Validating SMPS-measured size distribution of double-mode spherical Silica nanoparticles by Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM)

A nanoparticles size is one of their key physical characteristics that can affect their fate in a human’s respiratory tract (in case of inhalation) and also in the environment. Hence, measuring the size distribution of nanoparticles is absolutely essential and contributes greatly to their characterization. For years, Scanning Mobility Particle Sizers (SMPS), which rely on measuring the electrical mobility diameter of particles, have been used as one of the most reliable real-time instruments for the size distribution measurement of nanoparticles. Despite its benefits, this instrument has some drawbacks, including equivalency problems for non-spherical particles (i.e. assuming a non-spherical particle is equal to a spherical particle of diameter d due to the same electrical mobility), as well as limitations in terms of its use in workplaces, because of its large size and the complexity of its operation...

The B subunit of coagulation factor XIII is linked to renin and the Duffy blood group to α-spectrin on human chromosome 1

Family linkage studies were used to detect two linkage relationships on human chromosome 1. The B subunit of coagulation factor XIII showed significant linkage to renin with a maximum lod score of 5.071 at a distance of 10 cM. Significant linkage was also shown between the Duffy blood group and α-spectrin with linkage results giving a combined lod score of 3.194 at 5 cM.

The effect of poser race on the happy categorization advantage depends on stimulus type, set size, and presentation duration

The question as to whether poser race affects the happy categorization advantage, the faster categorization of happy than of negative emotional expressions, has been answered inconsistently. Hugenberg (2005) found the happy categorization advantage only for own race faces whereas faster categorization of angry expressions was evident for other race faces. Kubota and Ito (2007) found a happy categorization advantage for both own race and other race faces. These results have vastly different implications for understanding the influence of race cues on the processing of emotional expressions. The current study replicates the results of both prior studies and indicates that face type (computer-generated vs. photographic), presentation duration, and especially stimulus set size influence the happy categorization advantage as well as the moderating effect of poser race.

Person re-identification using group information

After first observing a person, the task of person re-identification involves recognising an individual at different locations across a network of cameras at a later time. Traditionally, this task has been performed by first extracting appearance features of an individual and then matching these features to the previous observation. However, identifying an individual based solely on appearance can be ambiguous, particularly when people wear similar clothing (i.e. people dressed in uniforms in sporting and school settings). This task is made more difficult when the resolution of the input image is small as is typically the case in multi-camera networks. To circumvent these issues, we need to use other contextual cues. In this paper, we use "group" information as our contextual feature to aid in the re-identification of a person, which is heavily motivated by the fact that people generally move together as a collective group. To encode group context, we learn a linear mapping function to assign each person to a "role" or position within the group structure. We then combine the appearance and group context cues using a weighted summation. We demonstrate how this improves performance of person re-identification in a sports environment over appearance based-features.

Role of particle size and composition in metal adsorption by solids deposited on urban road surfaces

Despite common knowledge that the metal content adsorbed by fine particles is relatively higher compared to coarser particles, the reasons for this phenomenon has gained little research attention. The research study discussed in the paper investigated the variations in metal content for different particle sizes of solids associated with pollutant build-up on urban road surfaces. Data analysis confirmed that parameters favourable for metal adsorption to solids such as specific surface area, organic carbon content, effective cation exchange capacity and clay forming minerals content decrease with the increase in particle size. Furthermore, the mineralogical composition of solids was found to be the governing factor influencing the specific surface area and effective cation exchange capacity. There is high quartz content in particles >150µm compared to particles <150µm. As particle size reduces below 150µm, the clay forming minerals content increases, providing favourable physical and chemical properties that influence adsorption.

Increasing electrospun scaffold pore size with tailored collectors for improved cell penetration

This study investigates the use of patterned collectors to increase the pore size of electrospun scaffolds for enhanced cell infiltration. The morphology of the patterned scaffolds was investigated by scanning electron microscopy, which showed that the collector pattern was accurately mimicked by the electrospun fibres. We observed an enlargement in the pore size and in the pore size distribution compared with conventional electrospinning. Mechanical testing revealed that the mechanical properties could be tailored, to some extent, according to the patterning and that the patterned scaffolds were softer than standard electrospun scaffolds. When NIH 3T3 fibroblasts were seeded onto patterned collectors improved cell infiltration was observed. Cells were able to penetrate up to 250 μm into the scaffolds, compared with 30 μm for the standard scaffolds. This increase in the depth of infiltration occurred as early as 24 h post-seeding and remained constant over 7 days.

