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Vietnam is a country that produces a variety of agricultural products, including vegetables, tubers, fruits, and processed products. Along with the increase in population, the demand for consumers also increases, and the by-products of farming are increasing and being discharged into the environment. This is one of the critical research issues that need to be solved to ensure sustainability in agriculture. This review summarized recent studies on familiar sources of by-products in Vietnam, such as banana peels, citrus peels, dragon fruit skins, rice bran, and rice husks, and their potential in the food industry. Some solutions are also proposed to solve and turn this low-value raw material into a high-value product and serve a variety of products and consumers in the food industry. Especially after the COVID19 pandemic, the by-products contain valuable and reusable biological resources. These compounds could be future applications to support improving the consumer's immune system and various health benefits. Processed and utilized by-products from food production could not only help increase incomes for farmers, especially in developing countries like Vietnam but also could aid in ensuring food security and sustainability in agricultural production.
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This work studied the antioxidant and anti-breast cancer properties of hyaluronidase, extracted from a potential marine strain, Staphylococcus aureus (CASMTK1), isolated from Parangipettai coastal waters in southeast coast of India. The Staphylococcal enzyme production was tested under different carbon and nitrogen sources;and recorded the maximum production when the microbial strain was cultured with starch as the carbon source and ammonium sulphate as the inorganic nitrogen source with the enzyme production of 92.5 U/mL and 95.0 U/mL, respectively. The hyaluronidase enzyme production was also tested in different pH and temperature;and recorded the maximum yield of 102.5 U/mL in pH 5 and that of 95.5 U/mL in 45 °C. The partially purified enzyme was subjected to FTIR and FT Raman technique and found the presence of the amide- I and II, Carboxyl, N-H bending, C-H stretching and α-helices and β-sheet proteins between wave number 1500–1700 cm−1. The partially purified enzyme also exhibited strong antioxidant and in-vitro breast cancer properties. The enzyme showed the highest hydroxyl radical scavenging activity of 79% at the 50 µg/mL concentration, and this activity increased in a dose-dependent manner. The enzyme inhibited proliferation of the breast cancer cell line of MCF-7, and it caused 100% cell death at the concentration of 80 µg/mL. The enzyme generated capacity of producing free radicles that damage the cancer cells, and this effect was very nearer to the standard drug, paclitaxel. The enzyme damaged the cancer cells and induced apoptosis in 78% of cancer cells as evident by condensed or fragmented chromatin at 40 µg/mL. Further purification of the enzyme, analysis of its molecular aspects, and elucidation of exact mechanisms of its biological activities will throw new light on the utility of staphylococcal hyaluronidase in anticancer chemotherapy.
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Background: The use of uncooked cornstarch every four hours remains the most efficient treatment to prevent recurrent hypoglycemia in individuals with glycogen storage diseases (GSD). However, children must wake up overnight for therapy, and delayed administration of cornstarch can be associated with hypoglycemia, seizures, neurologic injury, and death. Since the introduction of extended-release, waxy maize cornstarch (ER-CS) Glycosade as a medical food, patients and families have benefited from ER-CS by avoiding the overnight dose while maintaining metabolic control. It is recommended that individuals with GSD transitioning to ER-CS be admitted to the hospital for two nights for initial evaluation of the ER-CS dose. This recommendation was made to minimize the risk of hypoglycemia. During this hospitalization, it is recommended glucose levels be measured hourly. The ER-CS package insert states that outpatient transition may be considered if the patient has history of adherence to recommendations, good metabolic control, and the calculated dose falls within the recommended range. Detailed guidance of home transition was not provided. During the COVID-19 pandemic, our clinic developed an outpatient protocol for ER-CS transition. The goal of this protocol was to prevent unnecessary hospitalizations while safely transitioning individuals with GSD to ER-CS. Method(s): We identified patients followed in the Metabolic Genetics Clinic at Texas Children's Hospital with liver GSD who require overnight uncooked cornstarch, have a history of adherence