Standard versus combined chemical, mechanical, and heat decontamination of hospital drains harboring carbapenemase-producing organisms (CPOs): A randomized controlled trial.

We sought to determine whether combined chemical, mechanical, and heat cleaning was superior to standard cleaning for the decontamination of 32 sink and shower drains harboring carbapenemase-producing organisms (CPOs). Of 16 intervention drains, 10 (63%) were decontaminated until day 7 versus 1 (5%) of 16 comparator drains (P = .002).

Multi-scale 3D Cryo-Correlative Microscopy for Vitrified Cells.

Three-dimensional (3D) visualization of vitrified cells can uncover structures of subcellular complexes without chemical fixation or staining. Here, we present a pipeline integrating three imaging modalities to visualize the same specimen at cryogenic temperature at different scales: cryo-fluorescence confocal microscopy, volume cryo-focused ion beam scanning electron microscopy, and transmission cryo-electron tomography. Our proof-of-concept benchmark revealed the 3D distribution of organelles and subcellular structures in whole heat-shocked yeast cells, including the ultrastructure of protein inclusions that recruit fluorescently-labeled chaperone Hsp104.

'I've got a little list'-the scourge of a surgical junior. A quality improvement project to change the surgical patient list in a district general hospital.

Background: Junior doctors at the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital spend hours every day creating and updating patient lists for all surgical specialties on Microsoft Excel spreadsheets. This not only consumes time that should be spent on clinical tasks, it allows for human errors, system errors and patient safety concerns. Our aim was to reduce time spent on the list and reduce the chance for error.

Three-dimensional ultrastructure of Plasmodium falciparum throughout cytokinesis.

New techniques for obtaining electron microscopy data through the cell volume are being increasingly utilized to answer cell biologic questions. Here, we present a three-dimensional atlas of Plasmodium falciparum ultrastructure throughout parasite cell division. Multiple wild type schizonts at different stages of segmentation, or budding, were imaged and rendered, and the 3D structure of their organelles and daughter cells are shown.

Helium ion microscopy of enamel crystallites and extracellular tooth enamel matrix.

An unresolved problem in tooth enamel studies has been to analyze simultaneously and with sufficient spatial resolution both mineral and organic phases in their three dimensional (3D) organization in a given specimen. This study aims to address this need using high-resolution imaging to analyze the 3D structural organization of the enamel matrix, especially amelogenin, in relation to forming enamel crystals. Chemically fixed hemi-mandibles from wild type mice were embedded in LR White acrylic resin, polished and briefly etched to expose the organic matrix in developing tooth enamel.