Rational design and characterization of bioplastics from Hermetia illucens prepupae proteins.

In this study proteins extracted from prepupae of Hermetia illucens, also known as black soldier fly, are investigated as promising base for a new type of bioplastics for agricultural purposes. Design of experiments techniques are employed to perform a rational study on the effects of different combination of glycerol as plasticizer, citric acid as cross-linking agent and distilled water as solvent on the capability of proteins to form a free-standing film through casting technique, keeping as fixed the quantity of proteins. Glycerol shows interesting properties as plasticizer contributing to the formation of homogenous and free-standing film.

Bone Regeneration by Novel Bioactive Glasses Containing Strontium and/or Magnesium: A Preliminary In-Vivo Study.

In this work, a set of novel bioactive glasses have been tested in vivo in an animal model. The new compositions, characterized by an exceptional thermal stability and high in vitro bioactivity, contain strontium and/or magnesium, whose biological benefits are well documented in the literature. To simulate a long-term implant and to study the effect of the complete dissolution of glasses, samples were implanted in the mid-shaft of rabbits' femur and analyzed 60 days after the surgery; such samples were in undersized powder form.

Tribological and mechanical performance evaluation of metal prosthesis components manufactured via metal injection molding.

The increasing number of total joint replacements, in particular for the knee joint, has a growing impact on the healthcare system costs. New cost-saving manufacturing technologies are being explored nowadays. Metal injection molding (MIM) has already demonstrated its suitability for the production of CoCrMo alloy tibial trays, with a significant reduction in production costs, by holding both corrosion resistance and biocompatibility.