to recommendations, and good metabolic control. Each had a working glucometer, test strips for three nights of hourly blood glucose tests, emergency rescue glucose products, and a personalized hypoglycemia action plan. The trial took place over three nights. During the first 24 h of the trial, the patient followed their previous uncooked cornstarch regimen and feeding schedule with pre-prandial glucose measures. If euglycemia was documented, ER-CS was subsequently used on nights #2 and #3. Patients were monitored with hourly blood glucose measurements and hourly ketones in GSD III or IX. ER-CS doses were calculated following the standard insert packet recommendations. If hypoglycemia was detected on either night, the dose of ER-CS was increased prior to continuing the trial. Families communicated the results of nightly blood glucose logs with the metabolic dietician on the subsequent mornings. Result(s): Three patients with GSD III and one patient with GSD Ia attempted the home ER-CS trial. All patients passed the trial. All glucose levels and ketone levels were obtained as directed. One patient had a documented blood glucose level of 69 at hour eight on the third night of the trial. The dose of ER-CS was subsequently increased. The trial was extended to a fourth night and euglycemia was maintained. No further side effects were reported in the other patients. Conclusion(s): We report successful outpatient ER-CS transitions of multiple patients with GSDs. No adverse events or significant hypoglycemic episodes were recorded during at-home trials. Thus, in patients with GSDs who are compliant with medical recommendations and under good metabolic control, at-home transition to ER-CS can be done safely and effectively without need for hospitalization.Copyright © 2023
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The molecular structure of hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) used in the treatment of malaria is recently suggested for emergency used in COVID-19. The chemical compound of HCQ is produced by chemical alteration of ethylene oxide from human products, such as waxy maize starch. The molecular graph is a graph comprising of atoms called vertices and the chemical bond between molecules is called edges. A topological index is a numerical representation of a chemical structure which correlates certain physico-chemical characteristics of underlying chemical compounds besides its numerical representation. To distinguish the creation of entropy-based measures from the structure of chemical graphs, several graph properties have been utilized. For computing the structural information of chemical graphs, the graph entropies have become the information-theoretic quantities. The graph entropy measure has attracted the research community due to its potential application in discrete mathematics, biology, and chemistry. In this paper, our contribution is to explore graph entropies for molecular structure of HCQ based on novel information function, which is the number of different degree vertices along with the number of edges between various degree vertices. More precisely, we have explored the degree-based topological characteristics of hydroxyethyl starch conjugated with hydroxychloroquine (HCQ-HEC). Also, we computed entropies of this structure by making a relation of degree-based topological indices with the help of information function. Moreover, we presented the numerical and graphical comparison of the computed results.
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3D printing technology (3DP) as additive manufacturing is an innovative design technology that can meet the individual nutritional and sensory needs of consumers. Therefore, the aim of this work was to apply 3DP in the production of a strawberry-based functional product with the addition of two hydrocolloids (corn and wheat starch) in three proportions (10, 15 and 20%) and to investigate the influence of 3DP process parameters on physico-chemical and textural properties, as well as the bioactive and antioxidant potential and microbiological stability, with(out) the addition of natural antimicrobial agents. Starch type had a significant effect on all tested bioactive compounds, as well as on starch content, except for total phenolic and hydroxycinnamic acid contents. Considering the content of bioactive compounds and antioxidant capacity, program 2 proved to be more suitable than program 1. All samples exhibited good textural properties, a high degree of stability and minimal geometric deviations. Regarding microbiological safety, no pathogenic bacteria were found in the 3DP samples during storage. The 3DP sample with added citral at a concentration of 75 mg L-1 showed the best microbiological quality. Ultimately, 3DP can be successfully used for the production of new strawberry-based functional products.
