Benchmarking commercially available soft and rigid passive back exoskeletons for an industrial workplace.

Low-back pain is a common occupational hazard for industrial workers. Several studies show the advantages of using rigid and soft back-support passive exoskeletons and exosuits (exos) to reduce the low-back loading and risk of injury. However, benefits of using these exos have been shown to be task-specific.

Biocompatibility of a fish scale-derived artificial cornea: Cytotoxicity, cellular adhesion and phenotype, and in vivo immunogenicity.

Purpose: To determine whether a fish scale-derived collagen matrix (FSCM) meets the basic criteria to serve as an artificial cornea, as determined with in vitro and in vivo tests.

Methods: Primary corneal epithelial and stromal cells were obtained from human donor corneas and used to examine the (in)direct cytotoxicity effects of the scaffold. Cytotoxicity was assessed by an MTT assay, while cellular proliferation, corneal cell phenotype and adhesion markers were assessed using an EdU-assay and immunofluorescence.