Cross-sectional study of association between caries and fluoridated water among third-grade students in Pennsylvania.

Background: Caries is the most common chronic disease among children. In Pennsylvania, a comprehensive oral health Basic Screening Survey and assessment of the association between caries and community water fluoridation (CWF) among children have not been conducted.

Methods: From 2021 through 2022, the first Basic Screening Survey was conducted among third-grade students in Pennsylvania.

Exploring the Joint Association of Road Traffic Noise and Air Quality with Hypertension Using QGIS.

There is growing evidence linking exposure to air pollution and traffic noise with hypertension. The aim of this study was to examine the associations of registered hypertension cases and hypertension rate with exposure to air pollution and road noise. In this cross-sectional study, we linked the information from the NHS Scotland database of 776,579 hypertension patients' registrations and rates per 13.

Exploring the Combined Association between Road Traffic Noise and Air Quality Using QGIS.

There is mounting evidence that exposure to air pollution and noise from transportation are linked to the risk of hypertension. Most studies have only looked at relationships between single exposures. To examine links between combined exposure to road traffic, air pollution, and road noise.

Recycling Plastics from WEEE: A Review of the Environmental and Human Health Challenges Associated with Brominated Flame Retardants.

Waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) presents the dual characteristic of containing both hazardous substances and valuable recoverable materials. Mainly found in WEEE plastics, brominated flame retardants (BFRs) are a component of particular interest. Several actions have been taken worldwide to regulate their use and disposal, however, in countries where no regulation is in place, the recovery of highly valuable materials has promoted the development of informal treatment facilities, with serious consequences for the environment and the health of the workers and communities involved.

Uninterpretable cerebrospinal fluid absorbance scans caused by antibiotic therapy.

Background: The revised national guidelines for analysis of cerebrospinal fluid for bilirubin in suspected subarachnoid haemorrhage (UK) provide an objective means of assessing cerebrospinal fluid samples to determine the risk of subarachnoid haemorrhage. The guidelines are intended for general use, but samples rendered uninterpretable due to the presence of the antibiotic doxycycline have been described. Here, further cases of antibiotic-based interference, and their implications, are presented.

EXPRESS: Uninterpretable cerebrospinal fluid absorbance scans caused by antibiotic therapy.

Background The revised national guidelines for analysis of cerebrospinal fluid for bilirubin in suspected subarachnoid haemorrhage (UK) provide an objective means of assessing cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples to determine risk of subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH). The guidelines are intended for general use, but samples rendered uninterpretable due to the presence of the antibiotic doxycycline have been described. Here, further cases of antibiotic- based interference, and their implications, are presented.

Is the influenza vaccine effective in decreasing infection, hospitalization, pneumonia, and mortality in healthy adults?

The annual influenza vaccine is universally recommended by the CDC for individuals greater than six months of age. However, unlike the other 16 routinely recommended vaccines, influenza vaccination is annual and developed based on circulating strains that are constantly modifying the primary immune targets, the hemagglutinin and neuraminidase receptors. Given the variation in these critical receptors, the need to predict changes in the protein structure, and the necessity of such frequent immunizations it is reasonable to question the annual vaccinations efficacy, especially in otherwise healthy adults.

Do prophylactic probiotics prevent the incidence of Clostridium difficile colitis infection in hospitalized patients?

Clostridium difficile colitis infection is an opportunistic infection with as high as an estimated 30,000 deaths and 4.8 million dollars in healthcare costs recorded in 2011. The most common risk factor for infection is antibiotic therapy.

Interfacial Water Features at Air-Water Interfaces as Influenced by Charged Surfactants.

The features of interfacial water at air-water interfaces of anionic sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) and cationic dodecyl amine hydrochloride (DDA) solutions were examined by combining sum frequency generation (SFG) vibrational spectroscopy measurements and molecular dynamics simulations (MDS). The SFG spectra revealed that interfacial water molecules for SDS solutions were highly ordered compared with those for DDA solutions. To elucidate this observation, in addition to agreement with the literature in regards to the interfacial electric field at the interfaces, we investigated the features of interfacial water molecules with respect to their network and their interaction with surfactant head groups.

Advanced Nanoclay-Based Nanocomposite Solid Polymer Electrolyte for Lithium Iron Phosphate Batteries.

High-performance solid polymer electrolytes (SPEs) have long been desired for the next generation of lithium batteries. One of the most promising ways to improve the morphological and electrochemical properties of SPEs is the addition of fillers with specific nanostructures. However, the production of such fillers is generally expensive and requires complicated preparation procedures.

The hydrophobic surface state of talc as influenced by aluminum substitution in the tetrahedral layer.

Talc is both an important industrial mineral product recovered by flotation, and also in other cases, a gangue mineral of concern in the flotation of certain sulfide ores, such as the PGM ores from South Africa and from the United States. The talc face surface is naturally hydrophobic with a water sessile drop contact angle of nearly 80°, which accounts for its flotation recovery in one case, and its contamination of sulfide mineral concentrates in other instances. Due to the presence of impurities in the talc structure the surface properties change.

Attachment, Coalescence, and Spreading of Carbon Dioxide Nanobubbles at Pyrite Surfaces.