Development of modified inorganic adsorbents for radioactive iodine removal and biomolecule adsorption

Development and application of inorganic adsorbent materials have been continuously investigated due to their variability and versatility. This Master thesis has expanded the knowledge in the field of adsorption targeting radioactive iodine waste and proteins using modified inorganic materials. Industrial treatment of radioactive waste and safety disposal of nuclear waste is a constant concern around the world with the development of radioactive materials applications. To address the current problems, laminar titanate with large surface area (143 m2 g−1) was synthesized from inorganic titanium compounds by hydrothermal reactions at 433 K. Ag2O nanocrystals of particle size ranging from 5–30 nm were anchored on the titanate lamina surface which has crystallographic similarity to that of Ag2O nanocrystals. Therefore, the deposited Ag2O nanocrystals and titanate substrate could join together at these surfaces between which there forms a coherent interface. Such coherence between the two phases reduces the overall energy by minimizing surface energy and maintains the Ag2O nanocrystals firmly on the outer surface of the titanate structure. The combined adsorbent was then applied as efficient adsorbent to remove radioactive iodine from water (one gram adsorbent can capture up to 3.4 mmol of I- anions) and the composite adsorbent can be recovered easily for safe disposal. The structure changes of the titanate lamina and the composite adsorbent were characterized via various techniques. The isotherm and kinetics of iodine adsorption, competitive adsorption and column adsorption using the adsorbent were studied to determine the iodine removal abilities of the adsorbent. It is shown that the adsorbent exhibited excellent trapping ability towards iodine in the fix-bed column despite the presence of competitive ions. Hence, Ag2O deposited titanate lamina could serve as an effective adsorbent for removing iodine from radioactive waste. Surface hydroxyl group of the inorganic materials is widely applied for modification purposes and modification of inorganic materials for biomolecule adsorption can also be achieved. Specifically, γ-Al2O3 nanofibre material is converted via calcinations from boehmite precursor which is synthesised by hydrothermal chemical reactions under directing of surfactant. These γ-Al2O3 nanofibres possess large surface area (243 m2 g-1), good stability under extreme chemical conditions, good mechanical strength and rich surface hydroxyl groups making it an ideal candidate in industrialized separation column. The fibrous morphology of the adsorbent also guarantees facile recovery from aqueous solution under both centrifuge and sedimentation approaches. By chemically bonding the dyes molecules, the charge property of γ-Al2O3 is changed in the aim of selectively capturing of lysozyme from chicken egg white solution. The highest Lysozyme adsorption amount was obtained at around 600 mg/g and its proportion is elevated from around 5% to 69% in chicken egg white solution. It was found from the adsorption test under different solution pH that electrostatic force played the key role in the good selectivity and high adsorption rate of surface modified γ-Al2O3 nanofibre adsorbents. Overall, surface modified fibrous γ-Al2O3 could be applied potentially as an efficient adsorbent for capturing of various biomolecules.

Closing the case of APOE in multiple sclerosis : no association with disease risk in over 29,000 subjects

Background Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) rs429358 (ε4) and rs7412 (ε2), both invoking changes in the amino-acid sequence of the apolipoprotein E (APOE) gene, have previously been tested for association with multiple sclerosis (MS) risk. However, none of these studies was sufficiently powered to detect modest effect sizes at acceptable type-I error rates. As both SNPs are only imperfectly captured on commonly used microarray genotyping platforms, their evaluation in the context of genome-wide association studies has been hindered until recently. Methods We genotyped 12 740 subjects hitherto not studied for their APOE status, imputed raw genotype data from 8739 subjects from five independent genome wide association studies datasets using the most recent high-resolution reference panels, and extracted genotype data for 8265 subjects from previous candidate gene assessments. Results Despite sufficient power to detect associations at genome-wide significance thresholds across a range of ORs, our analyses did not support a role of rs429358 or rs7412 on MS susceptibility. This included meta-analyses of the combined data across 13 913 MS cases and 15 831 controls (OR=0.95, p=0.259, and OR 1.07, p=0.0569, for rs429358 and rs7412, respectively). Conclusion Given the large sample size of our analyses, it is unlikely that the two APOE missense SNPs studied here exert any relevant effects on MS susceptibility.

