Co-axial hydrogel spinning for facile biofabrication of prostate cancer-like 3D models.

Glandular cancers are amongst the most prevalent types of cancer, which can develop in many different organs, presenting challenges in their detection as well as high treatment variability and failure rates. For that purpose, anticancer drugs are commonly tested in cancer cell lines grown in 2D tissue culture on plastic dishes, or in animal models. However, 2D culture models diverge significantly from the 3D characteristics of living tissues and animal models require extensive animal use and time.

Optimizing the synthesis of dimeric peptides: influence of the reaction medium and effects that modulate kinetics and reaction yield.

Peptides are remarkably interesting alternatives to several applications. In particular, antimicrobial sequences have raised major interest of the scientific community due to the resistance acquired by commonly used antibiotics. Amongst these, some dimeric peptides have shown very promising characteristics as strong biological activities and resistance against degradation by peptidases.

Large-Scale Functionalized Metasurface-Based SARS-CoV-2 Detection and Quantification.

Plasmonic metasurfaces consist of metal-dielectric interfaces that are excitable at background and leakage resonant modes. The sharp and plasmonic excitation profile of metal-free electrons on metasurfaces at the nanoscale can be used for practical applications in diverse fields, including optoelectronics, energy harvesting, and biosensing. Currently, Fano resonant metasurface fabrication processes for biosensor applications are costly, need clean room access, and involve limited small-scale surface areas that are not easy for accurate sample placement.

Shining a Light on Cancer-Photonics in Microfluidic Tumor Modeling and Biosensing.

Microfluidic platforms represent a powerful approach to miniaturizing important characteristics of cancers, improving in vitro testing by increasing physiological relevance. Different tools can manipulate cells and materials at the microscale, but few offer the efficiency and versatility of light and optical technologies. Moreover, light-driven technologies englobe a broad toolbox for quantifying critical biological phenomena.

Engineered living bioassemblies for biomedical and functional material applications.

Recent breakthroughs in biofabrication of bioasemblies, consisting of the engineered structures composed of biological or biosynthetic components into a single construct, have found a wide range of practical applications in medicine and engineering. This review presents an overview of how the bottom-up assembly of living entities could drive advances in medicine, by developing tunable biological models and more precise methods for quantifying biological events. Moreover, we delve into advances beyond biomedical applications, where bioassemblies can be manipulated as functional robots and construction materials.

Microfluidic-Driven Biofabrication and the Engineering of Cancer-Like Microenvironments.

Despite considerable advances in cancer research and oncological treatments, the burden of the disease is still extremely high. While past research has been cancer cell centered, it is now clear that to understand tumors, the models that serve as a framework for research and therapeutic testing need to improve and integrate cancer microenvironment characteristics such as mechanics, architecture, and cell heterogeneity. Microfluidics is a powerful tool for biofabrication of cancer-relevant architectures given its capacity to manipulate cells and materials at very small dimensions and integrate varied living tissue characteristics.

Evaluation of WALA ridge in different facial patterns: A cone-beam computed tomography study.

Introduction: This retrospective study evaluated the buccal bone thickness in mandibular canine, premolar, and molar areas, using as a reference the WALA ridge in patients with various facial patterns.

Methods: The sample comprised 51 cone-beam computerized tomography scans of subjects divided into 3 groups according to the facial pattern, determined by the Ricketts' VERT index, brachyfacial (group 1), mesofacial (group 2), and dolichofacial (group 3). A quantitative analysis of the buccal bone thickness was made in cone-beam computerized tomography scans in the region of the mandibular dental arch corresponding to the WALA ridge.

Pushing the Natural Frontier: Progress on the Integration of Biomaterial Cues toward Combinatorial Biofabrication and Tissue Engineering.

The engineering of fully functional, biological-like tissues requires biomaterials to direct cellular events to a near-native, 3D niche extent. Natural biomaterials are generally seen as a safe option for cell support, but their biocompatibility and biodegradability can be just as limited as their bioactive/biomimetic performance. Furthermore, integrating different biomaterial cues and their final impact on cellular behavior is a complex equation where the outcome might be very different from the sum of individual parts.