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Biocompatibility of carbon nanodots (CNDs) ingrained from biopolymers are considered as prerequisite characters for their successive exploitation in different biomedical purposes. CNDs are known to be categorized to carbogenic nanodots (CgNDs) and graphitic nanodots (GNDs). The point of novelty in the current approach is to study the effect of chemical medication for starch before and after its functionalization with glucose, to ingrain carbon nanodots, that were sequentially applicable as viricidal and anticancer laborers. The represented data revealed that, CgNDs were nucleated from alkali-hydrolyzed starch exhibited with particle size of 4.8 ± 1.8 nm, whereas, glucose-functionalized starch was successfully exploited for ingraining of GNDs with particle size of 3.1 ± 1.3 nm. The viricidal action of the prepared CgNDs and GNDs against Low Pathogenic Coronavirus (229E) was estimated via CPE-inhibition Assay and the obtained IC50 was 61.2 and 29.6 mg/mL for CgNDs and GNDs, respectively. The synthesized CgNDs and GNDs were tested against human non-small cell lung cancer cell line (NSCLC, A549) via Sulforhodamine B (SRB) assay and the estimated IC50 was 356.5 and 220.3 μg/mL in case of CgNDs and GNDs, respectively. The obtained data approved the seniority of GNDs over CgNDs to be applicable as antiviral and antitumor laborers. © 2022 Elsevier Ltd
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Counterfeit or substandard drugs are pharmaceutical formulations in which the active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) have been replaced or ingredients do not comply with the drug leaflet. With the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, fraud associated with the preparation of substandard or counterfeit drugs is expected to grow, undermining health systems already weakened by the state of emergency. Analytical chemistry plays a key role in tackling this problem, and in implementing strategies that permit the recognition of uncompliant drugs. In light of this, the present work represents a feasibility study for the development of a NIR-based tool for the quantification of dexamethasone in mixtures of excipients (starch and lactose). Two different regression strategies were tested. The first, based on the coupling of NIR spectra and Partial Least Squares (PLS) provided good results (root mean square error in prediction (RMSEP) of 720 mg/kg), but the most accurate was the second, a strategy exploiting sequential preprocessing through orthogonalization (SPORT), which led (on the external set of mixtures) to an R2pred of 0.9044, and an RMSEP of 450 mg/kg. Eventually, Variable Importance in Projection (VIP) was applied to interpret the obtained results and determine which spectral regions contribute most to the SPORT model.
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The ideal food packaging materials are recyclable, biodegradable, and compostable. Starch from plant sources, such as tubers, legumes, cereals, and agro-industrial plant residues, is considered one of the most suitable biopolymers for producing biodegradable films due to its natural abundance and low cost. The chemical modification of starch makes it possible to produce films with better technological properties by changing the functional groups into starch. Using biopolymers extracted from agro-industrial waste can add value to a raw material that would otherwise be discarded. The recent COVID-19 pandemic has driven a rise in demand for single-use plastics, intensifying pressure on this already out-of-control issue. This review provides an overview of biopolymers, with a particular focus on starch, to develop sustainable materials for food packaging. This study summarizes the methods and provides a potential approach to starch modification for improving the mechanical and barrier properties of starch-based films. This review also updates some trends pointed out by the food packaging sector in the last years, considering the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Perspectives to achieve more sustainable food packaging toward a more circular economy are drawn.
Subject(s)
COVID-19 , Food Packaging , Humans , Food Packaging/methods , Starch/chemistry , Pandemics , Plant Extracts/chemistryABSTRACT
