Two logistic purulent and serous MEE classifiers correctly classified all in vitro middle ear states with 100% accuracy assessed by leave-one-out and k-fold cross validation. CONCLUSIONS This proof-of-concept in vitro study addressed an unmet need by introducing a device that easily and accurately can assess middle ear effusion. Future in vivo studies aimed at collecting data from clinical settings are warranted to further elucidate the validity of the technology in diagnosing pediatric acute otitis media. V.Congenital external auditory canal stenosis (EACS) is a spectrum of abnormalities affecting the external and middle ear. We report a 6 year-old patient with EACS affecting the lateral fibrocartilaginous canal that was successfully repaired. This patient highlights a variant of EACS characterized by lateral soft tissue narrowing with normal osseous development. Most previous studies of CAA have described severe forms associated with complete atresia, bony stenosis, and middle ear malformations. Stenosis affecting only the fibrocartilaginous canal is a milder form resulting from premature arrest of the canalization process during embryologic development, and may predispose to cholesteatoma formation. HYPOTHESIS The development of advanced oral delivery systems for bioactive compounds requires the fundamental understanding of the digestion process within the gastrointestinal tract. Towards this goal, dynamic invitro digestion models, capable of characterising the molecular as well as colloidal aspects of food, together with their biological interactions with relevant invitro cell culture models, are essential. EXPERIMENTS In this study, we demonstrate a novel digestion model that combines flow-through time resolved small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) with an invitro Caco-2/HT-29 cell co-culture model that also contained a mucus layer. This set-up allows the dynamic insitu characterisation of colloidal structures and their transport across a viable intestinal cell layer during simulated digestion. FINDINGS An integrated online SAXS - invitro cell co-culture model was developed and applied to study the digestion of nature's own emulsion, milk. The impact of the invitro cell culture on the digestion-triggered formation and evolution of highly ordered nanostructures in milk is demonstrated. Reported is also the crucial role of the mucus layer on top of the cell layer, protecting the cells from degradation by digestive juice components such as lipase. The novel model can open unique possibilities for the dynamic investigation of colloidal structure formation during lipid digestion and their effect on the uptake of bioactive molecules by the cells. The use of simple, fast, and inexpensive methods to synthesize nanocomposites is essential for large-scale production and applications. Microwave heating has been recognized as a promising method to attain higher reaction rates; this approach allows to complete new reactions in a short period of time. Therefore, carbon-supported platinum-copper nanoparticles (Pt-Cu NPs/C) were synthesized by microwave-assisted heating within few minutes. Detailed electrochemical studies showed that Pt-Cu NPs/C exhibited higher performance for ethanol oxidation reaction (EOR) and methanol oxidation reaction (MOR) than Pt/C. After 1000 sweeping cycles, the highest retention mass activity of EOR and MOR of Pt3Cu NPs/C showed that catalysts had good stability. In this study, a new approach for boosting the efficiency of industrial production of nanomaterial catalysts by rapid microwave heating was developed. Plastics are persistent synthetic polymers that accumulate as waste in the marine environment. Microplastics (MPs, less then 5 mm) can be found either as microbeads in body care and some industrial products or as plastic debris through degradation. Plastic microbeads (1-5 μm, fluorescent, Cospheric) were used to characterise the MP ingestion and determine their potential harmful effects on both the swimming behaviour and development of oyster D-larvae (Crassostrea gigas). For 24 h, embryos were first exposed to MPs at a temperature of 24 °C. In addition, 3 day-old D-larvae were exposed to the same temperature for 1, 3 and 5 h. Three concentrations of MPs were used 0.1, 1 and 10 mg MP. L-1. After a 24-h period of embryonic exposure, we noted that MP agglomerates were stuck to the D-larvae coat and locomotor eyelashes. We also observed a significant increase in severe malformations and developmental arrests for larvae exposed to MPs ranging from 1 mg MP. L-1.  https://www.selleckchem.com/products/tolebrutinib-sar442168.html  In terms of swimming behaviour, the maximum speed recorded was lower for larvae exposed at 0.1 and 1 mg MP. L-1. After an acute exposure to MPs, particles were found in the digestive tract of 3 dpf (days post fertilisation) D-larvae. After 1-h exposure, the concentrations tested (0.1, 1 and 10 mg MP. L-1) resulted in respectively 38%, 86% and 98%. The larvae swimming behaviour was recorded and analysed. Unlike the results observed at the embryo-larval stage, 3-dpf larvae showed significant impacts with no dose-response effect. BACKGROUND Previous research has reported the effects of long-term fine particulate matter (PM2.5) pollution on years of life lost (YLL), but these effects may not represent the full impact. This study aims to estimate potential benefits in life time from adhering to daily ambient PM2.5 concentration standards/guidelines. METHODS This study evaluated the relationship between daily ambient PM2.5 level and YLL using a two-stage approach with generalized additive models and meta-analysis. Potential life expectancy gains were then estimated by presuming that daily PM2.5 levels were in compliance with the Chinese and WHO standards. In addition, the attributable fraction of YLL due to excess PM2.5 exposure was also calculated. RESULTS During 2013-2016, 459,468 non-accidental deaths were recorded in the six cities of Pearl River Delta, China. Each 10 μg/m3 increment in four-day average (lag03) level of PM2.5 was related to an increment of 13.31 [95% confidence interval (CI) 5.74, 20.87] years of life lost. Implementation of the WHO guidelines might avoid 180,980.83 YLLs (95% CI 78,116.07, 283,845.60), which corresponded to 0.39 (95% CI 0.17, 0.62) years of increased life time per death. Additionally, an estimated 0.15% (95% CI 0.06%, 0.23%) or 2.04% (95% CI 0.88%, 3.20%) of YLLs could be attributed to PM2.5 exposures higher than the Chinese or WHO guidelines, respectively. CONCLUSIONS This study suggests that people might live longer by controlling daily PM2.5 concentration and highlights the need to adopt stricter standards in China.