Incidence of hypotony and sympathetic ophthalmia following trans scleral cyclophotocoagulation for glaucoma and a report of risk factors

Background: To report the incidence and risk factors for hypotony and estimate the risk of sympathetic ophthalmia following diode laser trans-scleral cyclophotocoagulation (TSCPC). Design: Retrospective study using data from a private tertiary glaucoma clinic and review of the literature. Participants: Seventy eyes of 70 patients with refractory glaucoma who received TSCPC treatment. Methods: Review of the records of consecutive patients who underwent TSCPC by a single ophthalmic surgeon and review of the literature. Main Outcome Measures: Hypotony (including phthisis bulbi), sympathetic ophthalmia. Results: Seven eyes (10%; CI 5-19%) developed hypotony and included 4 eyes that developed phthisis. Higher total energy delivered during TSCPC treatment was associated with an increased risk of hypotony: eyes that developed hypotony received a mean total energy of 192.5 ± 73.2 joules, compared to a mean of 152.9 ± 83.2 joules in hypotony-free cases. The difference in mean energy delivered between the hypotony and non-hypotony group was 38.53 (95% CI: -27.57 to 104.63). The risk of sympathetic ophthalmia estimated from a review of the published literature and current series was one in 1512, or 0.07% (CI 0.03% - 0.17%). Conclusions: Total laser energy is one of several risk factors that act in a sufficient component cause-model to produce hypotony in an individual patient. The small sample size precluded inference for other individual putative risk factors but titrating laser energy may help decrease the occurrence of hypotony. The risk of sympathetic ophthalmia calculated from the literature is likely an overestimate caused by publication bias.

Accounting for volunteer services : a deficiency in accountability

The purpose of this study is to identify the extent to which NFP organisations disclose information on volunteer contributions of services. Design/methodology/approach – The study relies on information disclosed in the websites of NFP organisations. Findings - We find that disclosure was more prevalent on NFP websites compared to digital annual report disclosures. We find that more NFPs provided disclosure on the activities of their volunteers than other items pertaining to volunteers and the quantification and valuation of volunteer contributions were the least likely to be disclosed. Importantly, the findings illustrate an accountability deficiency in the comprehensiveness of disclosure which results in an under-representation of the contribution volunteers provide to organisational sustainability and impact on mission fulfilment. Research limitations/implications – The convenience sample size restricts further interrogation to tease out organisational characteristics that may influence current disclosure practices. Practical implications - The findings contribute to international debate over the inclusion of volunteer contributions in the assessment of a NFP’s accountability over its resources and ultimately the enhancement of its sustainability.

Comparative study on the protective effects of Yinchenhao Decoction against liver injury induced by alpha-naphthylisothiocyanate and carbon tetrachloride

OBJECTIVE: To optimize the animal model of liver injury that can properly represent the pathological characteristics of dampness-heat jaundice syndrome of traditional Chinese medicine. METHODS: The liver injury in the model rat was induced by alpha-naphthylisothiocyanate (ANIT) and carbon tetrachloride (CCl(4) ) respectively, and the effects of Yinchenhao Decoction (, YCHD), a proved effective Chinese medical formula for treating the dampness-heat jaundice syndrome in clinic, on the two liver injury models were evaluated by analyzing the serum level of alanine aminotransferase (ALT), asparate aminotransferase (AST), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), malondialchehyche (MDA), total bilirubin (T-BIL), superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-PX) as well as the ratio of liver weight to body weight. The experimental data were analyzed by principal component analytical method of pattern recognition. RESULTS: The ratio of liver weight to body weight was significantly elevated in the ANIT and CCl(4) groups when compared with that in the normal control (P<0.01). The contents of ALT and T-BIL were significantly higher in the ANIT group than in the normal control (P<0.05,P<0.01), and the levels of AST, ALT and ALP were significantly elevated in CCl(4) group relative to those in the normal control P<0.01). In the YCHD group, the increase in AST, ALT and ALP levels was significantly reduced (P<0.05, P<0.01), but with no significant increase in serum T-BIL. In the CCl(4) intoxicated group, the MDA content was significantly increased and SOD, GSH-PX activities decreased significantly compared with those in the normal control group, respectively (P<0.01). The increase in MDA induced by CCl(4) was significantly reduced by YCHD P<0.05). CONCLUSION: YCHD showed significant effects on preventing liver injury progression induced by CCl(4), and the closest or most suitable animal model for damp-heat jaundice syndrome may be the one induced by CCl(4).

