Journal Article

Gentle alternatives to existing sterilization methods are called for by rapid advances in biomedical technologies. Supercritical fluid technologies have found applications in a wide range of areas and have been explored for use in the inactivation of medical contaminants. In particular, supercritical CO2 is appealing for sterilization due to the ease at which the supercritical state is attained, the non-reactive nature, and the ability to readily penetrate substrates.

The concept of channels has been with us more than a century. For half a century, biologists have studied the remarkable workings of protein and peptide channels that permit various cations and small molecules to pass through the phospholipid bilayer membrane. During the past decade, attempts have been made by chemists and biochemists to examine the action of channel compounds from the chemical point of view and to model their function using synthetic structures.

The use of CO2 under pressure (dense CO2) is one of the most promising techniques to achieve cold pasteurization and/or sterilization of liquid and solid ma- terials, and is likely to replace or partially substitute currently and widely applied thermal processes. Although the ability of CO2 to inactivate microorganisms has been known since the 1950s, only within the last 15 years it has received special attention, and the scientific and economic interest towards practical applications is presently growing more and more.

Sterility is required for medical devices use in invasive medical procedures, and for some situations in the food industry. Sterilization of heat- sensitive or porous materials or devices, such as endoscopes, porous implants, liquid foodstuff, and liquid medicine, poses a challenge to current technologies. There has been a steady interest in using high-pressure carbon dioxide as a process medium for new sterilization technology. Among the potential advantages are that CO2 may sterilize at low temperatures.

OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESIS Numerous methods are used in the correction of deviated septal cartilage. One of these methods is to perform partial-thickness incisions (scoring) on the concave side of the deviated cartilage. In this retrospective report, we present a series of patients who were treated by filling the scoring incision gaps with cyanoacrylate-based tissue adhesives to increase the effectiveness of scoring incisions and to maintain stability of the corrected concave cartilage segments.

Prior to the first clinical trials of doxorubicin-loaded nanoparticles, it was necessary to prepare this formulation in such a way as to meet the requirements generally associated with parenteral administration. This paper describes the conditions under which nanoparticles should be prepared and lyophilized in order to be sterile and free of bacterial endotoxins. These nanoparticles were also subjected to a resuspension test and their size and drug adsorption capacity were found practically unchanged.

Odontoblast-like cells derived from human tooth pulps were maintained in expiant culture and grown either on glass coverslips only (used as control) or on glass coverslips coated with cyanoacrylate films. Ultrastructural and cyto-morphometric evidence showed that cells exposed to cyanoacrylate, in contrast to controls, display a significant decrease of rough endoplasmic reticulum and mitochondria. In addition, immunofluorescent staining and radioimmunoassays for type-I collagen suggested disturbances in production for the exposed cells.

Tissue adhesives represent a group of natural and artificial compounds that are currently used for a variety of local applications including hemostasis, wound closure, and fistula repair. The most commonly utilized tissue adhesives in GI endoscopy include cyanoacry- lates, fibrin glues, and thrombin. Other adhesives, such as collagen-based sealants and PEG polymers, are beginning to be studied in various surgical disciplines and may one day find a role in endoscopic practice as well.

By using fluorescent polysorbate 80 coated poly(n-butylcyanoacrylate) (PBCA) nanoparticles in an in vivo study, direct evidence was found for the presence of nanoparticles entering the brain and retina of rats. The nanoparticles, prepared with a miniemulsion process, were labeled in situ with a fluorescent dye and coated with polysorbate 80. After preparation the particle size, ζ potential, and the molecular weight distribution were determined. BMEC cells were used as an in vitro model for the BBB.