Poly-Gamma-Glutamic Acid Functions as an Eective Lubricant with Antimicrobial Activity in Multipurpose Contact Lens Care Solutions

Compositional Analysis of Four Kinds of Citrus Fruits with an NMR-Based Method for Understanding Nutritional Value and Rational Utilization: From Pericarp to Juice

Citrus is one of the most important economic crops and is widely distributed across the monsoon region. Citrus fruits are deeply loved by consumers because of their special color, fragrance and high nutritional value. However, their health benefits have not been fully understood, especially the pericarps of citrus fruits which have barely been utilized due to their unknown chemical composition. In the present study, the pericarp and juices of four typical varieties of citrus fruits (lemon, dekopon, sweet orange and pomelo) were analyzed by NMR spectroscopy combined with pattern recognition. A total of 62 components from the citrus juices and 87 components from the citrus pericarps were identified and quantified, respectively. The different varieties of the citrus fruits could be distinguished from the others, and the chemical markers in each citrus juice and pericarp were identified by a combination of univariate and multivariate statistical analyses. The nutritional analysis of citrus juices offers favorable diet recommendations for human consumption and data guidance for their potential medical use, and the nutritional analysis of citrus pericarps provides a data reference for the subsequent comprehensive utilization of citrus fruits. Our results not only provide an important reference for the potential nutritional and medical values of citrus fruits but also provide a feasible platform for the traceability analysis, adulteration identification and chemical composition analysis of other fruits.

Pre-Lubricated Polypropylene Injector for Breast Implant Delivery

Breast augmentation is a common esthetic surgery, and there are two major surgical methods for breast implant delivery: the finger method and the plastic film method. Each method has its advantages and disadvantages, and we have developed a prelubricated polypropylene (PP) injector that might be the most suitable device for delivering breast implants. By covering the interior surface of the injector with a hydrophilic coating, the friction coefficient was significantly reduced when a silicone sled was slid against the prelubricated PP injector. To confirm if the prelubricated PP injector would not damage the breast implant, fatigue testing was performed, and the results showed that the injector did not cause rupture or microleakage of the breast implant. In addition, the cell viability result demonstrated that the prelubricated PP injector was biocompatible. In addition, the prelubricated PP injector provides a small incision site and stability during breast implant delivery. Our results provided evidence that the prelubricated PP injector is a smooth and safe method for breast implant delivery.

Biomedical Applications of Bacteria-Derived Polymers

Plastics have found widespread use in the fields of cosmetic, engineering, and medical sciences due to their wide-ranging mechanical and physical properties, as well as suitability in biomedical applications. However, in the light of the environmental cost of further upscaling current methods of synthesizing many plastics, work has recently focused on the manufacture of these polymers using biological methods (often bacterial fermentation), which brings with them the advantages of both low temperature synthesis and a reduced reliance on potentially toxic and non-eco-friendly compounds. This can be seen as a boon in the biomaterials industry, where there is a need for highly bespoke, biocompatible, processable polymers with unique biological properties, for the regeneration and replacement of a large number of tissue types, following disease. However, barriers still remain to the mass-production of some of these polymers, necessitating new research. This review attempts a critical analysis of the contemporary literature concerning the use of a number of bacteria-derived polymers in the context of biomedical applications, including the biosynthetic pathways and organisms involved, as well as the challenges surrounding their mass production. This review will also consider the unique properties of these bacteria-derived polymers, contributing to bioactivity, including antibacterial properties, oxygen permittivity, and properties pertaining to cell adhesion, proliferation, and differentiation. Finally, the review will select notable examples in literature to indicate future directions, should the aforementioned barriers be addressed, as well as improvements to current bacterial fermentation methods that could help to address these barriers.

Correlation between Tribological Properties and the Quantified Structural Changes of Lysozyme on Poly (2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) Contact Lens

The ocular discomfort is the leading cause of contact lens wear discontinuation. Although the tear proteins as a lubricant might improve contact lens adaptation, some in vitro studies suggested that the amount of adsorbed proteins could not simply explain the lubricating performance of adsorbed proteins. The purpose of this study was to quantify the structural changes and corresponding ocular lubricating properties of adsorbed protein on a conventional contact lens material, poly (2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (pHEMA). The adsorption behaviors of lysozyme on pHEMA were determined by the combined effects of protein–surface and protein–protein interactions. Lysozyme, the most abundant protein in tear, was first adsorbed onto the pHEMA surface under widely varying protein solution concentrations to saturate the surface, with the areal density of the adsorbed protein presenting different protein–protein effects within the layer. These values were correlated with the measured secondary structures, and corresponding friction coefficient of the adsorbed and protein covered lens surface, respectively. The decreased friction coefficient value was an indicator of the lubricated surfaces with improved adaptation. Our results indicate that the protein–protein effects help stabilize the structure of adsorbed lysozyme on pHEMA with the raised friction coefficient measured critical for the innovation of contact lens material designs with improved adaptation.