Collecting Protein Biomarkers in Breath Using Electret Filters: A Preliminary Method on New Technical Model and Human Study.

Biomarkers in exhaled breath are useful for respiratory disease diagnosis in human volunteers. Conventional methods that collect non-volatile biomarkers, however, necessitate an extensive dilution and sanitation processes that lowers collection efficiencies and convenience of use. Electret filter emerged in recent decade to collect virus biomarkers in exhaled breath given its simplicity and effectiveness. To investigate the capability of electret filters to collect protein biomarkers, a model that consists of an atomizer that produces protein aerosol and an electret filter that collects albumin and carcinoembryonic antigen-a typical biomarker in lung cancer development- from the atomizer is developed. A device using electret filter as the collecting medium is designed to collect human albumin from exhaled breath of 6 volunteers. Comparison of the collecting ability between the electret filter method and other 2 reported methods is finally performed based on the amounts of albumin collected from human exhaled breath. In conclusion, a decreasing collection efficiency ranging from 17.6% to 2.3% for atomized albumin aerosol and 42% to 12.5% for atomized carcinoembryonic antigen particles is found; moreover, an optimum volume of sampling human exhaled breath ranging from 100 L to 200 L is also observed; finally, the self-designed collecting device shows a significantly better performance in collecting albumin from human exhaled breath than the exhaled breath condensate method (p0.05). In summary, electret filters are potential in collecting non-volatile biomarkers in human exhaled breath not only because it was simpler, cheaper and easier to use than traditional methods but also for its better collecting performance

A Smart Capsule System for Automated Detection of Intestinal Bleeding Using HSL Color Recognition.

There are no ideal means for the diagnosis of intestinal bleeding diseases as of now, particularly in the small intestine. This study investigated an intelligent intestinal bleeding detection capsule system based on color recognition. After the capsule is swallowed, the bleeding detection module (containing a color-sensitive adsorptive film that changes color when absorbing intestinal juice,) is used to identify intestinal bleeding features. A hue-saturation-light color space method can be applied to detect bleeding according to the range of H and S values of the film color. Once bleeding features are recognized, a wireless transmission module is activated immediately to send an alarm signal to the outside; an in vitro module receives the signal and sends an alarm. The average power consumption of the entire capsule system is estimated to be about 2.1mW. Owing to its simplicity, reliability, and effectiveness, this system represents a new approach to the clinical diagnosis of intestinal bleeding diseases

Resorbable polymer electrospun nanofibers: history, shapes and application for tissue engineering

Resorbable polymer electrospun nanofiber-based materials/devices have high surface-to-volume ratio and often have a porous structure with excellent pore interconnectivity, which are suitable for growth and development of different types of cells. Due to the huge advantages of both resorbable polymers and electrospun nanofibers, resorbable polymer electrospun nanofibers (RPENs) have been widely applied in the field of tissue engineering. In this paper, we will mainly introduce RPENs for tissue engineering. Firstly, the electrospinning technique and electrospun nanofiber architectures are briefly introduced. Secondly, the application of RPENs in the field of tissue engineering is mainly reviewed. Finally, the advantages and disadvantages of RPENs for tissue engineering are discussed. This review will provide a comprehensive guide to apply resorbable polymer electrospun nanofibers for tissue engineering

Obesity in children and adolescents and the risk of ovarian cancer: A systematic review and dose‒response meta-analysis

Objective The relationship between obesity in children and adolescents and the risk of ovarian cancer remains controversial. The aim of this meta-analysis was to explore the exact shape of this relationship. Methods We conducted dose‒response meta-analyses of cohort and case‒control studies, including published studies derived from searches in the PubMed, Embase, Web of Science and Cochrane Library databases until October 2022. Pooled effect size estimates are expressed as relative risks (RRs) or odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) and were evaluated by fixed-effect models. A nonlinear dose‒response meta-analysis was performed by using a restricted cubic spline model. Results After screening 4215 publications, 10 studies were included in the present meta-analysis. Overall analyses revealed statistically significant associations of obesity in children and adolescents with ovarian cancer (adjusted RR = 1.19, 95% CI: 1.11 to 1.28, P Conclusion Our findings indicate that obesity in children and adolescents is a risk factor for ovarian cancer, and the risk increases with increasing BMI

Electrospun nanobelt-shaped polymer membranes for fast and high-sensitivity detection of metal ions

Until now, no polymer nanobelt-shaped materials have been developed as electrochemical, optical, and mass sensors. In this work, we first develop polymer nanobelt-shaped membranes for fast and high-sensitivity detection of metal ions, which are fabricated by a new nanobelt-based processing method with simultaneous zein matrix cross-linking and curcumin cross-linking. Their morphologies, optimal detection pH, ion selectivity, and ion detection sensitivity are systematically analyzed. The limits of detection of electrospun curcumin-loaded zein membranes with a detection time of 0.5 h are as follows: cross-linked nanobelt-shaped membranes (0.3 mg/L) < uncross-linked nanobelt-shaped membranes (1 mg/L) ≈ cross-linked nanofibrous membranes (1 mg/L) < uncross-linked nanofibrous membranes (3 mg/L). The cross-linked nanobelt-shaped membranes are also applied to detect Fe in drinking water and environmental water. Finally, the mechanisms of Fe detection by these membranes are studied and discussed. The results demonstrate that the difference of limit of detection is dependent on if the curcumin sensor is cross-linked or not and the membrane nanostructures (nanobelts or nanofibers). Cross-linking produces stable sensor molecules on the surface and therefore induces low limits of detection. Compared with nanofibers, nanobelts have a higher surface-to-volume ratio and can have more sensor molecules on their surfaces and therefore have lower limits of detection. In addition, the as-prepared membranes had good membrane storage stability (at least 3 months at room temperature). All of these results suggest that cross-linked electrospun nanobelt-shaped membranes by a new nanobelt-based processing method are ideal platforms for sensing. We believe that they will attract increasing attention in scientific and engineering fields such as materials, environmental, and food science

Collecting exhaled breath particles using a self-designed collecting device.

<p>Collecting exhaled breath particles using a self-designed collecting device.</p

Schematic diagram of experiment setup used in this study.

<p>Schematic diagram of experiment setup used in this study.</p

Study population.

<p>Study population.</p