Microfluidic mixing system for precise PLGA-PEG nanoparticles size control.

In this study, a microfluidic device was employed to produce polymeric nanoparticles (NPs) with well-controlled sizes. The influence of several parameters in the synthesis process, namely, polymer concentration, flow rate and flow rate ratio between the aqueous and organic solutions was investigated. To evaluate the NPs size effect, three diameters were selected (30, 50 and 70 nm).

Engineering Polysaccharide-Based Hydrogel Photonic Constructs: From Multiscale Detection to the Biofabrication of Living Optical Fibers.

Solid-state optics has been the pillar of modern digital age. Integrating soft hydrogel materials with micro/nanooptics could expand the horizons of photonics for bioengineering. Here, wet-spun multilayer hydrogel fibers are engineered through ionic-crosslinked natural polysaccharides that serve as multifunctional platforms.

Wearable Collector for Noninvasive Sampling of SARS-CoV-2 from Exhaled Breath for Rapid Detection.

Airborne transmission of exhaled virus can rapidly spread, thereby increasing disease progression from local incidents to pandemics. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, states and local governments have enforced the use of protective masks in public and work areas to minimize the disease spread. Here, we have leveraged the function of protective face coverings toward COVID-19 diagnosis.

Engineering Hydrogel-Based Biomedical Photonics: Design, Fabrication, and Applications.

Light guiding and manipulation in photonics have become ubiquitous in events ranging from everyday communications to complex robotics and nanomedicine. The speed and sensitivity of light-matter interactions offer unprecedented advantages in biomedical optics, data transmission, photomedicine, and detection of multi-scale phenomena. Recently, hydrogels have emerged as a promising candidate for interfacing photonics and bioengineering by combining their light-guiding properties with live tissue compatibility in optical, chemical, physiological, and mechanical dimensions.

Emerging biofabrication approaches for gastrointestinal organoids towards patient specific cancer models.

Tissue engineered organoids are simple biomodels that can emulate the structural and functional complexity of specific organs. Here, we review developments in three-dimensional (3D) artificial cell constructs to model gastrointestinal dynamics towards cancer diagnosis. We describe bottom-up approaches to fabricate close-packed cell aggregates, from the use of biochemical and physical cues to guide the self-assembly of organoids, to the use of engineering approaches, including 3D printing/additive manufacturing and external field-driven protocols.

Enhanced removal of basic dye using carbon nitride/graphene oxide nanocomposites as adsorbents: high performance, recycling, and mechanism.

The presence of dyes in wastewater streams poses a great challenge for sustainability and brings the need to develop technologies to treat effluent streams. Here, we propose a mixture of high superficial area carbon-based nanomaterial strategy to improve the removal of basic blue 26 (BB26) by blending porous carbon nitride (CN) and graphene oxide (GO). We prepared CN and GO pristine materials, as well the nanocomposites with mass/ratio 30/70, 50/50, and 70/30, and applied them into BB26 uptake.

Long-term Effects of Mechanical Vibration Stimulus on the Bone Formation of Wistar Rats: An Assessment Method Based on X-rays Images.

Background: Bone is a complex living tissue that adapts itself to the demands of mechanical stimuli such as physical activity and exercise. Whole-body vibration (WBV) is a type of exercise characterized by the transmission of mechanical vibration stimuli produced by a vibrating platform. This study aimed to investigated, in experimental model, the effect of WBV exercise on the bone in different frequencies through X-ray analysis.

Lobular capillary hemangioma in a patient with ankylosing spondylitis using adalimumab: an exuberant presentation.

Lobular capillary hemangioma or pyogenic granuloma is a benign vascular tumor of the skin or mucous membranes. Most patients present a single lesion. It manifests clinically as an erythematous, friable, and fast-growing tumor.

Retreatment of a patient: Orthognathic surgery-first approach with customized lingual appliances combined with miniplate anchorage.

