Chasing Immunity: How Viable Is a Mandatory COVID-19 Vaccination Scheme for Australia?

When he first announced Australia's acquisition strategy for the COVID-19 vaccine, Prime Minister Scott Morrison alluded to the possibility of a mandatory vaccination scheme. The statement was met with significant backlash and Mr Morrison promptly rescinded the statement focusing instead on his desire to reach high levels of voluntary vaccine coverage. Nevertheless, interesting legal questions about the possibility of mandatory COVID-19 vaccination arose. This article explores the possible legal frameworks for implementing a mandatory vaccination scheme in Australia as well as the associated ethical dilemmas. Furthermore, it argues that a mandatory vaccination scheme, while possible and arguably ethical, would have undesirable implications resulting in popular opposition and decreased compliance with other voluntary vaccines such as childhood vaccination and seasonal influenza. Consequently, a voluntary scheme based on incentives and transparent provision of information is much more likely to achieve the desired uptake.

Three-dimensional culture models to study drug resistance in breast cancer.

Despite recent advances in breast cancer treatment, drug resistance frequently presents as a challenge, contributing to a higher risk of relapse and decreased overall survival rate. It is now generally recognized that the extracellular matrix and cellular heterogeneity of the tumor microenvironment influences the cancer cells' ultimate fate. Therefore, strategies employed to examine mechanisms of drug resistance must take microenvironmental influences, as well as genetic mutations, into account. This review discusses three-dimensional (3D) in vitro model systems which incorporate microenvironmental influences to study mechanisms of drug resistance in breast cancer. These bioengineered models include spheroid-based models, biomaterial-based models such as polymeric scaffolds and hydrogels, and microfluidic chip-based models. The advantages of these model systems over traditionally studied two-dimensional tissue culture polystyrene are examined. Additionally, the applicability of such 3D models for studying the impact of tumor microenvironment signals on drug response and/or resistance is discussed. Finally, the potential of such models for use in the development of strategies to combat drug resistance and determine the most promising treatment regimen is explored.

Evaluation of the MicroWorks, Inc. Swab Sampling System (MSSSTM) for Use in Performing Quantitative Swab Sampling.

The purpose of this study was to qualify the MicroWorks, Inc. Swab Sampling System (MSSS™) swab kit for use in sampling cleanroom surfaces for bioburden. A six-part study was performed to demonstrate the suitability of the swab materials, the recovery of bioburden from typical cleanroom surfaces, the neutralization of typical disinfectants used in cleanrooms, the removal of diluents from the swabbed surface, and the hold time for test samples. A total of 13 challenge organisms were used: six National Collection of Type Cultures/American Type Culture Collection (NCTC/ATCC) standard culture organisms and seven environmental isolates, which were recovered from different MedImmune manufacturing facilities. Based on the results of the study it was shown that 12 of the challenge organisms were recovered from the calcium alginate swab materials and 13 of the challenge organisms were recovered from the sodium citrate diluent at ≥70%. Eleven organisms, including the six NCTC/ATCC organisms and five of the environmental organisms, were recovered from stainless steel, glass, polyvinylchloride curtain material, latex glove material, and neoprene at a rate of ≥70%. Effective neutralization was shown for LpH (an acid phenolic compound manufactured by Steris Corporation, Mentor, OH), Vesphene II, Spor-Klenz, 70% isopropyl alcohol (IPA), and Biocides B, X, and Y when utilizing the filtration/rinsing process. Recovery of six NCTC/ATCC organisms was demonstrated at ≥70%. The study also demonstrated that the diluents could easily be removed from the swabbed surface by following the swab with a 70% IPA wipe. A hold time of at least 24 h was demonstrated when samples were stored at 2-8 °C. The results of this study demonstrated that the MSSS™ swab kit and qualified test method recover ≥70% of surface bioburden from common cleanroom surfaces in the presence of a wide variety of disinfectants.