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For a hygiene paper such as tissue and towel, strength, softness, and absorbency are known as attributes that a user is looking for. It is proposed here that purchasing decisions are likely to be influenced by in-use experiences, which may be quite different from the physical properties measured with current standardized tests. There have been continuous efforts on developing physical test methods to replace subjective in-use tests because the benefits of the former are too significant to be overlooked. This paper considered some in-use test methods for paper towel products that can be carried out by panel members quickly in the course of sensory panel testing. In addition, laboratory tests were developed in an attempt to quantify such input. The sensory panel testing showed that (wet) strength and absorbency were the key contributions to the performance of paper towels. Softness did not show any significant contribution to it. Wet strength showed a high correlation with absorbency. The (wet) ball burst strength had the highest correlation with the in-use strength. Although both the tensile strength and the ball burst strength had a high correlation with preference, the ball burst tester is preferred because more reproducible and simpler to operate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One fine spring morning, at some point, I was simply tearing a few sheets of paper towel off a fresh roll. As the sheets came off and the roll rotated about the vertical axle of the holder (Figure 1), I lazily pondered the geometry lurking in the situation. I realised that sometimes I would let the roll rotate as the unwound part moved straight until tearing, while at other times, I might hold the roll in place and unwind the sheets around the roll. More often, it would be some spontaneous combination of the two modes of unwinding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, hand drying has been highlighted as a key step in appropriate hand hygiene, as moisture on hands can increase the transfer of micro-organisms from hands to surfaces and vice versa. To understand bacterial and viral aerosolization following hand drying, and study the transfer of micro-organisms from hands to surfaces after drying using different methods. Groups of five volunteers had their hands pre-washed with soap, rinsed and dried, then inoculated with a concentrated mixture of Pseudomonas fluorescens and MS2 bacteriophage. Volunteers entered an empty washroom, one at a time, and rinsed their hands with water or washed their hands with soap prior to drying with a jet dryer or paper towels. Each volunteer applied one hand successively to various surfaces, while their other hand was sampled using the glove juice method. Both residual bacteria and viruses were quantified from the washroom air, surface swabs and hand samples. P. fluorescens and MS2 bacteriophages were rarely aerosolized while drying hands for any of the drying methods studied. Results also showed limited, and similar, transfer of both micro-organisms studied on to surfaces for all drying methods. The use of jet dryers or paper towels produces low levels of aerosolization when drying hands in a washroom. Similarly, all drying methods result in low transfer to surfaces. While the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic raised concerns regarding public washrooms, this study shows that all methods tested are hygienic solutions for dry washed hands. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A significant amount of researcher and practitioner effort has focused on developing new chemical controls for the parasitic Varroa destructor mite in beekeeping. One outcome of that has been the development and testing of "glycerol–oxalic acid" mixtures to place in colonies for extended periods of time, an off-label use of the otherwise legal miticide oxalic acid. The majority of circulated work on this approach was led by practitioners and published in nonacademic journals, highlighting a lack of effective partnership between practitioners and scientists and a possible failure of the extension mandate in beekeeping in the United States. Here, we summarize the practitioner-led studies we could locate and partner with a commercial beekeeper in the Southeast of the United States to test the "shop towel–oxalic acid–glycerol" delivery system developed by those practitioners. Our study, using 129 commercial colonies between honey flows in 2017 split into 4 treatment groups, showed no effectiveness in reducing Varroa parasitism in colonies exposed to oxalic acid–glycerol shop towels. We highlight the discrepancy between our results and those circulated by practitioners, at least for the Southeast, and the failure of extension to support practitioners engaged in research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article introduces a flexible and easy-to-implement open-ended scientific inquiry activity called the Paper Towels Challenge. After experimentally determining which of three unbranded paper towels is the most absorbent, students discuss their results and methods. The teacher facilitates the discussion of epistemological issues. This activity can be used regardless of the participants' age or country to promote science understanding, NGSS science and engineering practices, and twenty-first century skills, such as critical thinking and communication. The many uses, benefits, and possible adaptations of the activity are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The inner lining of the urinary bladder (urothelium and lamina propria, or bladder mucosa) has an important role as a tissue barrier between stored urine and the underlying smooth muscle, as well as in the modulation and regulation of bladder contractility. However, the individual influence of the apical urothelial layer on the contractile activity of this tissue is uncertain. The aim of this experiment was to identify the contractile activity of the lamina propria after removal of the urothelium. Several methods were used to mechanically disrupt the urothelium, including dabbing the tissue with a paper towel, longitudinal swipes with a cotton bud, or a longitudinal scrape with the edge of a scalpel. Hematoxylin-eosin staining was utilized to determine the level of removal of the apical urothelial cells. Spontaneous contractile activity was measured in organ baths, and responses to the agonists carbachol and isoprenaline were obtained. Three longitudinal swipes with a cotton bud was found to be the optimal method to remove the majority of the urothelium without damaging the lamina propria. Upon removal of the urothelium, the spontaneous activity of the tissue was unaltered. Similarly, responses to carbachol (1 µM) and isoprenaline (1 µM) were not affected after removal of the urothelium. The urothelium can be effectively removed without damaging the lamina propria. This apical tissue layer is not responsible for mediating the increases to spontaneous phasic activity or tonic contractions of the bladder mucosa (urothelium with lamina propria) when muscarinic or adrenergic receptors are stimulated. This research presents the lamina propria as the important cell layer mediating the overall contractile activity of the bladder wall. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The pursuit of disinfecting porous materials or fomites to inactivate viral agents has special challenges. To address these challenges, a highly portable chlorine dioxide (ClO2) gas generation system was used to ascertain the ability of a gaseous preparation to inactivate a viral agent, the MS2 bacteriophage, when associated with potentially porous fomites of cloth, paper towel, and wood. The MS2 bacteriophage is increasingly used as a model to identify means of inactivating infectious viral agents of significance to humans. Studies showed that MS2 bacteriophage can be applied to and subsequently recovered from potential porous fomites such as cloth, paper towel, and wood. Paired with viral plaque assays, this provided a means for assessing the ability of gaseous ClO2 to inactivate bacteriophage associated with the porous materials. Notable results include 100% inactivation of 6 log bacteriophage after overnight exposure to 20 parts per million(ppm) ClO2. Reducing exposure time to 90 minutes and gas ppm to lower concentrations proved to remain effective in bacteriophage elimination in association with porous materials. Stepwise reduction in gas concentration from 76 ppm to 5 ppm consistently resulted in greater than 99.99% to 100% reduction of recoverable bacteriophage. This model suggests the potential of ClO2 gas deployment systems for use in the inactivation of viral agents associated with porous potential fomites. The ClO2 gas could prove especially helpful in disinfecting enclosed areas containing viral contaminated surfaces, rather than manually spraying and wiping them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Kazakhstan is developing a National Roadmap to strengthen its Infection Prevention and Control (IPC), but until recently has lacked a country-wide facility-level assessment of IPC performance gaps. Methods: In 2021, the World Health Organization (WHO)'s IPC Core Components and Minimal Requirements were assessed at 78 randomly selected hospitals across 17 administrative regions using adapted WHO tools. The study included site assessments, followed by structured interviews with 320 hospital staff, validation observations of IPC practices, and document reviews. Results: All hospitals had at least one dedicated IPC staff member, 76% had IPC staff with any formal IPC training; 95% established an IPC committee and 54% had an annual IPC workplan; 92% had any IPC guidelines; 55% conducted any IPC monitoring in the past 12 months and shared the results with facility staff, but only 9% used monitoring data for improvements; 93% had access to a microbiological laboratory for HAI surveillance, but HAI surveillance with standardized definitions and systematic data collection was conducted in only one hospital. Adequate bed spacing of at least 1 m in all wards was maintained in 35% of hospitals; soap and paper towels were available at the hand hygiene stations in 62% and 38% of hospitals, respectively. Conclusions: Existing IPC programs, infrastructure, IPC staffing, workload and supplies present within hospitals in Kazakhstan allow for implementation of effective IPC. Development and dissemination of IPC guidelines based on the recommended WHO IPC core components, improved IPC training system, and implementation of systematic monitoring of IPC practices will be important first steps towards implementing targeted IPC improvement plans in facilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present work was based on analysis of the flow regime of fibre suspensions, that corresponds to furnishes and process conditions typically established for tissue paper manufacturing, i.e., under the common range of stock consistencies at the machine headbox and most usual furnish compositions. The flocculation potential of fibre suspensions used for toilet papers, facial tissues, paper