Effects of eczema calming lotion on the stratum corneum in atopic dermatitis: Corneodesmosin and intercellular lipid lamellae.

Objective: Atopic dermatitis (AD) is characterized by compositional and structural changes to the skin at lesional sites. Alteration to the levels and organization of both protein and lipid components are associated with disease status and lead to impaired barrier and hydration. Corneodesmosin (CDSN) and the arrangement and length of the intercellular lipid lamellae (ICLL) are altered in disrupted skin states.

Topically applied, fatty acid-containing formulations provide superior barrier benefits in an ex vivo tape-stripped skin model.

Objective: Ex vivo skin has been used to study various skin conditions from atopic dermatitis to burn injury. The aim of this research is to identify a more effective barrier improvement strategy and to evaluate topical formulations in replenishing the skin. The skin can create new longer chain fatty acids and ceramides (CERs) from topically applied skin natural fatty acid to help renew the skin's barrier.

Creation of an international laboratory network towards global microplastics monitoring harmonisation.

Infrastructure is often a limiting factor in microplastics research impacting the production of scientific outputs and monitoring data. International projects are therefore required to promote collaboration and development of national and regional scientific hubs. The Commonwealth Litter Programme and the Ocean Country Partnership Programme were developed to support Global South countries to take actions on plastics entering the oceans.

The hippocampus supports the representation of abstract concepts: Implications for the study of recognition memory.

Words, unlike images, are symbolic representations. The associative details inherent within a word's meaning and the visual imagery it generates, are inextricably connected to the way words are processed and represented. It is well recognised that the hippocampus associatively binds components of a memory to form a lasting representation, and here we show that the hippocampus is especially sensitive to abstract word processing.