Desktop fabrication of monolithic soft robotic devices with embedded fluidic control circuits.

Most soft robots are pneumatically actuated and fabricated by molding and assembling processes that typically require many manual operations and limit complexity. Furthermore, complex control components (for example, electronic pumps and microcontrollers) must be added to achieve even simple functions. Desktop fused filament fabrication (FFF) three-dimensional printing provides an accessible alternative with less manual work and the capability of generating more complex structures.

High Biofilm Formation of Non-Smooth Correlates with Increased Incorporation of GPI-Modified Wall Adhesins.

is among the most frequent causes of candidiasis. Clinical isolates of this species show large variations in colony morphotype, ranging from round and smooth to a variety of non-smooth irregular colony shapes. A non-smooth appearance is related to increased formation of pseudohyphae, higher capacity to form biofilms on abiotic surfaces, and invading agar.

When the Evidence Basis Breeds Controversies: Exploring the Value Profile of Robotic Surgery Beyond the Early Introduction Phase.

This article investigates qualitatively the value profile of the ® surgical robot after almost two decades of extensive clinical use and research. We aimed to understand whether the swiftly growing body of published studies on robotic prostate surgery can now, that is, beyond an early stage, guide decisions on the acquisition, procurement, and public provision of this innovation. We explored both published studies and the perspectives of diverse stakeholders in the Netherlands.

Wild, insectivorous bats might be carriers of Campylobacter spp.

Background: The transmission cycles of the foodborne pathogens Campylobacter and Salmonella are not fully elucidated. Knowledge of these cycles may help reduce the transmission of these pathogens to humans.

Methodology/principal Findings: The presence of campylobacters and salmonellas was examined in 631 fresh fecal samples of wild insectivorous bats using a specially developed method for the simultaneous isolation of low numbers of these pathogens in small-sized fecal samples (≤ 0.

Should new health technology be available only for patients able and willing to pay?

New health technology comes on the market at a rapid pace and - sometimes - at a huge cost. Providing access to new health technology is a serious challenge for many countries with mandatory health insurance. This article analyses access to new health technology in Belgium and the Netherlands, using eight concrete examples as a starting point for comparing the two - neighbouring - countries.

Quantifying potential sources of surface water contamination with Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli.

Campylobacter is the most common causative agent of human bacterial gastroenteritis and is frequently found in surface water, where it indicates recent contamination with animal faeces, sewage effluent, and agricultural run-off. The contribution of different animal reservoirs to surface water contamination with Campylobacter is largely unknown. In the Netherlands, the massive poultry culling to control the 2003 avian influenza epidemic coincided with a 44-50% reduction in human campylobacteriosis cases in the culling areas, suggesting substantial environment-mediated spread of poultry-borne Campylobacter.

Proteomic analysis of hyperadhesive Candida glabrata clinical isolates reveals a core wall proteome and differential incorporation of adhesins.

Attachment to human host tissues or abiotic medical devices is a key step in the development of infections by Candida glabrata. The genome of this pathogenic yeast codes for a large number of adhesins, but proteomic work using reference strains has shown incorporation of only few adhesins in the cell wall. By making inventories of the wall proteomes of hyperadhesive clinical isolates and reference strain CBS138 using mass spectrometry, we describe the cell wall proteome of C.

Identification of Secreted Candida Proteins Using Mass Spectrometry.

Analysis of fungal secretomes using mass spectrometry is a useful technique in cell biology. Knowledge of the secretome of a human fungal pathogen may yield important information of host-pathogen interactions and may be useful for identifying vaccines candidates or diagnostic markers for antifungal strategies. In this chapter, with a main focus on sample preparation aspects, we describe the methodology that we apply for gel-independent batch identification and quantification of proteins that are secreted during growth in liquid cultures.

How can we assess the value of complex medical innovations in practice?

Rapid proliferation of medical innovations in the face of demographic changes and scarce resources is demanding a value-conscious entry of medical innovations into health care systems. An inquiry into value gains significance during the early diffusion phase of an innovation and becomes indispensable as the complexity of an innovation increases. In this editorial, we argue that a value assessment must pay attention to the social processes shaping the innovation's adoption and use, in particular, to the "promises" of the technology and actual "practices" with it.

Molecular hazard identification of non-O157 Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC).

The complexity regarding Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) in food safety enforcement as well as clinical care primarily relates to the current inability of an accurate risk assessment of individual strains due to the large variety in serotype and genetic content associated with (severe) disease. In order to classify the clinical and/or epidemic potential of a STEC isolate at an early stage it is crucial to identify virulence characteristics of putative pathogens from genomic information, which is referred to as 'predictive hazard identification'. This study aimed at identifying associations between virulence factors, phylogenetic groups, isolation sources and seropathotypes.

Understanding the adoption dynamics of medical innovations: affordances of the da Vinci robot in the Netherlands.

This study explored the rather rapid adoption of a new surgical device - the da Vinci robot - in the Netherlands despite the high costs and its controversial clinical benefits. We used the concept 'affordances' as a conceptual-analytic tool to refer to the perceived promises, symbolic meanings, and utility values of an innovation constructed in the wider social context of use. This concept helps us empirically understand robot adoption.

Evaluation of molecular assays for identification Campylobacter fetus species and subspecies and development of a C. fetus specific real-time PCR assay.

