Immobilization of enzymes and proteins is a requirement for many industrial enzyme applications, as this facilitates enzyme recovery and reuse. Bearing in mind this necessity, the coupling of immobilization to the improvement of other enzyme features has been pursued by many researchers, and nowadays immobilization is recognized as a tool to improve not only stability, but also enzyme selectivi...

BACKGROUND The aim of this study was to compare postoperative immobilization techniques of the thumb metacarpophalangeal (MP) ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) in a cadaver model of a noncompliant patient. METHODS A cadaveric model with fresh-frozen forearms was used to simulate pinch under two immobilization conditions: (1) forearm-based thumb spica splint alone and (2) forearm-based thumb spi...

Nerve growth factor (NGF) and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) are well-studied neurotrophins involved in neurogenesis, differentiation, growth, and maintenance of selected peripheral and central populations of neuronal cells during development and adulthood. Neurotrophins, in concert with the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, play key roles in modulating brain plasticity and b...

This paper examines a set of techniques for the immobilization of enzymes on the surface of microchannels fabricated in polycarbonate (PC). Our experiments identify the method that uses combined physico-chemical immobilization on a layer of polyethyleneimine (PEI) as a reproducible vista for the robust immobilization of proteins. As an example, we demonstrate the fabrication, throughput and sta...

Mechanical stimuli are essential for the skeleton, and immobilization produces rapid bone loss in the weight-bearing bones (Peng et al. 1994). It is probable that a reduction of physical activity may also affect the involutional osteopenia seen in elderly people. Immobilization of a limb provides an experimental way to study mechanical influences on bone tissue without interfering with hormonal...

Continued advancement of protein array, bioelectrode, and biosensor technologies is necessary to develop methods for higher amount and highly oriented immobilization activity of proteins. In pursuit of these goals, we developed a new immobilization method by combining electrostatic transport and subsequent molecular diffusion of protein molecules. Our developed immobilization method is based on...

BACKGROUND We evaluated effects of botulinum toxin A (Botox) and cast immobilization on tendon healing in a rat model. Injection of Botox into rat supraspinatus was hypothesized to reduce muscle active force and improved healing. METHODS Eighty-four supraspinatus tendons were surgically transected and repaired in 42 Sprague-Dawley rats (transosseous technique). After repair, supraspinatus mus...

OBJECTIVE Current guidelines recommend cervical spine immobilization during orotracheal intubation when traumatic injury is suspected in infants. We evaluated the effect of cervical spine immobilization techniques on orotracheal intubation performance with a high-fidelity infant simulator. METHODS A randomized control study with repeated measurement. Nonanesthesia pediatric practitioners cert...