Ten-Year Analysis of Bacterial Colonisation and Outcomes of Major Burn Patients with a Focus on .

A retrospective descriptive study included patients admitted with severe burns over the course of 10 years (2008-2018). Across all patients, there were 39 different species of bacteria, with 23 species being Gram-negative and 16 being Gram-positive bacteria, with also five different species of fungi cultured. was the most commonly isolated organism, with 57.

Infection responsive coatings to reduce biofilm formation and encrustation of urinary catheters.

Aims: The care of patients undergoing long-term urethral catheterization is frequently complicated by Proteus mirabilis infection. This organism forms dense, crystalline biofilms, which block catheters leading to serious clinical conditions. However, there are currently no truly effective approaches to control this problem.

Analysis of Cellular Damage Resulting from Exposure of Bacteria to Graphene Oxide and Hybrids Using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy.

With the increase in antimicrobial resistance, there is an urgent need to find new antimicrobials. Four particulate antimicrobial compounds, graphite (G), graphene oxide (GO), silver-graphene oxide (Ag-GO) and zinc oxide-graphene oxide (ZnO-GO) were tested against , , and . The antimicrobial effects on the cellular ultrastructure were determined using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and selected FTIR spectral metrics correlated with cell damage and death arising from exposure to the GO hybrids.

Multifractal Analysis to Determine the Effect of Surface Topography on the Distribution, Density, Dispersion and Clustering of Differently Organised Coccal-Shaped Bacteria.

The topographic features of surfaces are known to affect bacterial retention on a surface, but the precise mechanisms of this phenomenon are little understood. Four coccal-shaped bacteria, , , , and , that organise in different cellular groupings (grape-like clusters, tetrad-arranging clusters, short chains, and diploid arrangement, respectively) were used. These differently grouped cells were used to determine how surface topography affected their distribution, density, dispersion, and clustering when retained on titanium surfaces with defined topographies.

Photodynamic antimicrobial chemotherapy coupled with the use of the photosensitizers methylene blue and temoporfin as a potential novel treatment for in burn infections.

Photodynamic antimicrobial chemotherapy (PACT) is a novel alternative antimicrobial therapy that elicits a broad mechanism of action and therefore has a low probability of generating resistance. Such properties make PACT ideally suited for utilization in localized applications such as burn wounds. The aim of this study was to determine the antimicrobial activity of MB and temoporfin against both a isolate and a isolate in light (640 nm) and dark conditions at a range of time points (0-20 min).

The Removal of Meat Exudate and from Stainless Steel and Titanium Surfaces with Irregular and Regular Linear Topographies.

Bacterial retention and organic fouling on meat preparation surfaces can be influenced by several factors. Surfaces with linear topographies and defined chemistries were used to determine how the orientation of the surface features affected cleaning efficacy. Fine polished (irregular linear) stainless steel (FPSS), titanium coated fine polished (irregular linear) stainless steel (TiFP), and topographically regular, linear titanium coated surfaces (RG) were fouled with mixed with a meat exudate (which was utilised as a conditioning film).

Ionic gold demonstrates antimicrobial activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains due to cellular ultrastructure damage.

Due to the ever-increasing rise of antimicrobial resistant (AMR) bacteria, the development of alternative antimicrobial agents is a global priority. The antimicrobial activity of ionic gold was explored against four Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains with different AMR profiles in order to determine the antimicrobial activity of ionic gold and elucidate the mechanisms of action. Disc diffusion assays (zone of inhibition: ZoI) coupled with minimum inhibitory/bactericidal concentrations (MIC/MBC) were conducted to determine the antimicrobial efficacy of ionic gold.

The Influence of Surface Topography and Wettability on Removal from Polymeric Materials in the Presence of a Blood Conditioning Film.

The reduction of biofouling and the reduction of cross-contamination in the food industry are important aspects of safety management systems. Polymeric surfaces are used extensively throughout the food production industry and therefore ensuring that effective cleaning regimes are conducted is vital. Throughout this study, the influence of the surface characteristics of three different polymeric surfaces, polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) and polyethylene terephthalate (PET), on the removal of using a wipe clean method utilising 3% sodium hypochlorite was determined.

The effects of blood conditioning films on the antimicrobial and retention properties of zirconium-nitride silver surfaces.

External bone fixation devices provide support and rehabilitation for severely damaged/broken bones, however, this invasive procedure is prone to infection. Zirconium nitride/silver (Ti-ZrN/Ag) coatings were characterised for surface topography, chemical composition, physicochemistry and antimicrobial efficacy (against Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermidis), in the presence of a blood conditioning film. The conditioning film altered the width of the microtopography of the surfaces however, the depth of the features remained relatively constant.

Exploring the electrochemical performance of graphite and graphene paste electrodes composed of varying lateral flake sizes.

We report the fabrication, characterisation (SEM/EDX, TEM, XRD, XPS and Raman spectroscopy) and electrochemical properties of graphite and graphene paste electrodes with varying lateral flake sizes. The fabricated paste electrodes are electrochemically analysed using both outer-sphere and inner-sphere redox probes, namely; hexaammineruthenium(iii) chloride, N,N,N',N'-tetramethyl-p-phenylenediamine (TMPD), potassium ferrocyanide(ii) and ammonium ferrous(ii) sulphate. Upon comparison of different graphite paste electrodes, a clear correlation between the lateral flake sizes (La), ranging from 1.

Antimicrobial synergy of cationic grafted poly(-phenylene ethynylene) and poly(-phenylene vinylene) compounds with UV or metal ions against .

The rise in multidrug resistant bacteria is an area of growing concern and it is essential to identify new biocidal agents. Cationic grafted compounds were investigated for their antimicrobial properties using minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) tests. Synergy testing was carried out using the compounds in the presence of ultraviolet (UV).

Author Correction: Antimicrobial activity of Ti-ZrN/Ag coatings for use in biomaterial applications.

A correction to this article has been published and is linked from the HTML and PDF versions of this paper. The error has been fixed in the paper.

Antimicrobial activity of Ti-ZrN/Ag coatings for use in biomaterial applications.

Severely broken bones often require external bone fixation pins to provide support but they can become infected. In order to reduce such infections, novel solutions are required. Titanium zirconium nitride (Ti-ZrN) and Ti-ZrN silver (Ti-ZrN/Ag) coatings were deposited onto stainless steel.