Human keratinocytes grown at a gas-permeable interface in vitro stratify correctly to generate engineered human epidermis.

Background: One of the key functions of human skin is to provide a barrier, protecting the body from the surrounding environment and maintaining homeostasis of the internal environment. A mature, stratified epidermis is critical to achieve skin barrier function and is particularly important when producing skin grafts in vitro for wound treatment. For decades epidermal stratification has been achieved in vitro by culturing keratinocytes at an air-liquid interface, triggering proliferating basal keratinocytes to differentiate and form all epidermal layers.

The magneto-mechanical coupling of multiphase magnetorheological elastomers.

Magnetorheological elastomers (MREs) are soft magnetic composites that achieve tunable changes in stiffness and energy response in the presence of a magnetic field. Rigid particle composite (RC) MREs have been studied for decades for their potential applications to automotive dampers and robotic systems. Recently, magnetic fluid composite (FC) MREs have been developed which utilize magnetic fluids as inclusions to elastomers.

Gonad-derived steroid hormones mediate a sex difference in the maturation of auditory encoding in the cochlea from adolescence to early adulthood in C57BL/6J mice.

Sexually mature females of multiple mammalian species were previously reported to have increased peripheral auditory sensitivity, often measured as higher auditory brainstem response (ABR) wave I amplitude compared to males. Here, we determined potential hormonal and genetic (i.e.

Rationale and Ethical Assessment of an Oropharyngeal Gonorrhoea Controlled Human Infection Model.

Infection with Neisseria gonorrhoeae, the causative agent of gonorrhoea, causes significant morbidity worldwide and can have long-term impacts on reproductive health. The greatest global burden of gonorrhoea occurs in low- and middle-income settings. Global public health significance is increasing due to rising antimicrobial resistance (AMR), which threatens future gonorrhoea management.

Examining memory reconsolidation as a mechanism of nitrous oxide's antidepressant action.

There is an ongoing need to identify novel pharmacological agents for the effective treatment of depression. One emerging candidate, which has demonstrated rapid-acting antidepressant effects in treatment-resistant groups, is nitrous oxide (NO)-a gas commonly used for sedation and pain management in clinical settings and with a range of pharmacological effects, including antagonism of NMDA glutamate receptors. A growing body of evidence suggests that subanaesthetic doses of NO (50%) can interfere with the reconsolidation of maladaptive memories in healthy participants and across a range of disorders.