Objetivos: Relatar experiencia de aplicacao de questionario para avaliacao da cultura de seguranca do paciente em um hemocentro. Metodos: Sob projeto de pesquisa aprovado pelo CEP, CAAE:46285321.8.0000.5064 os profissionais apos concordancia registrada em assinatura de TCLE, responderam, de forma anonima, um questionario autoaplicavel, validado para o contexto de Atencao Primaria em Saude, o Medical Office Survey on Patient Safety Culture (MOSPSC). A escolha deste se justifica por assemelhar-se ao contexto da atencao ambulatorial. A pesquisa foi divulgada atraves de uma reuniao com os coordenadores dos setores do HEMOES: laboratorios, ciclo do sangue, administrativo e ambulatorio. Os objetivos foram explicados, bem como a importancia de incentivar e sensibilizar os colaboradores a responder o questionario. A coleta de dados iniciou-se em novembro de 2021 e, por interrupcoes devido a pandemia Covid-19, finalizou em fevereiro de 2022, ocorreu em horario de trabalho e caixas lacradas foram disponibilizadas nos setores para depositar os questionarios sem qualquer identificacao. Apos 4 semanas, um monitor verificava o numero de questionarios da caixa por setor e, se necessario, realizava novo estimulo para maior adesao. Para tratamento e analise descritiva dos dados, foi utilizada uma planilha em Excel. RESULTADOS: Dos 160 funcionarios do HEMOES 98 (61%) responderam ao questionario. Apesar da aparente adesao, chamou atencao o quantitativo de ausencia de respostas (em branco;nao se aplica ou nao sei). Foi calculada a media referente aos dados ausentes para cada secao: A- Questoes sobre seguranca do paciente e qualidade do cuidado: 67%;B- Troca de informacoes com outras instituicoes: 80%;C-Trabalhando neste servico de saude: 13,5%;D-Comunicacao e acompanhamento: 27,5%;E-Apoio de gestores/administradores/lideres: 21,2%;F-Seu servico de saude: 23,6%;G-Avaliacao global: 4,6%. Discussao: Promover a cultura de seguranca do paciente e o cerne do Programa Nacional de Seguranca do Paciente no Brasil. Uma cultura de seguranca fortalecida e associada ao alcance de melhores resultados em saude. A avaliacao da cultura de seguranca tem sido encorajada como uma estrategia util para auxiliar gestores a planejar e priorizar iniciativas de melhoria nos diversos contextos de prestacao de cuidados de saude. Entretanto, fortalecer a cultura de seguranca descortina-se como um grande desafio: requer investimentos estrategicos, envolvimento das liderancas e da alta gestao. Considerando as particularidades dos hemocentros em atender dois tipos de cliente, quais sejam, individuos saudaveis (doadores) e pacientes hematologicos, o uso deste questionario atendeu parcialmente a necessidade, frente ao elevado numero de dados ausentes. Possiveis explicacoes: I) a sua extensao, o que despende tempo, podendo acarretar impaciencia do respondente, especialmente no periodo de sobrecarga de trabalho gerado pela pandemia;II) a ausencia de um horario/local isento para o seu preenchimento, o que pode ter influenciado negativamente na acuracia das respostas, uma vez que foram respondidos durante a rotina diaria;III) provavel inadequacao do instrumento ao contexto dos hemocentros, devido as particularidades do cliente "paciente" e "doador", que pode ter gerado duvidas no preenchimento. Conclusao: Acreditamos ser fundamental promover acoes para ampliar o conhecimento e a percepcao em seguranca do paciente. O relato de experiencia de avaliacao da cultura de seguranca do paciente neste estudo sugere a necessidade de elaborar ou adequar uma ferramenta que contemple as especificidades do contexto de prestacao de servicos de um hemocentro. Aprimorar o metodo de coleta de dados, ampliando estrategias de esclarecimentos e sensibilizacao, podem ser uteis para alcancar resultados mais acurados. Copyright © 2022
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Steroidal products have been found useful in inflammations associated with Covid 19. Prednisolone is one readily available steroid, which is often found as uncoated normal release tablets. Modified release prednisolone may be desirable in Covid 19 for sustained actions. This is expected to reduce dosing frequency and enhance compliance. This study is concerned with development of controlled release prednisolone using coating technology with bio-compatible, cross-linked starch-albumin films. Starches and proteins are excellent film formers with good flexibility, transparency, and bio-compatibility. The cross-linked starch-albumin films were prepared using glycerol as the plasticizer: starch (A), starch-albumin (B), starch-albumin cross-linked with formaldehyde at 1 % (C), 5 % (D) and 10 % (E). Equilibrium moisture sorption (EMS) at 100 % relative humidity, equilibrium swelling (ESC) in buffer solutions of pHs 2, 7 and 9, and DSC thermal properties were evaluated. In-vitro drug release from the film coated prednisolone tablets were evaluated in 0.1N HCl, water and phosphate buffer 8.0 as dissolution media. Films showed ESC in the order A>D>E>B>C;D>C>A>E>B and A>D>C>B>E in acidic, neutral and alkali media respectively. EMS was in the order B>E>A>D>C;with slight shift in the melting temperatures. In-vitro release at 240 min varied from 78 to 117 % (E>D>C>A>B);19 to 60 % (D>B>C>E>A) and 49 to 60 % (B>A>C>D>E) in 0.1N HCl, water and PBS respectively. Cross-linking improved the stability and swelling of films. The in-vitro release in alkaline medium suggests their usefulness for controlled drug delivery. New pH-responsive polymers, with improved physicochemical properties for coating prednisolone tablets were developed. Copyright © 2007, Nat. Inst. for Pharmaceutical Research and Development. All rights reserved.