towels and table napkins were evaluated on the principles of analytical concepts for fibre agglomeration propensity. The results show crowding numbers from 5.0 to 69.0, depending on the type of fibre or fibre blending ratios. The findings regarding agglomeration factors indicate that flow regimes are mainly in semi-concentrated and around gel state zones but reached the concentrated flow regime, in extreme conditions of fibre morphology and stock consistency. The influence of hardwood and softwood mixture ratios on the fibre suspension features is shown and discussed for common formulations of tissue base paper. The effect of fibre length and coarseness on the flocculation potential and the impacts of fibre suspension flow regimes on the structural properties of tissue paper, such as the formation uniformity are discussed, demonstrating the reasons for the preferred use of high hardwood content in furnish balance for tissue paper manufacturing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Easy and inexpensive methods for measuring ammonia emissions in multi-plot field trials allow the comparison of several treatments with liquid manure application. One approach that might be suitable under these conditions is the dynamic tube method (DTM). Applying the DTM, a mobile chamber system is placed on the soil surface, and the air volume within is exchanged at a constant rate for approx. 90 s. with an automated pump. This procedure is assumed to achieve an equilibrium ammonia concentration within the system. Subsequently, a measurement is performed using an ammonia-sensitive detector tube. Ammonia fluxes are calculated based on an empirical model that also takes into account the background ammonia concentration measured on unfertilized control plots. Between measurements on different plots, the chamber system is flushed with ambient air and cleaned with paper towels to minimize contamination with ammonia. The aim of this study was to determine important prerequisites and boundary conditions for the application of the DTM. We conducted a laboratory experiment to test if the ammonia concentration remains stable while performing a measurement. Furthermore, we investigated the cleaning procedure and the effect of potential ammonia carryover on cumulated emissions under field conditions following liquid manure application. The laboratory experiment indicated that the premeasurement phase to ensure a constant ammonia concentration is not sufficient. The concentration only stabilized after performing more than 100 pump strokes, with 20 pump strokes (lasting approximately 90 s) being the recommendation. However, the duration of performing a measurement can vary substantially, and linear conversion accounts for those differences, so a stable concentration is mandatory. Further experiments showed that the cleaning procedure is not sufficient under field conditions. Thirty minutes after performing measurements on high emitting plots, which resulted in an ammonia concentration of approx. 10 ppm in the chamber, we detected a residual concentration of 2 ppm. This contamination may affect measurements on plots with liquid manure application as well as on untreated control plots. In a field experiment with trailing hose application of liquid manure, we subsequently demonstrated that the calculation of cumulative ammonia emissions can vary by a factor of three, depending on the degree of chamber system contamination when measuring control plots. When the ammonia background values were determined by an uncontaminated chamber system that was used to measure only control plots, cumulative ammonia emissions were approximately 9 kg NH3-N ha−1. However, when ammonia background values were determined using the contaminated chamber system that was also used to measure on plots with liquid manure application, the calculation of cumulative ammonia losses indicated approximately 3 kg NH3-N ha−1. Based on these results, it can be concluded that a new empirical DTM calibration is needed for multi-plot field experiments with high-emitting treatments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. vasinfechun race 4 (FOV4) is a soilborne fungal pathogen threatening U.S. cotton production. The objective of this study was to develop a reliable and efficient method to evaluate cotton for FOV4 resistance based on taproot rot duri ng seed germination through five growth chamber tests and two greenhouse tests. Seeds from eight cotton cultivars (Set I) were germinated in a paper towel for 6 days, and taproots were inoculated with a FOV4 conidial suspension using three inoculation methods (i.e., taproot dipping. taproot wounding. and paper towel drenching). in addition to seed soaking before germination. The taproot rot-based disease incidence (DI) and disease severity rating (DSR), seed germination percentage (SGP), and plant fresh weight (PFW) were measured 7 days after inoculation. Taproot dipping was the most efficient and reliable evaluation method. The SGP and PFW were not significantly correlated with the DI and DSR. making them inappropriate to use in resistance evaluation. Pima DP 359 RF and PHY 881 RF were the most resistant with the lowest root rot. The taproot dipping method was repeated in another test and confirmed in two tests using another set of eight cultivars (Set 2). The taproot rot-based DSR atgermination was significantly correlated with the DSR at the seedling stage in the greenhouse in both sets and with previous results in seedling mortality in the greenhouse and field in Set 2. The results suggest that the response to