Photo by: Ray Carson, UF News BureauSeeking a way to confirm that patients have taken their medication, University of Florida engineering researchers have added a tiny microchip and digestible antenna to a standard pill capsule. The prototype is intended to pave the way for mass-produced pills that, when ingested, automatically alert doctors, loved ones or scientists working with patients in clinical drug trials.“It is a way to monitor whether your patient is taking their medication in a timely manner,” said Rizwan Bashirullah, UF assistant professor in electrical and computer engineering.  Such a pill is needed because many patients forget, refuse or bungle the job of taking their medication. This causes or exacerbates medical problems, spurs hospitalizations or expensive medical procedures and undercuts clinical trials of new drugs.The American Heart Association calls patients’ failure to follow prescription regimens “the number one problem in treating illness today.”

Studies have found, for example, that patients with chronic diseases normally take only about half their prescribed medications. According to the American Heart Association, 10 percent of hospital admissions result from patients not following the guidelines on their prescriptions. Other studies have found that not taking medication properly results in 218,000 deaths annually.Bashirullah, doctoral student Hong Yu, UF materials science and engineeringProfessor Chris Batich and Neil Euliano of Gainesville-based Convergent Engineering designed and tested a system with two main parts.The researchers presented their findings at a conference in Japan last year and are currently at work on a scholarly paper about their research. They have applied for patents, and Bashirullah said a UF spinoff company is seeking to develop the next generation of the pill for FDA testing and commercial development. The research was funded by grants totaling about $700,000 from the National Science Foundation, Convergent Engineering and the Florida High Tech Corridor Council.Writers: Aaron Hoover, ahoover@ufl.edu, 352-392-0186 and Kay HowellTo request a print-quality image, email newsdesk@ufl.edu.

antenna pill University of Floridaand 51Assistant Professor, Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Center for Urban Environmental Studies, Northeastern Univ., Boston, MA 02115 (corresponding author). E-mail: 2Graduate Research Assistant, Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Center for Urban Environmental Studies, Northeastern Univ., Boston, MA 02115.3Post-Doctoral Research Associate, Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Center for Urban Environmental Studies, Northeastern Univ., Boston, MA 02115.4Assistant Professor, Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Center for Urban Environmental Studies, Northeastern Univ., Boston, MA 02115.5Postdoctoral Research Associate, Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Center for Urban Environmental Studies, Northeastern Univ., Boston, MA 02115.Abstract: The decay of fecal bacteria in surface water often follows a biphasic pattern with the apparent first-order rate constant relatively high during a first phase and lower in a second one.

This could be the result of population heterogeneity in resistance due to various mechanisms (different strains, genetically or nongenetically differentiated cells, different growth or cell cycle stage, clumping, hardening), or the specific decay rate could be directly or indirectly affected by the cell density (e.g., quorum sensing). guardian reme air purification system reviewsAll these mechanisms can theoretically produce a biphasic decay pattern and are consistent with the literature. air duct cleaning bemidjiHowever, they are fundamentally different and lead to different behavior of mechanistic total maximum daily load models, so identifying the correct mechanism is important. air purifier singapore amwayThis technical note presents the results of a study aimed at determining if a density effect is involved.

Laboratory decay experiments with pure strain Escherichia coli cells in phosphate buffer were conducted over a range of initial densities. The results show that the rate constant changes after a certain time, rather than at a certain density, which is inconsistent with a density effect. As the experiments were performed with a pure strain, the resistant fraction cannot be attributed to a different strain. Further research is needed to identify the mechanism responsible for the population heterogeneity. ASCE Subject Headings: Bacteria, Decay, Water pollution, Water quality, Public health, Recreation, Surface waterCited byKacem, M., Bru-Adan, V., Goetz, V., Steyer, J., Plantard, G., Sacco, D., Wery, N. (2016). "Inactivation of Escherichia coli by TiO2-mediated photocatalysis evaluated by a culture method and viability-qPCR." , 10.1016/j.jphotochem.2015.11.020, 81-87. Online publication date: 1-Feb-2016. CrossRef Zhang, Q., He, X., Yan, T. (2015). "Differential Decay of Wastewater Bacteria and Change of Microbial Communities in Beach Sand and Seawater Microcosms." , 10.1021/acs.est.5b01879, 8531-8540.

Online publication date: 21-Jul-2015. CrossRef Piskarev, I., Ivanova, I., Trofimova, S., Ichetkina, A., Burkhina, O. (2014). "Peroxynitrous acid formation induced by air spark plasma radiation." , 10.1134/S0018143914050129, 350-352. Online publication date: 1-Sep-2014. CrossRef Ahmed, W., Richardson, K., Sidhu, J., Jagals, P., Toze, S. (2014). "Inactivation of faecal indicator bacteria in a roof-captured rainwater system under ambient meteorological conditions." , 10.1111/jam.12342, 199-207. Online publication date: 1-Jan-2014. CrossRef Van Nevel, S., De Roy, K., Boon, N. (2013). "Bacterial invasion potential in water is determined by nutrient availability and the indigenous community." , 10.1111/1574-6941.12145, 593-603. Online publication date: 1-Sep-2013. CrossRef Bucci, V., Hoover, S., Hellweger, F. (2012). "Modeling Adaptive Mutation of Enteric Bacteria in Surface Water Using Agent-Based Methods." , 10.1007/s11270-011-1003-6, 2035-2049. Online publication date: 1-Jun-2012. CrossRef Green, H., Shanks, O., Sivaganesan, M., Haugland, R., Field, K. (2011).