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The goal of this study was to develop pregelatinized starch (P-St) and polyvinyl alcohol (PVOH) films as water-soluble laundry plastic bags to avoid having contact with COVID-19 infected clothes by extrusion method. The effects of pregelatinized starch (P-St) content on the properties of polyvinyl alcohol (PVOH) films were examined. PVOH and P-St blend were compounded by twin-screw extruder with various P-St content of 0, 10, 20, 30, and 40% by weight with fixed glycerol content of 20 phr. The blend films were produced by blown film extrusion. The chemical structure, thermal properties, water-solubility, mechanical properties, and the cross-sections morphological properties of PVOH/G/P-St were characterized. As a result, the formation of intermolecular interactions between PVOH, glycerol and P-St was confirmed by FTIR. Moreover, the addition of P-St on PVOH could reduce the thermal stability due to the content of P-St with amylose, a substance of amorphous structure, affecting the chains flexibility of PVOH/G/P-St. From the differential scanning calorimeter result, the glass transition temperature was increased with the increment of P-St content because the chains entanglement between PVOH and P-St had affected the reduction in crystallinity and led to the decrement of the melting temperature. Furthermore, the water solubility would strongly be dependent on the percentage of the gelatinized starch (%GS). The solubility decreased as the percentage of the GS increased. In addition, PVOH with 20% of P-St film possessed the highest value in tensile strength and modulus, and the particles of P-St have a good distribution in PVOH/G indicating to stronger interaction of P-St and PVOH/G. © 2022, Chiang Mai University. All rights reserved.
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Biocompatibility of carbon nanodots (CNDs) ingrained from biopolymers are considered as prerequisite characters for their successive exploitation in different biomedical purposes. CNDs are known to be categorized to carbogenic nanodots (CgNDs) and graphitic nanodots (GNDs). The point of novelty in the current approach is to study the effect of chemical medication for starch before and after its functionalization with glucose, to ingrain carbon nanodots, that were sequentially applicable as viricidal and anticancer laborers. The represented data revealed that, CgNDs were nucleated from alkali-hydrolyzed starch exhibited with particle size of 4.8 ± 1.8 nm, whereas, glucose-functionalized starch was successfully exploited for ingraining of GNDs with particle size of 3.1 ± 1.3 nm. The viricidal action of the prepared CgNDs and GNDs against Low Pathogenic Coronavirus (229E) was estimated via CPE-inhibition Assay and the obtained IC50 was 61.2 and 29.6 mg/mL for CgNDs and GNDs, respectively. The synthesized CgNDs and GNDs were tested against human non-small cell lung cancer cell line (NSCLC, A549) via Sulforhodamine B (SRB) assay and the estimated IC50 was 356.5 and 220.3 μg/mL in case of CgNDs and GNDs, respectively. The obtained data approved the seniority of GNDs over CgNDs to be applicable as antiviral and antitumor laborers.
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COVID-19 pandemic encourages the utilization of local food sources to ensure food availability. Busil (Xanthosoma sagittifolium) was readily available and affordable in Banjarnegara Regency in the Province of Central Java in Indonesia. However, the busil starch utilization was still rare due to the low functional properties of the native busil starch. The objective of this study was to explore busil starch physicochemical characterization enhancement after microwave irradiation treatment, especially on the stability of heat processing. This research was conducted in two steps. First, microwave treatment (with a variation of energy and irradiation time) of native busil starch (NBS), and the second was modified busil starch (MBS) physicochemical characterization. A rise in amylose was observed on MBS. SEM analysis was shown MBS granules are breakdown. Through viscosity, final viscosity, setback viscosity, peak time, and the pasting temperature of MBS generally were increased. Meanwhile, peak viscosity and breakdown viscosity of MBS was decreased. Thermal properties of MBS like onset (To), peak (Tp), and conclusion (Tc) temperatures were also increased. The degree of whiteness index (DW) of MBS was decreased. FTIR analysis has shown that microwave treatment did not cause functional group alteration. XRD analysis has also demonstrated no change in the diffraction pattern but a slight change in the crystallinity index. Generally, microwave treatment leads to MBS thermal stability and potentially broaden MBS utilization on food processing product.