Encouraging, assisting, and time to eat : comparison of mealtime assistance interventions in elderly medical inpatients

BACKGROUND: The prevalence of protein-energy malnutrition in older adults is reported to be as high as 60% and is associated with poor health outcomes. Inadequate feeding assistance and mealtime interruptions may contribute to malnutrition and poor nutritional intake during hospitalisation. Despite being widely implemented in practice in the United Kingdom and increasingly in Australia, there have been few studies examining the impact of strategies such as Protected Mealtimes and dedicated feeding assistant roles on nutritional outcomes of elderly inpatients. AIMS: The aim of this research was to implement and compare three system-level interventions designed to specifically address mealtime barriers and improve energy intakes of medical inpatients aged ≥65 years. This research also aimed to evaluate the sustainability of any changes to mealtime routines six months post-intervention and to gain an understanding of staff perceptions of the post-intervention mealtime experience. METHODS: Three mealtime assistance interventions were implemented in three medical wards at Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital: AIN-only: Additional assistant-in-nursing (AIN) with dedicated nutrition role. PM-only: Multidisciplinary approach to meals, including Protected Mealtimes. PM+AIN: Combined intervention: AIN + multidisciplinary approach to meals. An action research approach was used to carefully design and implement the three interventions in partnership with ward staff and managers. Significant time was spent in consultation with staff throughout the implementation period to facilitate ownership of the interventions and increase likelihood of successful implementation. A pre-post design was used to compare the implementation and nutritional outcomes of each intervention to a pre-intervention group. Using the same wards, eligible participants (medical inpatients aged ≥65 years) were recruited to the preintervention group between November 2007 and March 2008 and to the intervention groups between January and June 2009. The primary nutritional outcome was daily energy and protein intake, which was determined by visually estimating plate waste at each meal and mid-meal on Day 4 of admission. Energy and protein intakes were compared between the pre and post intervention groups. Data were collected on a range of covariates (demographics, nutritional status and known risk factors for poor food intake), which allowed for multivariate analysis of the impact of the interventions on nutritional intake. The provision of mealtime assistance to participants and activities of ward staff (including mealtime interruptions) were observed in the pre-intervention and intervention groups, with staff observations repeated six months post-intervention. Focus groups were conducted with nursing and allied health staff in June 2009 to explore their attitudes and behaviours in response to the three mealtime interventions. These focus group discussions were analysed using thematic analysis. RESULTS: A total of 254 participants were recruited to the study (pre-intervention: n=115, AIN-only: n=58, PM-only: n=39, PM+AIN: n=42). Participants had a mean age of 80 years (SD 8), and 40% (n=101) were malnourished on hospital admission, 50% (n=108) had anorexia and 38% (n=97) required some assistance at mealtimes. Occasions of mealtime assistance significantly increased in all interventions (p<0.01). However, no change was seen in mealtime interruptions. No significant difference was seen in mean total energy and protein intake between the preintervention and intervention groups. However, when total kilojoule intake was compared with estimated requirements at the individual level, participants in the intervention groups were more likely to achieve adequate energy intake (OR=3.4, p=0.01), with no difference noted between interventions (p=0.29). Despite small improvements in nutritional adequacy, the majority of participants in the intervention groups (76%, n=103) had inadequate energy intakes to meet their estimated energy requirements. Patients with cognitive impairment or feeding dependency appeared to gain substantial benefit from mealtime assistance interventions. The increase in occasions of mealtime assistance by nursing staff during the intervention period was maintained six-months post-intervention. Staff focus groups highlighted the importance of clearly designating and defining mealtime responsibilities in order to provide adequate mealtime care. While the purpose of the dedicated feeding assistant was to increase levels of mealtime assistance, staff indicated that responsibility for mealtime duties may have merely shifted from nursing staff to the assistant. Implementing the multidisciplinary interventions empowered nursing staff to "protect" the mealtime from external interruptions, but further work is required to empower nurses to prioritise mealtime activities within their own work schedules. Staff reported an increase in the profile of nutritional care on all wards, with additional non-nutritional benefits noted including improved mobility and functional independence, and better identification of swallowing difficulties. IMPLICATIONS: The PhD research provides clinicians with practical strategies to immediately introduce change to deliver better mealtime care in the hospital setting, and, as such, has initiated local and state-wide roll-out of mealtime assistance programs. Improved nutritional intakes of elderly inpatients was observed; however given the modest effect size and reducing lengths of hospital stays, better nutritional outcomes may be achieved by targeting the hospital-to-home transition period. Findings from this study suggest that mealtime assistance interventions for elderly inpatients with cognitive impairment and/or functional dependency show promise.

