When responding to nuclear and radiological emergencies, rapid and on-site detections of possible internal radioactive contaminants are required for early dose estimation and medical triage. Nasal swab analysis is an effective method to provide valuable information for early and fast estimates of alpha radionuclide inhalation intakes and resultant doses. In this study, to improve the quality of nasal swab measurements, a specialised double-detector alpha counter was designed. Various parameters including swab materials, sample pre-preparation, angle-dependence and vacuum dependence were investigated to optimise the reliability and convenience of the nasal swab method. An improved procedure of direct nasal swab measurement was eventually established, which could be used to obtain early data for initial dose assessment during the first response of nuclear and radiological emergencies.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1088/1361-6498/ab6628 | DOI Listing |
Sci Rep
January 2025
Department of Microbiology, Division of Laboratory Medicine, Oslo University Hospital, 0372, Oslo, Norway.
The respiratory tract is colonized with low-density microbial communities, which have been shown to impact human respiratory health through microbiota-host interactions. However, a lack of fast and cost-effective nucleic acid extraction method for low-microbial biomass samples hinders investigation of respiratory microbiota. Here, we performed a pilot study to assess the suitability of the NAxtra nucleic acid extraction protocol for profiling bacterial microbiota in respiratory samples.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBiosens Bioelectron
January 2025
Beijing Institute of Technology School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, China. Electronic address:
Photonic crystal-based aptasensors for viral proteins detection offer the advantage of producing visible readouts. However, they usually suffer from limited sensitivity and high non-specific background noise. A significant contributing factor to these issues is the use of fixed-conformation aptamers in these sensors.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBMC Glob Public Health
January 2025
UK Health Security Agency, London, UK.
Background: The UK's National Health Service Test and Trace (NHSTT) program aimed to provide the most effective and accessible SARS-CoV-2 testing approach possible. Early user feedback indicated that there were accessibility issues associated with throat swabbing. We report the results of service evaluations performed by NHSTT to assess the effectiveness and user acceptance of swabbing approaches, as well as qualitative findings of user experiences from research reports, surveys, and incident reports.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFVet Res
January 2025
Department of Microbiology and Cell Biology, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT, USA.
M. ovipneumoniae is a respiratory pathogen that can cause mild to moderate pneumonia and reduced productivity in domestic lambs. However, studies on both natural and experimental M.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEur J Public Health
January 2025
EcoHealth Alliance, New York, NY, United States.
Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) is an important zoonotic pathogen. The aim of this paper is to report one polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-positive case of MERS-CoV in a 27-year-old man who was involved in a nationwide longitudinal surveillance study of certain zoonotic diseases in Jordan including MERS-CoV. Whole-blood and nasal swab samples were collected from the man and five camels in the vicinity of his living area.
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