An Oxygen Delivery Polymer Enhances Seed Germination in a Martian-like Environment.

Critical to the success of establishing a sustainable human presence on Mars is the ability to economically grow crop plants. Several environmental factors make it difficult to fully rely on local resources for agriculture. These include nutrient sparse regolith, low and fluctuating temperatures, a high amount of ultraviolet radiation, and water trapped locally in the form of ice or metal oxides.

The science behind wet wipes for infant skin: Ingredient review, safety, and efficacy.

In the diapered area, the continuous exposure to excess moisture and irritants from urine and feces weakens the stratum corneum, making the skin more susceptible to irritation. The use of wet wipes for infants (baby wipes) is a common practice to clean skin after urine or a bowel movement, and this practice even extends to cleaning the hands and face, resulting in repeated daily use. Therefore, ensuring that baby wipes contain ingredients that are safe and mild on skin is important to help minimize skin irritation and discomfort.

Neonatal Opioid Withdrawal Syndrome: A Developmental Care Approach.

Tens of thousands of infants are impacted yearly by prenatal opioid exposure. The term (NOWS) is now replacing the more familiar term (NAS). Ongoing debate continues related to standard regimens for treatment of this oftentimes perplexing condition.

Benefits of Using an Appropriately Formulated Wipe to Clean Diapered Skin of Preterm Infants.

The skin of premature infants is underdeveloped rendering it more prone to break down and irritation. Therefore, special care is needed to protect premature skin and ensure it is not adversely affected. Many health care professionals advise using just water and cloth to clean diapered skin after a bowel movement despite evidence that shows improved infant skin health with the use of modern appropriately formulated baby wipes.

p38 MAP Kinase Inhibition Reduces Propionibacterium acnes-Induced Inflammation in Vitro.

Introduction: Propionibacterium acnes, a ubiquitous skin bacterium, stimulates keratinocytes to produce a number of proinflammatory cytokines and may contribute to inflammatory acne. The aim of the study was to investigate whether P. acnes-induced proinflammatory cytokine release is mediated by P.

Manipulation of valve composition to elucidate the role of collagen in aortic valve calcification.

Background: Extracellular matrix (ECM) disarray is found in calcific aortic valvular disease (CAVD), yet much remains to be learned about the role of individual ECM components in valvular interstitial cell (VIC) function and dysfunction. Previous clinical analyses have shown that calcification is associated with decreased collagen content, while previous in vitro work has suggested that the presence of collagen attenuates the responsiveness of VICs to pro-calcific stimuli. The current study uses whole leaflet cultures to examine the contributions of endogenous collagen in regulating the phenotype and calcification of VICs.

A purified feverfew extract protects from oxidative damage by inducing DNA repair in skin cells via a PI3-kinase-dependent Nrf2/ARE pathway.

Background: Environmental factors such as solar ultraviolet (UV) radiation and other external aggressors provide an oxidative challenge that is detrimental to skin health. The levels of endogenous antioxidants decrease with age, thus resulting in less protection and a greater potential for skin damage. The NF-E2-related factor-2 (Nrf2) - antioxidant response element (ARE) pathway is a primary defense mechanism against oxidative stress, and induces the expression of antioxidant, detoxification and repair genes.

Tryptophan inhibits biofilm formation by Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Biofilm formation by Pseudomonas aeruginosa has been implicated in the pathology of chronic wounds. Both the d and l isoforms of tryptophan inhibited P. aeruginosa biofilm formation on tissue culture plates, with an equimolar ratio of d and l isoforms producing the greatest inhibitory effect.

Regulation of valvular interstitial cell phenotype and function by hyaluronic acid in 2-D and 3-D culture environments.

Disruption of the extracellular matrix (ECM) is frequently found in calcific aortic valve disease (CAVD), yet the role of ECM components in valvular interstitial cell (VIC) function and dysfunction remains poorly understood. This study examines the contributions of exogenous and endogenous hyaluronic acid (HA), in both two-dimensional (2-D) and 3-D environments, in regulating the phenotype and calcification of VICs. VIC calcification was first assessed in a 2-D setting in which the cells were exposed to different molecular weights of exogenous HA presented in either an immobilized or soluble form.

Regulation of valvular interstitial cell calcification by components of the extracellular matrix.

Understanding the interactions between extracellular matrix (ECM) components and valvular interstitial cells (VICs) is relevant to both treating heart valve disease and designing heart valve tissue engineering scaffolds, yet the VIC-ECM relationship has not been well characterized. Thus, the aim of this study was to characterize VIC-ECM interactions, paying specific attention to whether ECM composition affected the in vitro calcification of VICs. Our results show that the number and size of calcific nodules formed in VIC cultures, as well as the expression of the mineralization markers alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and CBFa1, were highly dependent upon the composition of the culture surface.

Template synthesis of arrays of nano fuel cells.

A method for the construction of an array of fuel cells wherein each cell is 200 nm in diameter is presented. Electrodeposition of Pt-Cu nanowires inside the cylindrical pores of an Anodisc filter membrane and the subsequent dealloying of the Cu by soaking the filter in fuming nitric acid for several hours are used to construct an array of porous platinum electrodes. About 10(9) electrically isolated cylindrical porous electrodes, each 200 nm in diameter, are formed in this manner.