Phenotypic differentiation between Campylobacter fetus (C. fetus) subspecies fetus and C. fetus subspecies venerealis is hampered by poor reliability and reproducibility of biochemical assays.

Practicalities of using non-local or non-recent multilocus sequence typing data for source attribution in space and time of human campylobacteriosis.

In this study, 1208 Campylobacter jejuni and C. coli isolates from humans and 400 isolates from chicken, collected in two separate periods over 12 years in The Netherlands, were typed using multilocus sequence typing (MLST). Statistical evidence was found for a shift of ST frequencies in human isolates over time.

Adhesins in human fungal pathogens: glue with plenty of stick.

Understanding the pathogenesis of an infectious disease is critical for developing new methods to prevent infection and diagnose or cure disease. Adherence of microorganisms to host tissue is a prerequisite for tissue invasion and infection. Fungal cell wall adhesins involved in adherence to host tissue or abiotic medical devices are critical for colonization leading to invasion and damage of host tissue.

Acknowledging patient heterogeneity in economic evaluation : a systematic literature review.

Background And Objective: Patient heterogeneity is the part of variability that can be explained by certain patient characteristics (e.g. age, disease stage).

Glycosylation of Candida albicans cell wall proteins is critical for induction of innate immune responses and apoptosis of epithelial cells.

C. albicans is one of the most common fungal pathogen of humans, causing local and superficial mucosal infections in immunocompromised individuals. Given that the key structure mediating host-C.

Risk factors for campylobacteriosis of chicken, ruminant, and environmental origin: a combined case-control and source attribution analysis.

Background: Campylobacteriosis contributes strongly to the disease burden of food-borne pathogens. Case-control studies are limited in attributing human infections to the different reservoirs because they can only trace back to the points of exposure, which may not point to the original reservoirs because of cross-contamination. Human Campylobacter infections can be attributed to specific reservoirs by estimating the extent of subtype sharing between strains from humans and reservoirs using multilocus sequence typing (MLST).

Genetic features differentiating bovine, food, and human isolates of shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli O157 in The Netherlands.

The frequency of Escherichia coli O157 genotypes among bovine, food, and human clinical isolates from The Netherlands was studied. Genotyping included the lineage-specific polymorphism assay (LSPA6), the Shiga-toxin-encoding bacteriophage insertion site assay (SBI), and PCR detection and/or subtyping of virulence factors and markers [stx1, stx(2a)/stx(2c), q21/Q933, tir(A255T), and rhsA(C3468G)]. LSPA6 lineage II dominated among bovine isolates (63%), followed by lineage I/II (35.

Carbon nanoparticles as detection labels in antibody microarrays. Detection of genes encoding virulence factors in Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli.

The present study demonstrates that carbon nanoparticles (CNPs) can be used as labels in microarrays. CNPs were used in nucleic acid microarray immunoassays (NAMIAs) for the detection of different Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) virulence factors: four genes specific for STEC (vt1, vt2, eae, and ehxA) and the gene for E. coli 16S (hui).

Molecular epidemiology of Coxiella burnetii from ruminants in Q fever outbreak, the Netherlands.

Q fever is a zoonosis caused by the bacterium Coxiella burnetii. One of the largest reported outbreaks of Q fever in humans occurred in the Netherlands starting in 2007; epidemiologic investigations identified small ruminants as the source. To determine the genetic background of C.

The Candida albicans cell wall protein Rhd3/Pga29 is abundant in the yeast form and contributes to virulence.

The glycosylphosphatidylinositol-modified protein Rhd3/Pga29 of the human pathogen Candida albicans belongs to a family of cell wall proteins that are widespread among Candida species but are not found in other fungi. Pga29 is covalently linked to the beta-1,3-glucan framework of the cell wall via beta-1,6-glucan. It is a small and abundant O-glycosylated protein and requires the protein-O-mannosyl transferase Pmt1 for glycosylation.

Isolated Thellungiella shoots do not require roots to survive NaCl and Na2SO4 salt stresses.

Shoots of Thellungiella derived by micropropagation were used to estimate the plants' salt tolerance and ability to regulate Na+ uptake. Two species with differing salt tolerances were studied: Thellungiella salsuginea (halophilla), which is less tolerant, and Thellungiella botschantzevii, which is more tolerant. Although the shoots of neither ecotype survived at 700 mM NaCl or 200 mM Na2SO4, micropropagated shoots of T.

Comparative genotyping of Campylobacter jejuni strains from patients with Guillain-Barré syndrome in Bangladesh.

Background: Campylobacter jejuni is a common cause of acute gastroenteritis and is associated with post-infectious neuropathies such as the Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) and the Miller Fisher syndrome (MFS). We here present comparative genotyping of 49 C. jejuni strains from Bangladesh that were recovered from patients with enteritis or GBS.

Functional characterization of excision repair and RecA-dependent recombinational DNA repair in Campylobacter jejuni.

The presence and functionality of DNA repair mechanisms in Campylobacter jejuni are largely unknown. In silico analysis of the complete translated genome of C. jejuni NCTC 11168 suggests the presence of genes involved in methyl-directed mismatch repair (MMR), nucleotide excision repair, base excision repair (BER), and recombinational repair.