Chitra Ultraviolet-C-Based Facemask Disposal Bin.

Used face masks are hazardous waste and must be discarded immediately upon removal. Instead of throwing used masks into the disposal bin, disinfecting the masks is essential to break the chain of infection spread. The development of this device was attempted for COVID-19 management, with the following focus: (1) solution which have sufficient science background established so that extensive experimental validation need not be attempted during the lockdown period in India.

Antibacterial nanosilver coated orthodontic bands with potential implications in dentistry.

Background & Objectives: Fixed orthodontic treatment, an indispensable procedure in orthodontics, necessitates insertion of dental bands. Insertion of band material could also introduce a site of plaque retention. It was hypothesized that band materials with slow-release antimicrobial properties could help in sustained infection control, prevention of dental plaque formation and further associated health risks.

Pulmonary surfactant expression analysis--role of cell-cell interactions and 3-D tissue-like architecture.

Surfactant production is important in maintaining alveolar function both in vivo and in vitro, but surfactant expression is the primary property lost by alveolar Type II Pneumocytes in culture and its maintenance is a functional requirement. To develop a functional tissue-like model, the in vivo cell-cell interactions and three dimensional architecture has to be reproduced. To this end, 3D button-shaped synthetic gelatin vinyl acetate (GeVAc) co-polymer scaffold was seeded with different types of lung cells.

Silver nanoparticle impregnated poly (ɛ-caprolactone) scaffolds: optimization of antimicrobial and noncytotoxic concentrations.

Use of silver nanoparticles (SNPs) for control of implant-associated infection is a promising strategy, if optimum antimicrobial yet nontoxic dose to mammalian cells is identified. This study was done to determine essential quantity of SNPs, which stimulate antimicrobial activity without cytotoxicity, when immobilized on poly (ɛ-caprolactone) (PCL) scaffold proposed for vascular tissue engineering. During SNP synthesis and scaffold preparation, nanoparticle aggregation was protected using poly (ethylene glycol).

Two-dimensional cell sheet manipulation of heterotypically co-cultured lung cells utilizing temperature-responsive culture dishes results in long-term maintenance of differentiated epithelial cell functions.

Here we report two-dimensional cell sheet manipulation (2D CSM) of heterotypically co-cultured lung cell sheets and the maintenance of differentiated phenotypes of lung epithelial cells over prolonged periods of up to 70 days. This was facilitated by poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PIPAAm)-grafted tissue culture dishes. PIPAAm-grafted dishes are responsive to temperature changes and offer a unique surface on which cells adhere and multiply like on ordinary tissue culture dishes under the permissive temperature of 37 degrees C, but on lowering of temperature resulting in changes in hydration of the polymer the cells spontaneously detach from the surface without use of enzymes like trypsin which is the common procedure.