Orthognathic surgery is necessary when a patient's major complaints include skeletal discrepancies that cannot be corrected with orthodontic treatment alone. Currently, orthognathic surgery can be performed through conventional and surgery-first approaches. Some advantages are attributed to the surgery-first approach, such as shortened treatment time and immediate esthetic improvement.

Mixture design approach for the development of reduced fat lamb patties with carboxymethyl cellulose and inulin.

Fat replacement by carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) and inulin (IN) for the manufacture of low-fat lamb patties was investigated utilizing mixture design. The effect of fat, CMC, and IN levels on texture, color, weight loss, patty diameter reduction, and sensory characteristics was investigated. The presence of CMC decreased hardness ( < 0.

Optimization of metals extraction from spent lithium-ion batteries by sulphuric acid and sodium metabisulphite through a techno-economic evaluation.

The main factors that affect the extraction of metals from spent lithium-ion batteries by acid leaching using HSO, and sodium metabisulphite, were evaluated and optimized through a set of experiments, framed by a techno-economic approach. The maximum value of the profit response was obtained with the highest possible values of acid concentration (2.5 M) and time (2 h), a liquid/solid ratio of 5 L/kg, and the lowest possible value of temperature (40 °C).

The use of the functional independence measure in elderly.

Objectives: To analyze in scientific publications how the Functional Independence Measure (FIM) has been employed to evaluate the elderly.

Methods: Integrative review of periodical publications between 2011 and 2015, available online in full-text in Portuguese, English and Spanish.

Results: 129 articles were found; after the application of the criteria, they resulted in 21.

Treatment of class II malocclusion and unerupted upper canines with self-ligating appliance.

Unlabelled: Treatments without tooth extractions have become more popular over the last two decades. In this context, expansion of the maxillary arch is an interesting treatment option for cases in which space is required and other factors not favoring extractions (such as the facial profile) are present. According to several authors, this posterior expansion can be obtained using a system comprising self-ligating brackets and superelastic nickel-titanium arches.

KRAS Oncogenic Signaling Extends beyond Cancer Cells to Orchestrate the Microenvironment.

KRAS is one of the most frequently mutated oncogenes in cancer, being a potent initiator of tumorigenesis, a strong inductor of malignancy, and a predictive biomarker of response to therapy. Despite the large investment to understand the effects of KRAS activation in cancer cells, pharmacologic targeting of KRAS or its downstream effectors has not yet been successful at the clinical level. Recent studies are now describing new mechanisms of KRAS-induced tumorigenesis by analyzing its effects on the components of the tumor microenvironment.

Hydrometallurgical recycling of lithium-ion batteries by reductive leaching with sodium metabisulphite.

The hydrometallurgical extraction of metals from spent lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) was investigated. LIBs were first dismantled and a fraction rich in the active material was obtained by physical separation, containing 95% of the initial electrode, 2% of the initial steel and 22% of plastic materials. Several reducers were tested to improve metals dissolution in the leaching step using sulphuric acid.

Screening Platform for Cell Contact Guidance Based on Inorganic Biomaterial Micro/nanotopographical Gradients.

High-throughput screening (HTS) methods based on topography gradients or arrays have been extensively used to investigate cell-material interactions. However, it is a huge technological challenge to cost efficiently prepare topographical gradients of inorganic biomaterials due to their inherent material properties. Here, we developed a novel strategy translating PDMS-based wrinkled topography gradients with amplitudes from 49 to 2561 nm and wavelengths between 464 and 7121 nm to inorganic biomaterials (SiO, Ti/TiO, Cr/CrO, and AlO) which are frequently used clinical materials.

associated with whole body vibration exercises alters the feed intake in Wistar rats.

The consequences of treatment involving the use of a natural product and whole body vibration (WBV) exercise have been investigated. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effects of the joint treatment with an aqueous extract of and WBV on physiological parameters in rats. Wistar rats (=20) were divided equally into four groups: control group (CG), treated with (CHE) group, exposed to 50 Hz of mechanial vibration (VBR), and treated with and exposed to 50 Hz of mechanical vibration (VBR + CHE) daily for 6 weeks.