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Additive manufacturing technologies give many new application possibilities in our everyday life. Biomedical applications benefit a lot from 3D printing. In medical applications, several devices can be easily produced or prototyped with FFF/ FDM technologies, but we must minimize the contamination risk. New materials regularly appear on the market, recently specified as antibacterial, resulting from compounded silver nanoparticles. Because scientifically accurate and practical information is not available, this way, we lack information regarding mechanical and thermal stability of the printed products. In addition, these parameters are essential in the setting and optimizing the 3D printers. In our recent study, we aimed to analyze PLA, PLA-HDT as well as PLA-Ag nanocomposite in the form of additive manufacturing filament, with DTA/TG. The results showed that these composites, based on their thermal characteristics, can be suitable for 3D print biomedical devices such as orthoses, casts, medical models and also surgical guides; therefore, their further examination should be important, regarding mechanical characteristics and their possible antibacterial effect.

Background Current hand hygiene guidelines do not provide recommendations on a specific volume for the clinical hand rubbing procedure. According to recent studies volume should be adjusted in order to achieve complete coverage. However, hand size is a parameter that highly influences the hand coverage quality when using alcohol-based handrubs (ABHR). The purpose of this study was to establish a quantitative correlation between applied ABHR volume and achieved hand coverage. Method ABHR based hand hygiene events were evaluated utilizing a digital health device, the Semmelweis hand hygiene system with respect to coverage achieved on the skin surface. Medical students and surgical residents (N = 356) were randomly selected and given predetermined ABHR volumes. Additionally, hand sizes were calculated using specialized software developed for this purpose. Drying time, ABHR volume awareness, as well spillage awareness were documented for each hand hygiene event. Results Hand coverage achieved during a hand hygiene event strongly depends on the applied ABHR volume. At a 1 ml dose, the uncovered hand area was approximately 7.10%, at 2 ml it decreased to 1.68%, and at 3 ml it further decreased to 1.02%. The achieved coverage is strongly correlated to hand size, nevertheless, a 3 ml applied volume proved sufficient for most hand hygiene events (84%). When applying a lower amount of ABHR (1.5 ml), even people with smaller hands failed to cover their entire hand surface. Furthermore, a 3 ml volume requires more than the guideline prescribed 20–30 s to dry. In addition, results suggest that drying time is not only affected by hand size, but perhaps other factors may be involved as well (e.g., skin temperature and degree of hydration). ABHR volumes of 3.5 ml or more were inefficient, as the disinfectant spilled while the additional rubbing time did not improve hand coverage. Conclusions Hand sizes differ a lot among HCWs. After objectively measuring participants, the surface of the smallest hand was just over half compared to the largest hand (259 cm2 and 498 cm2, respectively). While a 3 ml ABHR volume is reasonable for medium-size hands, the need for an optimized volume of handrub for each individual is critical, as it offers several advantages. Not only it can ensure adequate hand hygiene quality, but also prevent unnecessary costs. Bluntly increasing the volume also increases spillage and therefore waste of disinfectant in the case of smaller hands. In addition, adherence could potentially decrease due to the required longer drying time, therefore, adjusting the dosage according to hand size may also increase the overall hand hygiene compliance.

Mast cells have been shown to release extracellular vesicles (EVs) in vitro. However, EV‐mediated mast cell communication in vivo remains unexplored. Primary mast cells from GFP‐transgenic and wild type mice, were grown in the presence or absence of lipopolysaccharide (LPS), and the secreted EVs were separated from the conditioned media. Mast cell‐derived EVs were next cultured with LPS‐naïve mast cells, and the induction of TNF‐α expression was monitored. In addition, primary mast cells were seeded in diffusion chambers that were implanted into the peritoneal cavities of mice. Diffusion chambers enabled the release of GFP+ mast cell‐derived EVs in vivo into the peritoneal cavity. Peritoneal lavage cells were assessed for the uptake of GFP+ EVs and for TNF‐α production. In vitro, LPS‐stimulated mast cell‐derived EVs were efficiently taken up by non‐stimulated mast cells, and induced TNF‐α expression in a TLR4, JNK and P38 MAPK dependent manner. In vivo, using implanted diffusion chambers, we confirmed the release and transmission of mast cell‐derived EVs to other mast cells with subsequent induction of TNF‐α expression. These data show an EV‐mediated spreading of pro‐inflammatory response between mast cells, and provide the first in vivo evidence for the biological role of mast cell‐derived EVs.

BoCo showed significantly better hemostatic effect than PECo and OxCe.

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Pituitary adenylate cyclase activating polypeptide (PACAP) is an endogenous neuropeptide widely distributed throughout the body, including the gastrointestinal tract. Several effects have been described in human and animal intestines. Among others, PACAP infl uences secretion of intestinal glands, blood fl ow, and smooth muscle contraction. PACAP is a well-known cytoprotective peptide with strong anti-apoptotic, anti-infl ammatory, and antioxidant effects. The present review gives an overview of the intestinal protective actions of this neuropeptide. Exogenous PACAP treatment was protective in a rat model of small bowel autotransplantation. Radioimmunoassay (RIA) analysis of the intestinal tissue showed that endogenous PACAP levels gradually decreased with longer-lasting ischemic periods, prevented by PACAP addition. PACAP counteracted deleterious effects of ischemia on oxidative stress markers and cytokines. Another series of experiments investigated the role of endogenous PACAP in intestines in PACAP knockout (KO) mice. Warm ischemia-reperfusion injury and cold preservation models showed that the lack of PACAP caused a higher vulnerability against ischemic periods. Changes were more severe in PACAP KO mice at all examined time points. This fi nding was supported by increased levels of oxidative stress markers and decreased expression of antioxidant molecules. PACAP was proven to be protective not only in ischemic but also in infl ammatory bowel diseases. A recent study showed that PACAP treatment prolonged survival of Toxoplasma gondii infected mice suffering from acute ileitis and was able to reduce the ileal expression of proinfl ammatory cytokines. We completed the present review with recent clinical results obtained in patients suffering from infl ammatory bowel diseases. It was found that PACAP levels were altered depending on the activity, type of the disease, and antibiotic therapy, suggesting its probable role in infl ammatory events of the intestine.