Understanding chronic pain complicating disability: Finding meaning through focus group methodology

Over the past few decades a major paradigm shift has occurred in the conceptualisation of chronic pain as a complex multidimensional phenomenon. Yet, pain experienced by individuals with a primary disability continues to be understood largely from a traditional biomedical model, despite its inherent limitations. This is reflected in the body of literature on the topic that is primarily driven by positivist assumptions and the search for etiologic pain mechanisms. Conversely, little is known about the experiences of and meanings attributed to, disability-related pain. Thus the purpose of this paper is to discuss the use of focus group methodology in elucidating the meanings and experiences of this population. Here, a distinction is made between the method of the focus group and focus group research as methodology. Typically, the focus group is presented as a seemingly atheoretical method of research. Drawing on research undertaken on the impact of chronic pain in people with multiple sclerosis, this paper seeks to theorise the focus group in arguing the methodological congruence of focus group research and the study of pain experience. It is argued that the contributions of group interaction and shared experiences in focus group discussions produce data and insights less accessible through more structured research methods. It is concluded that a biopsychosocial perspective of chronic pain may only ever be appreciated when the person-in-context is the unit of investigation.

Group interactions in science practical work

This study explored the interactions of a highly motivated group of students doing traditional practical work in science. Interest focussed on the social construction of understanding and how this could be described. Despite considerable collaboration in constructing an understanding of the task the students rarely focussed on the concepts the practical work was intended to illustrate. Collaboration was described in terms of social behaviours and discourse moves which supported the use of cognitive strategies.

Development, implementation and evaluation of a cancer survivor self-management care plan

Aim There is a growing population of people with cancer who experience physiological and psychological effects that persist long after treatment is complete. Interventions that enhance survivors’ self-management abilities might help offset these effects. The aim of this pilot study was to develop, implement and evaluate interventions tailored to assist patients to manage post-treatment health issues effectively. Method In this pre-post intervention cohort study, participants were recruited on completion of cancer treatment. Participants recruited preimplementation, who received usual care, comprised the control group. Participants recruited later formed the intervention group. In the intervention group, the Cancer Care Coordinator developed an individualised, structured Cancer Survivor Self-management Care Plan. Participants were interviewed on completion of treatment (baseline) and at three months. Assessments concerned health needs (CaSUN), self-efficacy in adjusting and coping with cancer and health-related quality of life (FACIT-B or FACT-C). The impact of the intervention was determined by independent t-tests of change scores. Results The intervention (n = 32) and control groups (n = 35) were comparable on demographic and clinical characteristics. Sample mean age was 54 + 10 years. Cancer diagnoses were breast (82%) and colorectal (18%). Statistically significant differences (p < 0.05) indicated improvement in the intervention group for: (a) functional well-being, from the FACIT, (Control: M = −0.69, SE = 0.91; Intervention: M = 3.04, SE = 1.13); and (b) self-efficacy in maintaining social relationships, (Control: M = −0.333, SE = 0.33; Intervention: M = 0.621, SE = 0.27). No significant differences were found in health needs, other subscales of quality of life, the extent and number of strategies used in coping and adjusting to cancer and in other domains of self-efficacy. Conclusions While the results should be interpreted with caution, due to the non-randomised nature of the study and the small sample size, they indicate the potential benefits of tailored self-management interventions warrant further investigation in this context.