TOXICOLOGICAL AND PHARMACOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT OF GOLD NANORODS IN NORMAL RATS

Objective: assessment of acute, subchronic and chronic toxicity of pegylated gold nanorods (PEG-gold NRs) in Wistar rats of both sex in three routes of administration {intravenous (IV), intramuscular (IM) and subcutaneous (SC)}.Methods: in the acute toxicity study; PEG-gold NRs were injected once by three different routes, blood and tissue samples were collected after 14 d. In the subchronic and chronic studies; PEG-gold NRs were injected via three different routes, at 0.225, 0.45 and 0.9 mg/kg, once daily for 5 consecutive days, followed by a 23-day recovery period, for three and six months in the subchronic and chronic toxicity studies, respectively. Hematology, urinalysis, biochemical and histopathological examinations were conducted at the end of each study.Results: acute toxicity showed a significant decrease in serum triglycerides and cholesterol levels after single IV, IM and SC injection of PEG-gold NRs, while serum creatinine was significantly increased after IV and IM injection. Subchronic results revealed a significant decrease in serum triglycerides and cholesterol levels. The chronic study showed a significant decrease in serum triglycerides, sodium levels, total leukocytes count and significant increase in serum creatinine after IV injection. IM injection resulted in significant decrease in serum alkaline phosphatase, triglycerides, cholesterol, sodium levels and total leukocytes count. SC injection resulted in significant decrease in serum triglycerides, glucose, red blood cell count with increased creatinine and hematocrit.Conclusion: PEG-gold NRs at the three examined doses is apparently safe since no serious signs of toxicity were detected. IM and SC routes of injection were irritating, so we recommend the IV route.Â

Burnout among surgeons before and during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic: an international survey

Background: SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has had many significant impacts within the surgical realm, and surgeons have been obligated to reconsider almost every aspect of daily clinical practice. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study reported in compliance with the CHERRIES guidelines and conducted through an online platform from June 14th to July 15th, 2020. The primary outcome was the burden of burnout during the pandemic indicated by the validated Shirom-Melamed Burnout Measure. Results: Nine hundred fifty-four surgeons completed the survey. The median length of practice was 10 years; 78.2% included were male with a median age of 37 years old, 39.5% were consultants, 68.9% were general surgeons, and 55.7% were affiliated with an academic institution. Overall, there was a significant increase in the mean burnout score during the pandemic; longer years of practice and older age were significantly associated with less burnout. There were significant reductions in the median number of outpatient visits, operated cases, on-call hours, emergency visits, and research work, so, 48.2% of respondents felt that the training resources were insufficient. The majority (81.3%) of respondents reported that their hospitals were included in the management of COVID-19, 66.5% felt their roles had been minimized; 41% were asked to assist in non-surgical medical practices, and 37.6% of respondents were included in COVID-19 management. Conclusions: There was a significant burnout among trainees. Almost all aspects of clinical and research activities were affected with a significant reduction in the volume of research, outpatient clinic visits, surgical procedures, on-call hours, and emergency cases hindering the training. Trial registration: The study was registered on clicaltrials.gov "NCT04433286" on 16/06/2020

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Abstract Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

Ultra-Thin Films of Poly(acrylic acid)/Silver Nanocomposite Coatings for Antimicrobial Applications

In this work not only colloids of poly(acrylic acid) (PAA) embedded with silver nanoparticles (Ag-NPs) but thin films (10 nm) also were deposited using electrospray deposition technique (ESD). A mixture of sodium borohydride (NaBH4) and ascorbic acid (AA) were utilized to reduce the silver ions to generate Ag-NPs in the PAA matrix. Moreover, sodium tricitrate was used to stabilize the prepared colloids. The obtained colloids and films were characterized using UV-visible, transmission electron microscopy (TEM). UV-Vis results reveal that an absorption peak at 425 nm was observed in presence of PAA-AgNO3-AA-citrate-NaBH4. This peak is attributed to the well-known surface plasmon resonance of the silver bound in Ag-NPs, while the reduction was rendering and/or inhibiting in absence of the AA and citrate. FTIR spectroscopy was used to study the mechanism of the reaction process of silver nitrate with PAA. TEM images showed the well dispersion of Ag-NPs in the PAA matrix with average particle size of 8 nm. The antimicrobial studies showed that the Ag-NPs embedded in the PAA matrix have proven to have a significant antimicrobial activity against E. coli, B. subtilis, and C. albicans

Monodispersed Gold Nanoparticles within PVA Film for Efficient Catalytic Degradation of Methylene Blue

ABSTRACT Polyvinyl Alcohol (PVA)/gold (Au) nanocomposite was prepared via seeded-growth route. The nanocomposite was characterized using UV-vis spectrophotometer, X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Transmission electron microscope (TEM). The application of PVA/Au as a catalyst for methylene blue (MB) dye degradation in water was investigated. The ability of reusing such nanocomposites as well as the effect initial dye concentration on the catalytic process was evaluated

Solid-State Synthesis of Metal Nanoparticles Supported on Cellulose Nanocrystals and Their Catalytic Activity

Heterogeneous catalysis has played a critical role in environmental remediation, for example, in processes that generate toxic streams. Thus, there is an ever-increasing need for green, cost-effective routes to synthesize highly active catalysts. In this study, a cellulose nanomaterial (cellulose nanocrystals, CNC) was employed as solid support for the nucleation of silver and gold nanoparticles via solid-state synthesis. The process involved solvent-free reduction in ambient conditions of metal precursors on the surface of CNC and in the presence of ascorbic acid. Surface plasmon resonance and X-ray diffraction indicated the successful formation of the metal nanoparticles, in the form of organic–inorganic hybrids. A strong hydrogen bonding was observed between CNC and the metal nanoparticles owing to the high density of hydroxyl groups in CNC, as determined by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. Electron microscopies indicated that the silver and gold precursors formed nanoparticles of hexagonal and spherical shape, respectively. The organic–inorganic hybrids were demonstrated as the potential catalyst for the reduction of 4-nitrophenol to 4-aminophenol. Overall, we introduce a green, solvent-free, and facile method for the production of noble metal nanoparticles supported on CNC, which offer promise in the scalable synthesis and for application in heterogeneous catalysis