High-performance device for air interlacing of a yarn and corresponding method

Abstract A device for air interlacing of a yarn , comprising an interlacing chamber , a first entrance channel for receiving the yarn at the device entrance and feeding it to the interlacing chamber , and a second exit channel for receiving the yarn from the interlacing chamber and releasing it at the device exit, in which the interlacing chamber is delimited by a first emitting wall bearing a nozzle for the emission of a continuous jet of compressed air , and a second deflecting wall , opposite the first wall , suitable for receiving and deflecting the jet of compressed air emitted by the nozzle and intersecting the yarn to be interlaced, and in which the second deflecting wall is concave in shape both on a transversal plane and on a longitudinal plane with respect to the feeding path of the yarn through the devic

The combined use of VIGl@ct (R) (bioMerieux) and fluorescent amplified length fragment polymorphisms in the investigation of potential outbreaks

Even with good surveillance programmes, hospital-acquired infections (HAls) are not always recognized and this may lead to an outbreak. In order to reduce this risk, we propose a model for prompt detection of HAls, based on the use of a real-time epidemiological information system called VIGI@ct (R) (bioMerieux, Las Balmas, France) and on the rapid confirmation or exclusion of the genetic relationship among pathogens using fluorescent amplified length fragment polymorphism (f-AFLP) microbial fingerprinting. We present the results of one year's experience with the system, which identified a total, of 306 suspicious HAls. Of these, 281 (92%) were 'confirmed' by clinical evidence, 16 (5%) were considered to be simple colonization and the tatter nine (3%) were archived as 'not answered' because of the absence of the physician's cooperation. There were seven suspected outbreaks; of these, f-AFLP analysis confirmed the clonal relationship among the isolates in four cases: outbreak 1 (four isolates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa), outbreak 2 (three Escherichia coli isolates), outbreak 6 (two Candida parapsilosis isolates) and outbreak 7 (30 ESPL-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae subsp. pneumoniae). Based on our results, we conclude that the combination of VIGI@ct (R) and f-AFLP is useful in the rapid assessment of an outbreak due to Gram-positive or Gramnegative bacteria and yeasts. (C) 2007 The Hospital Infection Society. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

Implementación de las finanzas corporativas en Laboratorios Vannier S.A.: 1993-2016

La industria química junto con la farmacéutica, formaron parte de uno de los avances tecnológicos que abrieron una nueva fase de la historia económica y social en todo el mundo. La producción farmacéutica surgió en Europa hacia fines del siglo XIX como una rama especializada de la química orgánica capaz de proveer a los médicos nuevas herramientas en su lucha contra las enfermedades infecciosas que proliferaban en las grandes ciudades. En la Argentina el crecimiento de esta industria fue tardío, y muy desacelerado en comparación con otros países en el mundo, y esto se debió al gran atraso tecnológico que nuestro país poseía en aquella época. Sin embargo, en los últimos años ha sido una de las ramas más dinámicas de la economía, entendiendo que es uno de los motores que impulsarán a la economía argentina. En la actualidad, existen diversas empresas dedicadas a la fabricación de medicamentos en las cuales muchas de ellas, exclusivamente, a medicamentos oncológicos1. La Cámara Industrial de Laboratorios Farmacéuticos Argentina2 elaboré un resumen estratégico en el año 2006 con el objetivo de reflejar la industria de laboratorios nacionales y fomentar un desarrollo sustentable de la industria farmacéutica y farmoquímica3 instalada en nuestro país. Entre varios de los laboratorios, aparece Laboratorios Vannier S.A., constituida originalmente como una empresa familiar, convirtiéndose en el pasar de los años en una de las PYMES más importante de la Argentina en esta industria Se sabe por experiencia que los factores que hacen al crecimiento y desarrollo de una empresa son Productividad, Eficacia, Eficiencia, Rentabilidad, Calidad, Procesos y Competitividad. El siguiente estudio indagará sobre la competitividad que tuvo que afrontar la empresa con los diferentes competidores que intervienen en el mercado. Se abordará en el presente trabajo las diferentes herramientas en materia de Finanzas Corporativas que debió implementar la compañía para sostener su alto crecimiento en la actualidad.Fil: Testore, Nicolás Orlando. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Económicas. Buenos Aires, Argentina

