Exploring the effects of cellulose sources on silver reduction and the bacterial removal of nanocellulose-based hydrogel beads.

With water access challenged, there is a need to develop efficient and sustainable alternatives for water purification. Here, cellulose nanofibrils (CNFs) isolated from three source materials (softwood, soybean hulls and oat straw) were compared for the generation of hydrogels beads, and compared as support and reducing agent for silver nanoparticles formation. The silver-functionalized hydrogel beads (Ag-CNFs) were characterized, and the surface energy and specific surface area were evaluated.

Calibration of FRET-based biosensors using multiplexed biosensor barcoding.

Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) between fluorescent proteins (FPs) is widely used in the design of genetically encoded fluorescent biosensors, which are powerful tools for monitoring the dynamics of biochemical activities in live cells. FRET ratio, defined as the ratio between acceptor and donor signals, is often used as a proxy for the actual FRET efficiency, which must be corrected for signal crosstalk using donor-only and acceptor-only samples. However, the FRET ratio is highly sensitive to imaging conditions, making direct comparisons across different experiments and over time challenging.

End-of-life practices in Hong Kong intensive care units: results from the Ethicus-2 study.

Introduction: The need for end-of-life care is common in intensive care units (ICUs). Although guidelines exist, little is known about actual end-of-life care practices in Hong Kong ICUs. The study aim was to provide a detailed description of these practices.

Foals of mares vaccinated for Hendra virus have a suboptimal response to HeV vaccination.

Hendra virus (HeV) is lethal to horses and a zoonotic threat to humans in Australia, causing severe neurological and/or respiratory disease with high mortality. An equine vaccine has been available since 2012. Foals acquire antibodies from their dams by ingesting colostrum after parturition, therefore it is assumed that foals of mares vaccinated against HeV will have passive HeV antibodies circulating during the first several months of life until they are actively vaccinated.