Contamination during critical DNA research reminds me of the movie, “The Fly”. Our would be hero decides to carelessly test his new teleportation device without safe guards. A fly enters the telepod with him and the confused computer splices their genes together. The resulting monster is rather horrifying and pathetic.
More>>
Letters laced with deadly bacteria spores served as a lethal reminder about the threat of bio-terrorism scarcely a month after the shock of 9/11. The anthrax attacks in October of 2001 killed 5 people and infected another 17. The offices of the media and those of the two senators affected had to be cleaned at enormous time and expense. Basically, each building had to be treated twice – once with ClO2 to get rid of the infectious agent and another time with sodium bisulfite to neutralize the chlorine dioxide that kills the anthrax.
More>>
Ever since the Tylenol poison scare in the 1980s, companies have looked for new and innovative tamper proof or resistant labels and containers to protect their products. The Badger Tag & Label Corporation has developed an adhesive label that leaves a ‘Void’ imprint on the surface of the product when it is peeled away.
More>>
A pressure transducer is simply another name for a sensor and describes what it does. A new version of this mechanism is calibrated to work with the Kaye Validator, a stand-alone thermal validation system that ensures data compliance with EN554 and ISO-17665 medical equipment sterilization standards. The high performance of the new GE Sensing’s pressure transducer provides accurate measurements of both pressure and humidity throughout the entire temperature range of conventional steam autoclave operation.
More>>
University of Florida engineers have discovered that microwaving kitchen sponges and scrub pads for 2 minutes kills virtually all of the pathogenic organisms infesting them. Upon reading about this, I set out to do an experiment myself. From my experience, it does appear to work as long as the sponge or scrub pad is saturated with water. (Remember, metal cannot be placed in an operating microwave oven.) Simply cleaning these items in a dishwasher is not nearly as effective.
More>>
SP Industries has introduced brand new features for its line of disinfectors. It’s hard to imagine units working this well and yet being so versatile. A wide variety of specialty brackets can fit into both the upper and lower racks of the new Hotpack undercounter glassware washers. This ensures that enough special water jets are available to clean all your lab equipment thoroughly.
More>>
MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus) and VRE (vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecalis) are both tough antibiotic resistant germs that can be transmitted through contact with contaminated surfaces. These common biologic pathogens tend to strike people with compromised immune systems. Such microbes have mutated in recent decades to become virtually invulnerable to all known treatments. The TANCS steam vapor system offers a way to fight the problems described below.
More>>
Imagine this – you are diagnosed with a serious but treatable medical condition that requires surgery and a hospital stay. While you are recovering in the ICU you add a new word to your vocabulary: nosocomial. This refers to the kind of infection you can get from being exposed to bacteria such as the usually harmless Acinetobacter baumannii in a hospital setting. It may start as a chronic problem around your catheter site and cause little or no symptoms.
More>>