Polyelectrolyte networks composed of poly(acrylic acid) (PAAc) cross-linked with poly(ethylene glycol dimethacrylate) (PEGDA) are sensitive to electrical stimuli, allowing potential use as soft actuators. In our studies, PAAc was prepared via radical polymerization using UV irradiation from pregel solutions with independent variation of the crosslinking density, the extent of neutralization, as...

OBJECTIVE To determine the effect of a mixture of plant extracts on the adherence and retention of bacteria in dental biofilm. STUDY DESIGN Experimental study. PLACE AND DURATION OF STUDY Department of Oral Biology, Faculty of Dentistry, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, from December 2009 to December 2011. METHODOLOGY For determination of adhering ability, experimental pellic...

The stability and properties of dilute solution hydrogels, synthesized by transition metal mediated polymerization of amino acid N-carboxyanhydrides (NCAs), have been studied in deionized (DI) water as well as various ionic media. These hydrogels are diblock amphiphilic copolymers of hydrophilic, charged segments of poly(l-lysine HBr) or poly(l-glutamic acid sodium salt), and helical, hydrophob...

House flies are a ubiquitous insect that have the potential to spread many diseases to humans and livestock. Managing house fly populations is accomplished by having desirable baits, traps, and killing agents. Most house fly baits are designed for outdoor use or limited indoor use, and have a foul odor that is not conducive to food preparatory and dining areas. Blackstrap molasses has long been...

Laboratory studies were conducted to evaluate effects of selected herbicides on hatching of free eggs of the soybean cyst nematode, Heterodera glycines. The herbicides used were Atrazine (atrazine), Basagran (bentazon), Bladex (cyanazine), Blazer (acifluorfen), Command (clomazone), Lasso (alachlor), Sonalan (ethalfluralin), and Treflan (trifluralin). Treatments comprised two concentrations of c...

Water from individual closed-loop deionized (DI) water systems is used to regulate the temperature of high-power rf components at the Advanced Photon Source (APS) SBand linac. The rf components are made of oxygen-free high-conductivity copper and respond quickly to temperature, resulting in changes in the beam energy when the temperature is poorly regulated. Temperature regulation better than ±...

BACKGROUND Spray-drying techniques are commonly utilized in the pharmaceutical, dairy, and animal feed industries for processing liquids into powders but have not been applied to human blood products. Spray-dried protein products are known to maintain stability during storage at room temperature. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS Plasma units collected at the donor facility were shipped overnight at r...

This study evaluated the microhardness and elemental composition of various ceramics immersed in acidic agents. One hundred and five discs of fluorapatite-leucite (IPS d.SIGN) and fluorapatite ceramics (IPS e.max Ceram) were randomly divided into 7 groups of 15 each. Five groups were alternately immersed in acidic agents (citrate buffer solution, pineapple juice, green mango juice, cola soft dr...