FOV4 infections at the seed germination stage is overall congruent with that at the seedling stage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hydroponic growth systems are a practical platform for obtaining healthy seedlings in a non-destructive way and therefore studying whole plant morpho-physiology. Nonetheless, the sunflower is a crop with poor growth and survivability under the hydroponic systems currently used. In this study, our aim was to design a hydroponic cultivation medium to obtain root systems of sunflower seedlings during its early vegetative growth phase. Sunflower seeds were germinated between moistened paper towels for 72 h. Following germination, the seedlings were transferred to plastic containers filled with water. Subsequently, water was replaced by Hoagland solution and each container was connected to the aeration system. When the seedlings were 24 days old, they were removed from the hydroponic system for subsequent determinations. Parameters such as pH, oxygen content, electrical conductivity, and light conditions are provided. The various morpho-anatomical parameters that were quantified include principal root length, number of lateral roots, and insertion angle, among others. We were able to develop a sunflower hydroponic growth system that can be easily and economically constructed and that allows the production of seedlings and the obtaining of a clean root system for subsequent determinations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article, titled "Botrytis cinerea as a cause of blackberry gray mold disease in Ecuador," discusses the prevalence of gray mold disease in blackberry crops in Ecuador. The causal agent of the disease, previously unidentified at the molecular level, is now identified as Botrytis cinerea based on morphological characteristics and DNA analysis. The study confirms the presence of Botrytis cinerea in blackberry orchards in the Huachi Grande parish of Tungurahua province, Ecuador, and fulfills Koch's postulates to establish it as the cause of gray mold disease in Ecuadorian blackberries. The findings of this study provide valuable information for researchers and farmers working to mitigate the impact of gray mold disease on blackberry crops in Ecuador. [Extracted from the article]

Intact Syzygium myrtifolium seed produces a single seedling although most species within the same genus are polyembryonic. Following the earlier work that found the potential of more than one plantlet development from the fractionated seeds of some monoembryonic Eugenia spp. belonging to the same family, the present work assessed the sprouting of S. myrtifolium seed fractions on moistened paper towel pads. This study was carried out in the enclosed plastic boxes at ambient temperature in the laboratory. The results obtained indicated that the different parts of the cotyledons could develop plantlets spontaneously following incision of a seed into separated fractions. Despite the reduced mass, the seed fragments revealed the potential of developing more than one plantlet in vivo from a seed. Injury or seed incision has been suggested to trigger the development of embryonic cell in the cotyledon leading to the formation of an entire plant in contrast to polarity committed by whole seed. For the fragmented seeds that did not regenerate full plants, more than 80% of them exhibited unsynchronized adventitious root development. In the re-growth evaluation, more than 70% of the seed fragments formed new adventitious roots on the new cotyledonary surfaces after the removal of plantlets and the attached cotyledons. This phenomenon suggests the spread of meristematic tissues within the cotyledons. Future work should look into the intrinsic signals and external cues that regulate the cellular differentiation and development in the seed fractions in revealing the polyembryony in S. myrtifolium. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Zein as a natural protein had been widely used in various fields due to its biodegradability and biocompatibility. However, its sensitivity to humidity and poor mechanical performance limited its application in practice. In this study, zein-based composite nanofibers loaded with curcumin were prepared by electrospinning assisted with polyvinyl alcohol (PVA). The filtration efficiency of the modified nanofibers to the particles with diameters larger than 0.5 μm was all above 98%. The loaded curcumin interacted with protein molecular chains to form a network structure within tightly connected nanofibers, which exhibited excellent moisture resistance and good adhesion to cellulose paper towels used as air filter substrates. Meanwhile, its tensile strength had also been enhanced vastly to 0.72 MPa compared with the initial tensile strength of 0.21 MPa. This study provides a new electrospinning strategy for the preparation of zein-based composite nanofibers that can be widely utilized in air filtration with high moisture resistance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: With the growing popularity of snakes in the pet trade, investigation into environmental enrichment preferences in snakes is critical to their captive welfare. Unfortunately, small, minimalistic enclosures are predominantly used by both pet owners and breeders alike to house captive snakes. Recently, a handful of studies have shown the benefits that arise from the correct use of enrichment with climbing snakes, but none have observed this aspect in popular pet snakes that burrow, such as western hognose snakes. This study found that hognose snakes significantly