High-performance device for air interlacing of a yarn and corresponding method

Abstract A device for air interlacing of a yarn , comprising an interlacing chamber , a first entrance channel for receiving the yarn at the device entrance and feeding it to the interlacing chamber , and a second exit channel for receiving the yarn from the interlacing chamber and releasing it at the device exit, in which the interlacing chamber is delimited by a first emitting wall bearing a nozzle for the emission of a continuous jet of compressed air , and a second deflecting wall , opposite the first wall , suitable for receiving and deflecting the jet of compressed air emitted by the nozzle and intersecting the yarn to be interlaced, and in which the second deflecting wall is concave in shape both on a transversal plane and on a longitudinal plane with respect to the feeding path of the yarn through the device

PEGDA-Gelatin/PEDOT:PSS hydrogels as electroconductive and 3D-printable scaffolds for cardiac tissue engineering

INTRODUCTION Hydrogels are hydrophilic polymeric networks, able to mimic the microenvironment of human tissues and therefore they are widely studied in tissue engineering (TE). Electroactive tissues, such as cardiac, neural and muscle, strictly depends on electrochemical signaling between cells. Therefore, TE scaffolds interacting with those tissues should be designed with electroconductive properties [1]. Electroconductive hydrogels (ECHs), are a class of smart biomaterials that merge the electrical properties of intrinsically conductive materials with hydrogel networks. In recent studies, the in vivo application of conductive hydrogels demonstrated their ability to re-synchronize heart contraction, after myocardial infarction [2]. Nevertheless, a hydrogel-based scaffold with highly tunable electrical and mechanical properties, showing also bioactivity, biocompatibility and biodegradability, is still missing [1]. Furthermore, the heart tissue has an highly hierarchical and anisotropic microstructure [3]. In cardiac TE, scaffolds able to support alignment of contractile cells, are demanded. Bioprinting methods are promising as they can print oriented constructs. Furthermore, the application of bioprinting to photo-crosslinkable hydrogels may allow high spatiotemporal control of scaffold structure [3]. The aims of this work, were: (i) the development of photo-curable ECHs based on polyethylene glycol diacrylate (PEGDA), gelatin and poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrene sulfonate) PEDOT:PSS, with tunable electrical, mechanical and bioactive properties for cardiac tissue engineering application; (ii) to investigate the suitability of PEGDA-Gelatin/PEDOT:PSS hydrogels as inks for prospective biofabrication of engineered cardiac tissues. MATERIALS AND METHODS Following previous studies by the authors, photo-cured PEGDA-gelatin hydrogels were optimized. Herein, Riboflavin was used as a biocompatible photoinitiator and different PEGDA/gelatin hydrogels were tested. PEDOT:PSS was added to hydrogels to impart electrical conductivity. Photopolymerization was analyzed by photorheology. Mechanical compression properties were studied, while electrical properties were evaluated by sheet resistance and dielectric spectroscopy. In vitro degradation properties of hydrogels were also evaluated. As a proof of concept for cardiac tissue engineering use, in vitro biocompatibility and adhesion tests with human cardiac fibroblasts (HCFs) were performed on hydrogels. Finally, printability of hydrogels was also preliminarily assessed. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Hydrogel gelation time, final cross-linking density, microstructure, swelling and degradation properties were finely modulated by PEGDA/gelatin ratio. By its increase, hydrogels with increasing stiffness were obtained, with elastic moduli close to that of healthy native cardiac tissue. The addition of PEDOT:PSS into the hydrogels reduced gelation time and increased surface and bulk electrical properties. As a bioactive component, gelatin was successfully integrated into the hydrogel network. Hydrogels were also cytocompatible and promoted the adhesion of HCFs up to 5 days. Finally, PEGDA-Gelatin/PEDOT:PSS hydrogels were micro-extruded into grid-shaped scaffolds. CONCLUSIONS Electroconductive photo-curable PEGDA-gelatin/PEDOT:PSS hydrogels were developed as promising for future bioprinting of cardiac tissues. REFERENCES 1. Rogers, Z. J., Zeevi, M. P., Koppes, R. and Bencherif, S. A., Bioelectricity, 2 (3): 279-292, 2020. 2. Zhang, C. et al., Biomaterials, 231: 2020 3. Zenobi-wong, M., Lee, M. and Rizzo R., Chem. Rev., 120: 10950-11027, 2020 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This project is supported from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (BIORECAR GA N° 772168)

