Recently, interest has developed in the enzyme-catalysed production of

PHAs in vitro. This has allowed the study of enzyme kinetics and properties, and represents another strategy for the economic production of PHAs on the industrial scale. It also presents an opportunity to coat other materials in thin films of PHA so as to modify the surface properties. In vitro production offers advantages over in vivo methods as it enables greater control over monomer composition and molecular weight, does not require a biomass-accumulation phase, simplifies downstream processing and can utilise a wider range of monomeric subunits. (C) 2009 Society of Chemical Industry”
“Objectives: To describe the maternal and neonatal outcomes of a large cohort of adolescent pregnancies S3I-201 order in a tertiary care hospital at Reunion Island. Methods: Retrospective study of all primiparous singleton pregnancies over 10.5 years. Adolescent (<18 years) were compared to 18-29 years pregnancies. The GNS-1480 mouse maternal outcomes were obstetric illness, labor complications, and way of delivery. Neonatal outcomes

were preterm birth, low birth weight (LBW), small for gestational age, birth asphyxia, need for mechanical ventilation, and mortality. Results: We analyzed 1839 adolescent pregnancies and 11,445 controls. Adolescents had worse prenatal care than older mothers, (4.4 vs. 1.4%; p < 0.0001), higher rates of smoking and alcohol assumption (13 vs. 11% and 0.7 vs. 0.4%, both p < 0.05). They showed less pregnancy-related illness and labor complications and higher rates of normal vaginal delivery (80 vs. 69%; p < 0.0001), without increased risk of episiotomy or postpartum hemorrhage. Offspring mortality, preterm birth, and LBW were higher in adolescent pregnancies (3.3 vs. 2.2%; p =

0.001, 14 vs. 12%; p = 0.0008; 17 vs. 14%; p = 0.002). Conclusions: In this population, see more adolescents had an obstetrical outcome better than controls, but their offspring short-term outcomes were unfavorable. Furthers studies are needed to better elucidate the link between adolescent pregnancy and impaired neonatal outcome.”
“BACKGROUND: This work focuses on combining electrospun biodegradable poly-DL-Iactide (PDLLA) fibres and 4555 Bioglass (R) for tissue engineering applications.

RESULTS: A variety of fibrous structures were produced upon application of an electric field to a flowing solution of PDLLA (5 wt/v%) in di-methyl carbonate (DMC). Electrospinning was achieved at an applied voltage of 8.5 kV for a fixed flow rate of 5 mu L min(-1). Scanning electron microscopy images of PDLLA fibres deposited on 45S5 Bioglass (R) sintered pellets revealed that the fibres had diameters in the range 100-200 nm, leading to increased surface roughness, as assessed by white light interferometry.