Recently, it was reported that using CO as a flotation gas increases the flotation of auriferous pyrite from high carbonate gold ores of the Carlin Trend. In this regard, the influence of CO on bubble attachment at fresh pyrite surfaces was measured in the absence of collector using an induction timer, and it was found that nitrogen bubble attachment time was significantly reduced from 30 ms to less than 10 ms in CO saturated solutions. Details of CO bubble attachment at a fresh pyrite surface have been examined by atomic force microscopy (AFM) measurements and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, and the results used to describe the subsequent attachment of a N bubble.

Ultrasound-assisted leaching of cobalt and lithium from spent lithium-ion batteries.

Recovery of cobalt and lithium from spent Li-ion batteries (LIBs) has been studied using ultrasound-assisted leaching. The primary purpose of this work is to investigate the effects of ultrasound on leaching efficiency of cobalt and lithium. The results were compared to conventional leaching.

The nature of hematite depression with corn starch in the reverse flotation of iron ore.

The function of corn starch and the significance of the order of addition of corn starch and mono ether amine in the reverse flotation of iron ore has been investigated. Understanding hematite depression with starch and the corresponding hydrophilic state involves consideration of adsorption with amine as well as flocculation of fine hematite. Captive bubble contact angle and micro-flotation experiments indicated that amine has an affinity towards both hematite and quartz, and that the role of starch is to hinder the adsorption of amine at the hematite surface so that flotation is inhibited.

Alkalosis in Critically Ill Patients with Severe Sepsis and Septic Shock.

Introduction: Although metabolic alkalosis is a common occurrence in intensive care units (ICUs), no study has evaluated its prevalence or outcomes in patients with severe sepsis or septic shock.

Methods: This is a retrospective cohort study of critically ill patients suffering from severe sepsis and septic shock admitted to the ICUs of Halmstad and Varberg County hospitals. From 910 patient records, 627 patients met the inclusion criteria.

Some physicochemical aspects of water-soluble mineral flotation.

Some physicochemical aspects of water-soluble mineral flotation including hydration phenomena, associations and interactions between collectors, air bubbles, and water-soluble mineral particles are presented. Flotation carried out in saturated salt solutions, and a wide range of collector concentrations for effective flotation of different salts are two basic aspects of water-soluble mineral flotation. Hydration of salt ions, mineral particle surfaces, collector molecules or ions, and collector aggregates play an important role in water-soluble mineral flotation.

The surface state of hematite and its wetting characteristics.

Apart from being a resource for iron/steel production, the iron oxide minerals, goethite and hematite, are used in the paint, cosmetics, and other industries as pigments. Surface characteristics of these minerals have been studied extensively both in resource recovery by flotation and in the preparation of colloidal dispersions. In this current research, the wetting characteristics of goethite (FeOOH) and hematite (Fe2O3) have been analyzed by means of contact angle, bubble attachment time, and Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) measurements as well as by Molecular Dynamics Simulation (MDS).

Influence of ionic strength on the surface charge and interaction of layered silicate particles.

The surface charge densities and surface potentials of selected phyllosilicate surfaces were calculated from AFM surface force measurements and reported as a function of ionic strength at pH 5.6. The results show that the silica faces of clay minerals follow the constant surface charge model because of isomorphous substitution in the silica tetrahedral layer.

Surface force measurements at kaolinite edge surfaces using atomic force microscopy.

Fundamental results obtained from research on the properties of the edge surfaces of kaolinite particles (~500 nm) are reported. Of particular significance was the development of the experimental protocol. Well-ordered kaolinite edge surfaces were prepared as an epoxy resin sandwich structure having layered kaolinite particles in the center of the epoxy resin sandwich.

The primacy of physicochemical characterization of nanomaterials for reliable toxicity assessment: a review of the zebrafish nanotoxicology model.

Engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) have become increasingly prevalent in the past two decades in academic, medical, commercial, and industrial settings. The unique properties imbued with nanoparticles, as the physiochemical properties change from the bulk material to the surface atoms, present unique and often challenging characteristics that larger macromolecules do not possess. While nanoparticle characteristics are indeed exciting for unique chemistries, surface properties, and diverse applications, reports of toxicity and environmental impacts have tempered this enthusiasm and given cause for an exponential increase for concomitant nanotoxicology assessment.

Surface charge and wetting characteristics of layered silicate minerals.

The surface characteristics, including surface charge and wettability, of layered silicates are reviewed based on experimental results and molecular dynamics simulation (MDS) results. The surface charge features of important layered silicates including mica, talc, and kaolinite are described from atomic force microscopy (AFM) measurements, electrophoresis measurements, and/or results from potentiometric titration. In addition, the wetting characteristics of the silica tetrahedral surface which is common to all layered silicates are examined with different experimental techniques and results are discussed.

Indirect electrochemical Cr(III) oxidation in KOH solutions at an Au electrode: the role of oxygen reduction reaction.

The indirect electro-oxidation of Cr(III) by in situ generated superoxide at a gold electrode has been investigated in KOH solutions using cyclic voltammetry and UV-vis spectroscopy. It is observed that the indirect Cr(III) oxidation behavior is substantially affected by the media pH and there is a pH-modulated oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) process to generate reactive oxygen species which promotes Cr(III) oxidation. The ORR in KOH solutions is attributed to a quasi-reversible diffusion-controlled reaction.