Photonic Crystal Sensor Evaluating the Effectiveness of Medical Products under Different Storage Conditions.

The effectiveness of time- and temperature-sensitive medical products (TTSMPs) (vaccines, medicines, and biological agents) is generally evaluated by sporadically checking the storage conditions recorded in electronic thermometers. However, electronic thermometers do not achieve all-time and all-regional record, resulting in the wrong evaluation of a single TTSMP and seriously endangering public health. Herein, we report a photonic crystal sensor for evaluating the effectiveness of a single TTSMP processing storage environment. The photonic crystal sensor assembled by colloidal microspheres (WO3-x nanospheres were added into the microsphere gap) generates a fascinating composite color of angle-dependent structural color (maximum reflectivity = 45%) and durative color (WO3-x coloration). Effectiveness evaluation principle reveals that the pattern on the sensor, which was printed by the composite color, fades sensitively to time and temperature, thus having different visible periods (0-21 days affected by temperature). The visible periods of the patterns can be used to evaluate a single TTSMP's effectiveness stored under different temperatures. Furthermore, the photonic crystal sensor shows outstanding flexibility and slight adhesion, offering a promising application toward the effectiveness evaluation of TTSMPs throughout storage, transportation, and sales processes.

Research Note: Effect of a live Salmonella Enteritidis vaccine against Salmonella Pullorum infection in breeder chickens.

Salmonella Pullorum is one of the most important avian pathogenic bacteria due to widespread outbreaks accompanied by high mortality. It has been demonstrated that the Salmonella Enteritidis live vaccine strain Sm24/Rif12/Ssq is able to induce cross-immunity protection against Salmonella Gallinarum and Salmonella Infantis, however, it is unknown whether this vaccine is effective against Salmonella Pullorum infection. In the present study, the Hubbard parent chickens were orally administrated this vaccine at 1-day-old, 40-day-old, and 131-day-old respectively, and challenged by Salmonella Pullorum at 157-day-old to evaluate the protective effect of the Salmonella Enteritidis live vaccine strain Sm24/Rif12/Ssq. After each vaccination, the vaccine strain could be recovered from cloacal swabs within a week, whereas no vaccine strain was re-isolated from environmental samples throughout the experiment. Vaccination for the breeder chickens with Salmonella Enteritidis Sm24/Rif12/Ssq could relieve swollen liver (P = 0.0066) caused by Salmonella Pullorum infection and decrease Salmonella Pullorum colonization level in spleen (P = 0.0035), whereas no significant difference was found in the bacterial counts of liver, ovary and oviduct of vaccinated chickens. These results suggested that the Salmonella Enteritidis live vaccine strain Sm24/Rif12/Ssq was high safety and effective against Salmonella Pullorum infection to a certain extent.

One-Step Fabrication of a Functionally Integrated Device Based on Polydimethylsiloxane-Coated SiO2 NPs for Efficient and Continuous Oil Absorption.

The construction of superhydrophobic surfaces necessitates the rational design of topographic surface structure and the reduction of surface energy. To date, the reported strategies are usually complex with multi-steps and costly. Thus, the simultaneous achievement of the two indispensable factors is highly desired, yet rather challenging. Herein, we develop a novel structure engineering strategy of realizing the fabrication of a functionally integrated device (FID) with a superhydrophobic surface via a one-step spraying method. Specifically, silica nanoparticles are used to control the surface roughness of the device, while polydimethylsiloxane is employed as the hydrophobic coating. Benefitting from the adopted superhydrophobicity, the as-fabricated FID exhibits a continuous, excellent oil-water separating performance (e.g., 92.5% separating efficiency) when coupled with a peristaltic pump. Notably, a smart design of incorporating a gas switch is adopted in this device, thereby effectively preventing water from entering the FID, realizing thorough oil collection, and avoiding secondary pollution. This work opens up an avenue for the design and development of the FID, accessible for rapid preparation and large-scale practical application.

Highly efficient propionylation and butyralation of cellulose in an ionic liquid catalyzed by 4-dimethylminopyridine.

Using 4-dimethylaminopyridine (DMAP) as the catalyst, highly efficient propionylation and butyralation of cellulose were successfully carried out in an ionic liquid 1-allyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride (AmimCl) under mild conditions. Cellulose propionate (CP) and cellulose butyrate (CB) with a degree of substitution (DS) in the range from 0.89 to 2.89 were synthesized within only 30 min at 30 °C. The DS values of the products could be well controlled just by molar ratio of acid anhydride/anhydroglucose unit (AGU). More interestingly, the conversions of acid anhydrides in both propionylation and butyralation were as high as above 90%, even 96%. Therefore, this work provides a facile and highly efficient way for the synthesis of cellulose esters CP and CB.