prefer environmental enrichment when given a choice between enrichment and minimalistic conditions. This encourages further investigation into the welfare needs of other captive snake species that may be improperly housed, leading to chronic stress and poor health. The environmental enrichment needs of snakes are often disregarded. Using preference testing, we aimed to shed light on the enrichment preferences of a popular pet species, the western hognose snake (Heterodon nasicus). Snakes' enclosures were divided into enriched and standard sides. The enriched half had substrate for burrowing, interactive stimuli, and a large water dish. The standard half had paper towel substrate and a small water dish. Each side also contained a single shelter. We provided belly heat to create a thermal gradient on one side of the cage. Snakes were observed for 6 days, four times daily. We predicted a preference for enriched conditions and, as snakes are ectothermic, a preference for the warmer side. Snakes were additionally given an exploration assay, to explore whether differences in preference for environmental enrichment interact with boldness levels. We found that hognose snakes preferred enrichment, and the strength of this preference increased over time. Preference for enrichment was stronger when the enriched side was cooler. This may be due to the burrowing tendencies of these snakes. We found no relationship between preference and boldness. These findings emphasise the importance of preference testing in establishing research-informed enrichment opportunities for reptiles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study proposes a method to determine the two‐dimensional absorption capacity of paper towels. Individual plies were tested to minimize the effects of transverse wicking on wetting. The method involves arbitrary point source injection of liquid into the towel surface while recording microscopic images of the wetted areas. The samples were selected from the main manufacturing processes: conventional wet pressing and through‐air drying. Wetting graphs that illustrate the dynamic and static wetting behaviors were generated. The driving force was found to have a negligible effect on the maximum wetted area. The maximum wetted area and the paper grammage were used to determine the two‐dimensional absorption capacity. The results were validated by the basket‐immersion test method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Proper hand hygiene is extremely important to control the transmission of pathogens. Although many studies have been undertaken on the effect of washing and drying on bacterial contamination of hands, studies on viral contamination are scarce., Aim: To assess the viral load of artificially contaminated hands after washing and after drying., Methods: Thirty volunteers completed a questionnaire on hand hygiene, and participated in microbial assays testing five different drying approaches, using whole-hand methodology, to quantify viruses on hands. Bacterial assays were also performed for comparison purposes., Results: For both viruses and bacteria, the washing step promoted a significant reduction in the microbial load, while the drying step only promoted a slight reduction, regardless of the drying method used. Hand dryers and paper towels did not induce recontamination of washed hands., Conclusions: Handwashing promoted a reduction in the microbial load of hands, but none of the drying methods tested led to a significant reduction in the microbial load of hands., Competing Interests: Conflict of interest statement The funder (Dyson Technology Ltd, UK) was involved in the conceptualization of the study. MSG and CR were Dyson employees, and SW is currently a Dyson employee. All authors declare no other competing interests., (Copyright © 2024 The Healthcare Infection Society. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

BackgroundHand drying is an essential step of hand hygiene, helping remove microbes remaining on hands following handwashing. However, it is unclear whether particles dispersed or aerosolized during hand drying can also have an impact on microbe dissemination and so pose an infection risk.MethodsWe used a PR772 bacteriophage to investigate whether microorganisms remaining on hands can disperse in the washroom environment and contaminate facemasks of others sharing the same space, as a surrogate for virus inhalation risk. Hand drying using either a jet air dryer or paper towels were performed, and mask contamination by splattering and droplet deposition was investigated, up to 15 min following each procedure.ResultsFacemask contamination by splattering was 10-fold higher when a jet air dryer was used, compared with hand drying by paper towels, for both the person performing the hand drying and for standby users stationed at 1 and 2 m distance. Facemask contamination by droplet/aerosols deposition was higher in the first 5 min following hand drying, for both methods; however, virus load was significantly higher when a jet air dryer was used. In the jet air dryer assays, facemask contamination increased at 15 min post-hand drying, suggesting aerosolization of small particles that remain airborne for longer.ConclusionWhen using a jet air dryer, virus contamination dispersed further and for a longer period of time (up to 15 min post hand-drying). The method chosen for hand drying can potentially impact the airborne dissemination of microbial pathogens, including respiratory virus, and so potentially increase the risk of exposure and infection for other washroom users.

