (eEPDM) opens routes to cross-linking and reactive blending, with increased polarity aiding adhesion to polar materials such as silica.     

Recent developments in meconium and hair testing methods for the confirmation of gestational exposures to alcohol and tobacco smoke

The use of alcohol and tobacco is prevalent among pregnant women despite the well-known adverse effects of these substances imposed on the developing fetus and immense public health education efforts. Confirmation of gestational exposures to these compounds have relied mostly on maternal self-reporting, which is often underestimated because of guilt, embarrassment, and fear of punitive action. The presence of fatty acid ethyl esters in various biological matrices as a result of alcohol consumption initiated the development of neonatal screening tests for these emerging biological markers in meconium and hair. The levels of nicotine and cotinine in hair have long been used as objective indices for the quantification of exposure to active and passive smoking. Maternal segmental hair analysis in the study of pharmacokinetic changes in nicotine metabolism in the obstetric population is a novel application of this traditional analytical method. The latest developments and novel applications of meconium and hair testing for the confirmation of prenatal alcohol and tobacco exposure are discussed in this review.     

Additive manufacturing technology of polymeric materials for customized products: recent developments and future prospective

The worldwide demand for additive manufacturing (AM) is increasing due to its ability to produce more challenging customized objects based on the process parameters for engineering applications. The processing of conventional materials by AM processes is a critically demanded research stream, which has generated a path-breaking scenario in the rapid manufacturing and upcycling of plastics. The exponential growth of AM in the worldwide polymer market is expected to exceed 20 billion US dollars by 2021 in areas of automotive, medical, aerospace, energy and customized consumer products. The development of functional polymers and composites by 3D printing-based technologies has been explored significantly due to its cost-effective, easier integration into customized geometries, higher efficacy, higher precision, freedom of material utilization as compared to traditional injection molding, and thermoforming techniques. Since polymers are the most explored class of materials in AM to overcome the limitations, this review describes the latest research conducted on petroleum-based polymers and their composites using various AM techniques such as fused filament fabrication (FFF), selective laser sintering (SLS), and stereolithography (SLA) related to 3D printing in engineering applications such as biomedical, automotive, aerospace and electronics.

The worldwide demand for additive manufacturing (AM) is increasing due to its ability to produce more challenging customized objects based on the process parameters for engineering applications.     

Microparticle detection in platelet products by three different methods

BACKGROUND: Standardization of platelet‐derived microparticle (PMP) enumeration by flow cytometry (FCM) is limited due to its intrinsic characteristics. Because of high clinical relevance of microparticle (MP) detection, standardization of MP assays is required. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: This prospective paired study analyzed 31 healthy blood donors (18 male, 13 female) and compared pre‐ and postdonation results of donors with results of plateletpheresis products by three different methods. PMP counts were analyzed by FCM using calibrated beads of defined diameter and annexin V‐fluorescein isothiocyanate and CD41‐phycoerythrin staining. MP activity was tested by prothrombinase assay (enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay [ELISA]) and a procoagulant phospholipid‐dependent clotting time assay (STA‐Procoag‐PPL, Diagnostica Stago S.A.S.). RESULTS: PMP concentration was more than threefold higher in single‐platelet units (SPUs) and resulted in higher PMP yields in SPUs compared to double‐platelet units (DPUs). The ELISA and the procoagulant clotting assay also revealed a significant higher MP activity in SPUs compared to DPUs. The results of the procoagulation clotting assay correlated inversely with PMP counts obtained by FCM (r = ?0.685, p < 0.001) and with the MP activity measured by ELISA (r = ?0.641, p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: Three different methods for MP detection showed good correlations of results, albeit the basis for MP analysis was different. Even if FCM is considered the “gold standard” of MP detection there are still technical limitations concerning detection of small MP. The procoagulant STA‐Procoag‐PPL assay and the prothrombinase ELISA assay could be useful additional MP tests. Regarding the interpretation of quantitative results of MPs, preanalytical conditions must be optimized and standardized.     

Preliminary analysis of the anti-inflammatory activity of essential oils of Zingiber zerumbet

Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) have been widely used for the treatment of inflammation. However, despite their effectiveness, most NSAIDs cause various side effects that negatively affect the management of inflammation and, in part, pain. Thus, there is a need to search for new anti-inflammatory agents with few, or no, side effects. Natural products of plant, animal, or microorganism origin have been good sources of new bioactive compounds. The present study was carried out to evaluate the acute and chronic anti-inflammatory activities of the essential oil of the rhizomes of Zingiber zerumbet (Zingiberaceae) using the carrageenan-induced paw edema and cotton pellet-induced granuloma tests, respectively. The effect of the essential oil on inflammatory- and noninflammatory-mediated pain was also assessed using the formalin test. Essential oil of Z. zerumbet, at doses of 30, 100, and 300 mg/kg, was administered intraperitoneally to rats. The substance exhibited significant anti-inflammatory activity both in acute and chronic animal models. The essential oil also inhibited inflammatory- and noninflammatory-mediated pain when assessed using the formalin test. In conclusion, the essential oil of Z. zerumbet possessed anti-inflammatory activity, in addition to its antinociceptive activity, which may explain its traditional uses to treat inflammatory-related ailments.     

Gait analysis methods in rehabilitation

Introduction  

Brand's four reasons for clinical tests and his analysis of the characteristics of valid biomechanical tests for use in orthopaedics are taken as a basis for determining what methodologies are required for gait analysis in a clinical rehabilitation context.