Electroconductive photo-curable PEGDA-Gelatin/PEDOT:PSS hydrogels for prospective cardiac tissue engineering application

Introduction Hydrogels are hydrophilic cross-linked polymeric materials that have been widely studied in tissue engineering (TE) to mimic human tissues [1]. The functionality of electroactive tissues, such as cardiac, neural and muscle, strictly depend on electrochemical signaling between cells. Therefore, TE scaffolds interacting with those tissues should be designed with electroconductive properties [2]. Recently, electroconductive hydrogels (ECHs), combining intrinsically conductive materials with hydrogels networks, have demonstrated to be able to promote the formation of electroactive engineered tissues both in vitro and in vivo. Poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrene sulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS), a conductive polymer, presents good biocompatibility and dispersibility in aqueous solution. Hence, it has already been involved in the development of ECHs for engineering cardiac or neural tissue [3][4]. Nevertheless, an hydrogel-based scaffold with highly tunable electrical and mechanical properties, showing also bioactivity, biocompatibility and biodegradability, is still missing [2]. The aim of this work, was the development of photo-curable ECHs based on polyethylene glycol diacrylate (PEGDA), gelatin and PEDOT:PSS, with tunable electrical, mechanical and bioactive properties, for cardiac tissue engineering application. Methodology In previous studies by the authors, UV-cured hydrogels based on PEGDA and gelatin were obtained [5]. Riboflavin was selected as a biocompatible photoinitiator and three different initial PEGDA/gelatin weight ratios were tested. PEDOT:PSS was incorporated, to impart electrical conductivity to the final system. The photopolymerization process was analyzed through photorheology. Physico-chemical properties of hydrogels were investigated. Mechanical characterization was carried out through compression tests while electrical properties were evaluated by means of sheet resistance and dielectric spectroscopy measurements. In vitro degradation properties of hydrogels were also evaluated. Finally, as a proof of concept for cardiac tissue engineering application, in vitro biocompatibility and adhesion tests with human cardiac fibroblasts (HCFs) were performed on the developed hydrogels. Results The gelation time of hydrogels as well as their final cross-linking density, microstructure, swelling and degradation properties were finely modulated by varying the ratio between PEGDA and gelatin. Accordingly, by increasing PEGDA/gelatin ratio, hydrogels with increasing stiffness were obtained, with elastic moduli similar to those reported for healthy native cardiac tissue. The addition of PEDOT:PSS within the hydrogels reduced their gelation time while increasing both their surface and bulk electrical properties. As a fundamental bioactive component, gelatin was successfully bonded to the final hydrogel network structure. Additionally, hydrogels were cytocompatible and promoted the adhesion of HCFs. Conclusions Electroconductive photo-curable PEGDA-gelatin/PEDOT:PSS hydrogels developed in this study are promising candidates for cardiac tissue engineering applications, deserving future investigations. 1. Hoffman, A. S. et al., Adv. Drug Deliv. Rev. 64, 18–23 (2012). 2. Rogers, Z. J. et al., Bioelectricity 2, 279–292 (2020). 3. Roshanbifar, K. et al., Adv. Funct. Mater. 28 (2018). 4. Heo, D.N. et al., Mater. Sci. Eng. C 99, 582–590 (2019). 5. Cosola, A. et al., Polymers 11, 1-9 (2019). BIORECAR project has received funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme grant agreement No 77216

Microbiologic characteristics and predictors of mortality in bloodstream infections in intensive care unit patients: A 1-year, large, prospective surveillance study in 5 Italian hospitals

Bloodstream infections (BSIs) from multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacteria cause morbidity and mortality in intensive care unit (ICU) patients worldwide. This study investigated the incidence of BSIs in 5 adult general ICUs in Rome, Italy, and evaluated the mortality rate and risk factors associated with these infections