Gauge blocks are an important basis for maintaining traceability in dimensional metrology, used for calibrating length measuring instruments and for adjustments in all branches of manufacturing. Their important feature is that they can be wrung with small dimensional uncertainty. An overview of the factors influencing the accuracy of a stack length, such as the quality of the gauge blocks (grade, wear), surface preparation (cleaning and usage of a lubricant), wringing (way and time, temperature of hands and gloves) is given in the paper. Experiments for determining these influences were performed with a highly precise gauge block comparator. Proper selection of gauge blocks, preparation of their surfaces and oiling improve the accuracy of a stack length. Application of a lubricant, wiped with a dry cloth or paper towel, helps to wring them more easily, but its contribution to the stack length in the experiment was 0.1 μm for oil and 0.2 μm for grease. Temperature changes of gauge blocks were estimated by holding them, and, during wringing in well controlled air conditions, monitoring them to yield the empirical coefficients of their warming up. The results showed that usage of gloves reduces the warming up by approximately half, but still the stack must be stabilised in well controlled conditions for at least one hour if it is used for micrometre-level precise measurements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Commonly used surface sanitizers often lack activity against human noroviruses (hNoVs). The impact of inactivation versus removal when these products are applied via wiping is poorly characterized. The purpose of this work was to assess the anti-hNoV efficacy of various surface sanitizer chemistries, as applied to a laminate material commonly used for restaurant tabletops, using standard surface assays (ASTM E1053-11) and a newly developed wiping protocol. Four commercially available products with different active ingredient(s) (i.e., ethanol [EtOH], acid 1 anionic surfactant [AAS], quaternary ammonium compound [QAC], and sodium hypochlorite [NaOCl]) and a water control were evaluated against hNoV GII.4 Sydney, hNoV GI.6, and the cultivable surrogate Tulane virus (TuV). Virus concentration was evaluated using RNase-reverse transcriptase (RT)-quantitative PCR (qPCR) (hNoV) and infectivity assay (TuV). Only the EtOH-based product significantly reduced virus concentration (.3.5 log10 reduction [LR]) by surface assay, with all other products producing #0.5 LR. The inclusion of a wiping step enhanced the efficacy of all products, producing complete virus elimination for the EtOH-based product and 1.6 to 3.8 LR for the other chemistries. For hNoVs, no detectable residual virus could be recovered from paper towels used to wipe the EtOH-based product, while high concentrations of virus could be recovered from the used paper towel and the wiped coupon (1.5 to 2.5 log10 lower genome equivalent copies [GEC] compared to control) for the QAC- and AAS-based products and for water. These results illustrate the variability in anti-hNoV activity of representative surface sanitizers and highlights the value of wiping, the efficacy of which appears to be driven by a combination of virus inactivation and removal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Paper‐based analytical devices, or μPADs, have proven to be valuable bioanalytical tools for a broad range of applications. New methods for μPAD fabrication are needed, however, to facilitate their mass production at a competitive cost. To address this need, the use of a boronic acid‐containing siloxane polymer (BorSilOx) has been reported for patterning hydrophobic barriers for μPADs. This material functions by covalently binding to hydroxyl groups in the paper substrate. It is compatible with inkjet printing or roll‐to‐roll (stamping) processes, as demonstrated here using three different deposition methods. BorSilOx is able to render a broad range of cellulosic materials (from paper towels to wood) hydrophobic, with contact angle measurements demonstrating superhydrophobicity in many cases.The utility of the polymer in μPADs via assays for pH and glucose is further demonstrated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ornithonyssus bursa hematophagous mite whose main host is wild and domestic birds, which can temporarily parasitize humans in the absence of the main host. Infestations occur when birds abandon nests or direct contact with infected birds. The specimens were collected in a house in the urban area, with the help of a paper towel and kept under low refrigeration for later identification. The mites were identified as O. bursa, considered an important poultry pest. The present report is the first case of hematophagous parasitism in humans in the region of Vale do Taquari, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]