1,720,980 research outputs found
Double-crosslinkable poly(urethane)-based hydrogels relying on supramolecular interactions and light-initiated polymerization: promising tools for advanced applications in drug delivery
Full text linkPhysical and chemical hydrogels are promising platforms for tissue engineering/regenerative medicine (TERM). In particular, physical hydrogels are suitable for use in the design of drug delivery systems owing to their reversibility and responsiveness to applied stimuli and external environment. Alternatively, the use of chemical hydrogels represents a better strategy to produce stable 3D constructs in the TERM field. In this work, these two strategies were combined to develop multi-functional formulations integrating both drug delivery potential and TERM approaches in a single device. Specifically, a novel photo-sensitive poly(ether urethane) (PEU) was developed to form supramolecular networks with α-cyclodextrins (α-CDs). The PEU was successfully synthesized using Poloxamer® 407, 1,6-diisocyanatohexane and 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate, as assessed by infrared spectroscopy, size exclusion chromatography and proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR) spectroscopy. Subsequently, PEU thermo-responsiveness was characterized through critical micelle temperature evaluation and dynamic light scattering analyses, which suggested the achievement of a good balance between molecular mass and overall hydrophobicity. Consequently, the formation of supramolecular domains with α-CDs was demonstrated through X-ray diffraction and 1H NMR spectroscopy. Supramolecular hydrogels with remarkably fast gelation kinetics (i.e., few minutes) were designed using a low PEU concentration (≤5% w/v). All formulations were found to be cytocompatible according to the ISO 10993-5 regulation. Notably, the hydrogels were observed to possess mechanical properties and self-healing ability, according to rheological tests, and their fast photo-crosslinking was evidenced (<60 s) by photo-rheology. A high curcumin payload (570 μg mL-1) was encapsulated in the hydrogels, which was released with highly tunable and progressive kinetics in a physiological-simulated environment for up to 5 weeks. Finally, a preliminary evaluation of hydrogel extrudability was performed using an extrusion-based bioprinter, obtaining 3D-printed structures showing good morphological fidelity to the original design. Overall, the developed hydrogel platform showed promising properties for application in the emerging field of regenerative pharmacology as (i) easily injectable drug-loaded formulations suitable for post-application stabilization through light irradiation, and (ii) biomaterial inks for the fabrication of patient-specific drug-loaded patches
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Stimuli sensitive polyurethane-based hydrogels for the controlled and triggered release of anti-inflammatory drugs and anti-bacterial ions
No full textVariations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Full text linkWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
Full text linkWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
Thermosensitive polyurethane-based hydrogels sensitive to external pH as carriers of anti-inflammatory drugs in the treatment of skin wounds
No full textkoamabayili/VECTRON-author-checklist: VECTRON author checklist
No full textWe have done our best to complete the author checklist relating to the use of animals in the hut study. Note that the objective for the hut study was to evaluate the IRS treatment applications for residual efficacy against Anopheles mosquitoes, including the local An. coluzzii mosquito population. Cows were only used to attract mosquitoes into the huts and no tests were carried out directly on the cows. The author checklist is intended for use with studies where experiments are carried out on animals, which is why we have had such difficulty in completing this for the hut study, as many of the questions do not relate to how the cows were used
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