Stabilization of Aqueous Dispersions of Inorganic Microparticles Under Mechanical Activation

The stability of aqueous dispersed systems of TiO2 and Fe2O3 microparticles in the presence of a water-soluble polymer - ethylhydroxyethylcellulose (EHEC) - has been studied under the condition of using two methods of mechanoactivation of the pigment surface - processing them in a disintegrator and in an ultrasonic field. It is shown that in the absence of a polymer stabilizer, an intense effect on aqueous dispersed systems of pigments leads to rapid coagulation of particles. In the presence of EHEC, a small stabilizing effect is observed, which is significantly enhanced when processing dispersed systems in a disintegrator and in an ultrasonic field. In this case, the stability of dispersed systems depends little on the method of mechanoactivation of their surface, but significantly depends on the duration of the intense exposure.

Increased Phosphatidylserine on Blood Cells in Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma

The specific function of phosphatidylserine (PS) in the context of the development of a hypercoagulable state among individuals with oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is uncertain. The goal of this study was therefore to assess the exposure of PS on microparticles (MPs) as well as on endothelial and blood cells and to assess procoagulant activity (PCA) as a function of the stage of OSCC progression. We recruited patients with OSCC ( n = 63) as well as healthy controls ( n = 26) to participate in this study. PS exposure was then assessed via confocal microscopy and flow cytometry, revealing that patients with stage III/IV OSCC exhibited higher frequencies of PS-exposing blood cells, MPs, and serum-cultured endothelial cells (ECs) than did patients with stage I/II OSCC or healthy controls. When we conducted functional coagulation assays, we discovered that PS+blood cells, MPs, and serum-cultured ECs from patients with stage III/IV OSCC mediated more rapid coagulation and more substantial production of FXa, thrombin, and fibrin as compared with controls. When samples were treated with the PS antagonist lactadherin, this resulted in an 80% disruption of PCA. Strikingly, when pre- and postoperative samples were compared from patients with stage III/IV OSCC undergoing resective surgery, PCA was significantly reduced in the postoperative samples. After stimulating ECs with inflammatory cytokines, we found by confocal microscopy that they expose PS on their cell membranes, thus generating FVa and FXa binding sites and mediating the formation of fibrin. Together our findings provide evidence that PS+blood cells and MPs are important mediators of the development of a hypercoagulable and prothrombotic state among individuals afflicted by advanced-stage OSCC. As such, a PS blockade may be a viable therapeutic strategy for treating such patients.

Drift mechanism of the metal nanowires formation in liquid helium

It is shown theoretically that the mechanism of the rapid coagulation of metal nanospheres into a nanowire in a quantum vortex proposed by E. B. Gordon et al. (Low Temp. Phys., 2010, 36, 590) could not be realized, due to the enormous heat release expelling the nanospheres from the vortex.

Determination of the Rate of Salt-Induced Rapid Coagulation of Polystyrene Latex Particles in Turbulent Flow Using Small Stirred Vessel

In our study, we revisited a previously reported method for evaluating the mixing intensity of uniform colloidal spheres in terms of their collision frequency, with the aim of evaluating the validity of this method in the case of a small stirred vessel equipped with an impeller with four paddles. The rates of the salt-induced rapid coagulation of polystyrene latex (PSL) particles with five different diameters were measured as functions of the rotation rate. The ad-hoc assumption of the linear additivity of the perikinetics and the orthokinetics of the coagulation process was used for the analysis. Our previously proposed equation for the rate of turbulent coagulation as a function of the particle diameter, determined for an end-over-end rotation mixing device, was confirmed to be valid. However, it was found that, for small particles and low-mixing rates, i.e., for low Peclet numbers, the rate of coagulation becomes larger than that predicted on the basis of linear additivity because of the coupling effect of Brownian motion and the fluid flow during turbulent mixing. This increase occurred even though the rate was lowered by the wall effect, which resulted in an inhomogeneous distribution of the mixing intensity.

Haemostasis action of VELSEAL-T in a haemophilia A patient with external bleeding

VELSEAL-Tis an innovative haemostatic medical device for the control of bleeding. Incorporating a clotting agent (thrombin) and anti-fibrinolytic agent (tranexamic acid), it enables rapid coagulation when blood flows into the dressing, leading to sealing and stabilisation of wound surfaces. A 36-year-old known to have mild haemophilia A presented with profuse bleeding from the forehead after injury following a fall on concrete surface. He attended hospital after 18 hours of injury as bleeding continued as soon as pressure was released from the injury site. A VELSEAL-T patch was applied to the injury site with the patient’s full consent. The bleeding stopped after 60 seconds, but the patient was instructed to hold the patch in place for a further 60 seconds. After two minutes of tight pressure application, there was no more oozing of blood from the injury site. This case shows that VELSEAL-T can be used as an aid in stopping external bleeding in haemophilia patients. Further trials should be undertaken to evaluate the safety and efficacy of this product.