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The main substances of rice are starches, which vary their metabolism during storage. We conducted a series of tests including rice physicochemical properties, edible quality, starch content and chain length distribution along with starch structure variation to disclose the shift of rice quality by observing the changes of rice during storage. The results showed that: (1) the rice deterioration occurred as time passed, and the germination rate decreased from 70.8% to 29.4% during the storage;(2) fatty acid values increased significantly during long-term storage;(3) electrical conductivity increased as time passed;and (4) the two-year-storage rice showed significantly decreased viscosity and edible quality after sensory evaluation, decreased hardness and damaged surface area of starch granules as storage time passed. Additionally, the damaged surface area of starch granules increased with storage time. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) showed that the short-range order and spiral degree of rice starch first decreased in the first year and then increased over the storage time. Furthermore, X-ray diffraction showed that the main starch of rice was A-type crystalline. Meanwhile, apparent amylose content increased from 31.00% to 33.85%, then decreased to 31.75%. The peak viscosity reduced from 2735.00 mPa·s to 2163.67 mPa·s and the disintegration value was brought down from 1377.67 mPa·s to 850.33 mPa·s. Based on the results, rice should not be stored for more than 2 years under suitable granary conditions to maintain it at a good quality.
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The proceedings contain 62 papers. The topics discussed include: antifungal activity of plant extracts on pathogenic fungi of cereals;activity of extracts from Justicia xylosteoides and Astronium balansae on pathogens responsible of maize ear rot;characterization of starch extracted from rhizomes of Sechium edule (JACQ.) SWARTZ;evaluation of physical, chemical and microbiological parameters in yogurts with added coconut and its derivatives;purification of anti-RBD antibodies obtained from llama (Lama glama) for potential COVID-19 therapy;water quality assessment of the Miraflores River, using the benthic entomofauna as bioindicators;altitudinal distribution of scorpiones, pseudoscorpiones, solifugae and opiliones (arthropoda: arachnida) in the Ambato Department, Catamarca;and phytochemical analysis, antioxidant activity and cytotoxicity of phenolic fraction from Geoffroea decorticans stem bark.
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Background & Aim: 'Aerosol generating procedures' (AGPs) can risk spread COVID-19 and other diseases. Suspension of routine dentistry due to COVID-19 pandemic led to increased use of antibiotics and dental extraction, reduced access to dental care, and compromised dental businesses' financial sustainability. The recommended additional personal protective equipment (PPE) for AGPs increases treatment cost, clinical waste and poses a risk to the environment. The transmission of COVID- 19 and other air-borne infections will be a risk for foreseeable future. We have developed a novel patient shield (NoPaS) to help prevent spread of COVID-19 and other air-borne viruses and bacteria during AGPs. NoPaS is a device with a hood, a suction and air curtains that prevents aerosol spread. Methods: We carried out extensive research to ensure acceptability and efficacy of NoPaS. This included: market research, computational simulations. in-vitro smoke visualization and particle image velocimetry (PIV). NoPaS was then tested using dental simulation units (DSUs) with artificial salivary enzyme. Dentists carried out three AGPs (examination using air spray;ultrasonic scaling;class I cavity repair) and a non-AGP (hand-scaling) with and without NoPaS. Dentists were randomized to perform procedures with or without NoPaS first. Aerosol generation and spread were measured by counting clearance zones on starch agar plates at three distances from the dentist's working field. Results: The data obtained from lab-based studies and market research informed the final product design. Over 90% of patients and dental practitioners felt safer when using NoPaS. The mean percentage of clearance zone for AGPs with and without NoPaS were 0.9% and 75%. The patent was filed following successful test results. Conclusions: NoPaS is an effective, low-cost, and environmentallyfriendly solution for performing AGPs with no risk of virus transmission. With modifications, it can be used for medical procedures on head and neck. Further work is currently underway to take NoPaS into mass production.
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Advancements in polymer science and engineering have helped the scientific community to shift its attention towards the use of environmentally benign materials for reducing the environmental impact of conventional synthetic plastics. Biopolymers are environmentally benign, chemically versatile, sustainable, biocompatible, biodegradable, inherently functional, and ecofriendly materials that exhibit tremendous potential for a wide range of applications including food, electronics, agriculture, textile, biomedical, and cosmetics. This review also inspires the researchers toward more consumption of biopolymer-based composite materials as an alternative to synthetic composite materials. Herein, an overview of the latest knowledge of different natural- and synthetic-based biodegradable polymers and their fiber-reinforced composites is presented. The review discusses different degradation mechanisms of biopolymer-based composites as well as their sustainability aspects. This review also elucidates current challenges, future opportunities, and emerging applications of biopolymeric sustainable composites in numerous engineering fields. Finally, this review proposes biopolymeric sustainable materials as a propitious solution to the contemporary environmental crisis. © 2022 Elsevier Ltd.
