A wide range of polymeric scaffolds have been intensively studied for use as implantable and temporal devices in tissue engineering. Biodegradable and biocompatible scaffolds having a highly open porous structure and good mechanical strength are needed to provide an optimal microenvironment for cell proliferation, migration, and differentiation, and guidance for cellular in-growth from host tis...

Biofilm is an assemblage of the microbial cells that is irreversibly associated with a surface and usually enclosed in a matrix of polysaccharide material. Biofilm is composed primarily of microbial cells and extracellular polymeric substance (EPS). Extracellular polymeric matrix plays various roles in structure and function of different biofilm communities. Adhesion to the surface provides con...

Cyclodextrins (CD) are cyclic oligosaccharides that can form noncovalent host–guest inclusion complexes to yield intriguing supramolecular structures. Electrospinning of nanofibers from CD is challenging since they are small molecules, nonetheless, electrospun nanofibers from CD would be particularly attractive because of the distinctive properties obtained by combining the very large surface a...

Carbon nanotube (CNT) reinforced polymeric composites provide a promising future in structural engineering. To understand the bridging effect of CNT in the events of the fracture of CNT reinforced composites, the finite element method was applied to simulate a single CNT pullout from a polymeric matrix using cohesive zone modelling. The numerical results indicate that the debonding force during...

In this paper, we numerically study the dynamics of (1) a Newtonian liquid-filled capsule in a viscoelastic matrix and that of (2) a viscoelastic capsule in a Newtonian matrix in a linear shear flow using a front-tracking method. The numerical results for case (1) indicate that the polymeric fluid reduces the capsule deformation and aligns the deformed capsule with the flow direction. It also n...

A huge variety of biopolymers, such as polysaccharides, polyesters, and polyamides, are naturally produced by microorganisms. These range from viscous solutions to plastics and their physical properties are dependent on the composition and molecular weight of the polymer. Exopolymers have been associated with the initial adhesion of microbes which is the primary step for biofilm formation. More...

Biofilm is an assembly of the microbial cells that is irreversibly associated with a surface and usually enclosed in a matrix of polysaccharide material. Biofilm is composed of microbial cells and extra cellular polymeric substance (EPS). Extra cellular polymeric matrix plays various roles in structure and function of different biofilm communities. Adhesion to the surface provides considerable ...

POLYMERIC OSTEOPONTIN EMPLOYS INTEGRIN α9β1 AS A RECEPTOR AND ATTRACTS NEUTROPHILS BY PRESENTING A DE NOVO BINDING SITE* Norihisa Nishimichi, Fumiko Higashikawa, Hiromi H. Kinoh, Yoshiko Tateishi, Haruo Matsuda, & Yasuyuki Yokosaki From Cell-Matrix Frontier Laboratory, Biomedical Research Unit, Hiroshima University, 1-2-3 Kasumi, Minamiku, Hiroshima, 734-8551; Laboratory of Immunobiology, Depar...

Listeria monocytogenes is a foodborne pathogen able to persist in food industry and is responsible for a severe illness called listeriosis. The ability of L. monocytogenes to persist in environments is due to its capacity to form biofilms that are a sessile community of microorganisms embedded in a self-produced matrix of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS's). In this review, we summarized...