Understanding the role of zinc ions on struvite nucleation and growth in the context of infection urinary stones.

Taking into account that in recent decades there has been an increase in the incidence of urinary stones, especially in highly developed countries, from a wide range of potentially harmful substances commonly available in such countries, we chose zinc for the research presented in this article, which is classified by some sources as a heavy metal. In this article, we present the results of research on the influence of Zn2+ ion on the nucleation and growth of struvite crystals-the main component of infection urinary stones. The tests were carried out in an artificial urine environment with and without the presence of Proteus mirabilis bacteria.

Experimental-computational approach to investigate elastic properties of struvite.

The research presented in the paper concerns the elastic properties of struvite. The article combines theoretical and experimental research. Experimental studies were carried out on struvite single crystals grown in sodium metasilicate gel by single diffusion.

Insights into the physical and chemical properties of struvite crystal surfaces in terms of the effectiveness of bacterial adhesion.

In this paper, we present the results of research on the physicochemical properties of two selected faces of the struvite crystal, which is the main component of infectious urinary stones. Two main faces, (001) and ([Formula: see text]), ending the c-axis, were selected for the study. These faces are not related by symmetry relations, which means, among other things, that they should have a different atomic structure, which was confirmed experimentally.

Consumption of soft drinks rich in phosphoric acid versus struvite crystallization from artificial urine.

In recent years, there has been a continuous increase in the incidence of urolithiasis, especially in highly developed countries. Therefore, the question arises which factors specific to these countries may be responsible for the increase in the incidence of this disease. In this article, we try to assess the effect of phosphoric acid, a component of various carbonated drinks, including Coca-Cola, on the nucleation and growth of struvite crystals, which are the main component of infectious urinary stones.

The fascinating world of biogenic crystals.

The diverse properties of these crystals may lead to a variety of applications.

First experimental evidence of the piezoelectric nature of struvite.

In this paper, we present the first experimental evidence of the piezoelectric nature of struvite (MgNHPO·6HO). Using a single diffusion gel growth technique, we have grown struvite crystals in the form of plane parallel plates. For struvite crystals of this shape, we measured the piezoelectric coefficients d and d.

Structural and Optical Properties of Struvite. Elucidating Structure of Infrared Spectrum in High Frequency Range.

Study of structure and optical properties of magnesium ammonium phosphate hexahydrate crystal known as struvite is presented. Experimentally determined infrared (IR) and ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis) spectra are compared with the theoretical predictions of density functional methods. Examination of the interatomic bond lengths, Mulliken atomic charges, and binding energies of water in the magnesium hexahydrate cation, together with the analysis of the hydrogen bond pattern have allowed us to explain a special feature of the IR spectrum of struvite, a blueshift of the band corresponding to the O-H stretching mode.

Publisher Correction: Aggregation of poorly crystalline and amorphous components of infectious urinary stones is mediated by bacterial lipopolysaccharide.

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper.

Aggregation of poorly crystalline and amorphous components of infectious urinary stones is mediated by bacterial lipopolysaccharide.

Poorly crystalline and amorphous precipitate (PCaAP) is one of the components of the so-called infectious urinary stones, which are the result of the activity of urease-producing microorganisms, mainly from the Proteus species, in particular Proteus mirabilis. The main component of this kind of stones is crystalline struvite (MgNHPO∙6HO). Bacteria can build into the structure of the urinary stone and, in this way, they are one of the components of the urinary stone.

Bacterially Induced Formation of Infectious Urinary Stones: Recent Developments and Future Challenges.

Infectious urinary stones make a serious medical problem concerning up to 20% of population. Additionally, recurrence after treatment reaches 50%. The formation of infectious urinary stones is connected with urinary tract infection with various bacteria.

Temperature-dependent μ-Raman investigation of struvite crystals.

The effect of temperature on the vibrational properties of struvite crystals grown from silica gels was systematically studied by μ-Raman spectroscopy. The time-dependent Raman spectra recorded in the process of long time annealing of struvite crystal at 353 K do not indicate structural changes in the struvite crystal with the time of annealing. The temperature-dependent Raman spectra recorded in the range 298-423 K reveal a phase transition in struvite at about 368 K.

Unique surface and internal structure of struvite crystals formed by Proteus mirabilis.

Crystallization of struvite from artificial urine in the presence of Proteus mirabilis microorganisms depends strongly on pH value. At small value of pH, struvite yields crystals of coffin-like habit with very specific structure. The analysis using scanning electron microscopy shows that the crystals possess well-defined faces, but higher magnifications show very specific structuration as if the crystals were built from small three-dimensional subunits.

Effect of Curcumin Against Proteus mirabilis During Crystallization of Struvite from Artificial Urine.

We investigated the activity of curcumin against Proteus mirabilis and the struvite crystallization in relation to urinary stones formation. In order to evaluate an activity of curcumin we performed an in vitro experiment of struvite growth from artificial urine. The crystallization process was induced by Proteus mirabilis to mimic the real urinary tract infection, which usually leads to urinary stone formation.

Ab initio predictions of structural and elastic properties of struvite: contribution to urinary stone research.

In the present work, we carried out density functional calculations of struvite--the main component of the so-called infectious urinary stones--to study its structural and elastic properties. Using a local density approximation and a generalised gradient approximation, we calculated the equilibrium structural parameters and elastic constants C(ijkl). At present, there is no experimental data for these elastic constants C (ijkl) for comparison.

Density functional theory determination of structural and electronic properties of struvite.

Crystallographic structure, total energy, electronic structure, and the most important elastic properties of struvite, NH(4)MgPO(4).6H(2)O, the main component of infectious urinary stones, are presented. The calculations were performed using ab initio full-electron calculations within the density functional theory-generalized gradient approximation (DFT-GGA) framework.