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Introduction: A 19-year-old non-verbal male with history of CHARGE syndrome, severe autism, intellectual disability, coloboma with blindness OD and severely imparied vision OS, deafness, self-injurious and aggressive behavior, Tetralogy of Fallot status post repair, pulmonary valve replacement, hypertension, hypothyroidism, megacolon, gastrostomy tube dependence, eosinophilic esophagitis and chronic kidney disease with an irregular sleep cycle who has failed multiple medications for insomnia has shown treatment success with suvorexant. Report of Cases: This patient's sleep schedule ranges from 1.5 to 5 hour segments at various times of day or night including naps at school with occasional longer periods of sleep up to 10 hours and longer periods of wakefulness up to 22 hours who has been treated with the following medications: trazodone, clonidine, hydroxyzine, diphenhydramine, quetiapine, gabapentin, mirtazapine, eszopiclone, melatonin and ramelteon. His behavioral problems have been treated with olanzapine. He continued to be aggressive and difficult to direct. His parents reported exhaustion. Then, suvorexant 5mg was added at bedtime while the following sleep medications were continued: gabapentin total daily dose of 1500mg (300mg in morning and 3pm;900mg at bedtime, 300mg one hour later if still awake), ramelteon 8mg, mirtazapine 7.5mg and olanzapine 10mg at bedtime and bid prn aggressive behavior. He also takes the following daily medications: bisacodyl, polyethylene glycol, simethicone, hyoscyamine, cholecalciferol, aspirin, levothyroxine, hypoallergenic nutritional formula, starch and albuterol prn. With the addition of suvorexant 5mg, he had been able to get 9.5 hours of consolidated sleep at night with improvement in his behavior until he contracted Covid-19 and regressed. The suvorexant dose was increased to 10mg which again improved his insomnia and behavior. Conclusion: Various medications have either not worked at all or have worked suboptimally for insomnia in this medically complex patient who has an irregular Circadian rhythm disorder. Adding an orexin receptor antagonist as a novel mechanism to his regimen has shown promise. At this time, this patient has been stable for one month with suvorexant 10mg at bedtime after regression on the 5mg dose that coincided with a Covid-19 infection. We are proceeding with cautious optimism.
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Purpose>This study aimed to determine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the oil palm smallholders' income, which includes both on-farm and off-farm resources.Design/methodology/approach>This study used a simultaneous equations system for arranging the oil palm household economic model.Findings>The results showed that the negative effect of demand disruption (decreasing of household income) is more than supply disruption (production declining). Declining household income due to COVID-19 caused farmer households to have no access to both basic need and other goods.Research limitations/implications>The samples for before-pandemic data differed from the situation during COVID-19 in both the location and the person due to technical constraints in research sites.Originality/value>The main contribution of this study was providing an empirical understanding of how the COVID-19 pandemic influences the economic behavior of the most vulnerable entities in the Indonesian palm oil industry (oil palm smallholder farmers' households). This study would provide baseline information on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the economy of oil palm smallholder's household income.
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With respect to the explosion of single-use plastic packaging consumption during the COVID-19 pandemic, environmentally friendly substitutes are critically needful for sustainable development. Therefore, the present work focuses on the functional properties of bioplastic blends prepared through hot compressing molding of thermoplastic starch (TPS) and spent coffee grounds (SCG) in different ratios (0%–20% SCG) as the potential features of SCG were extensively employed in biocomposites for the first time. The insertion of dark brown SCG into TPS hindered UV transmission by 100% at 320 nm and 99.2% at 400 nm. Moreover, the samples with 15% and 20% SCG induced a surge in radical scavenging activity from 7.95% to over 92% at a concentration of 0.1 g/ml owing to the rich source of antioxidants in SCG. The lignin component and high carbon content also improved the thermal performance of TPS/SCG blends, enhancing thermal stability, delaying onset and maximum degradation temperatures, and achieving the HB rating in the UL-94 test. Compared to a pure TPS matrix, TPS blends incorporating up to 10% SCG exhibited improvement in elastic modulus without deterioration of tensile strength. © 2022 Society of Plastics Engineers.