Explore the vast range of titles available.

In the era of COVID-19, concerns about and consumption of soaps and detergents have increased. The environmental effects, along with their direct impacts on the human body, are being simultaneously considered to ensure safety and support healthy living. Natural soap compounds are considered readily biodegradable and unlikely to produce hazardous waste, while artificial detergents are composed of synthetic surfactants, plasticizers, binders, and additives. This study aimed to investigate representative natural soap compounds consisting of fatty acid salts and compare them with synthetic detergents, such as sodium dodecylbenzene sulfonate (SDB) and sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS). Environmental assays recommended by the OECD, as well as human keratinocyte assays for toxicity and biodegradability, were utilized. The major components of natural soap were found to be less toxic and more biodegradable in aquatic environments—assessed using algae, crustaceans, and fish—compared to synthetic detergents. Additionally, in the human keratinocyte assay, natural soap compounds were significantly less toxic and demonstrated higher viability than SLS after a 48 h culture and a 5 min exposure. The half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC 50 ) obtained from the viability assay revealed values of 7.82 mM for potassium laurate (C12K), 7.56 mM for potassium oleate (C18:1K), and 0.604 mM for SLS. Therefore, natural soap appears to be valuable due to its lower toxicity, greater biodegradability in aquatic environments, enhanced safety for human cells, and potential efficiency in clinical applications.

Entertainment-Education and Social Change introduces readers to entertainment-education (E-E) literature from multiple perspectives. This distinctive collection covers the history of entertainment-education, its applications in the United States and throughout the world, the multiple communication theories that bear on E-E, and a range of research methods for studying the effects of E-E interventions. The editors include commentary and insights from prominent E-E theoreticians, practitioners, activists, and researchers, representing a wide range of nationalities and theoretical orientations. Examples of effective E-E designs and applications, as well as an agenda for future E-E initiatives and campaigns, make this work a useful volume for scholars, educators, and practitioners in entertainment media studies, behavior change communications, public health, psychology, social work, and other arenas concerned with strategies for social change. It will be an invaluable resource book for members of governmental and non-profit agencies, public health and development professionals, and social activists. Contents: Preface. Part I: History and Theory. A. Singhal, E.M. Rogers, The Status of Entertainment-Education Worldwide. D. Poindexter, A History of Entertainment-Education, 1958-2000. P.T. Poitrow, E. de Fossard, Entertainment-Education as a Public Health Intervention. M. Sabido, The Origins of Entertainment-Education. A. Bandura, Social Cognitive Theory for Personal and Social Change by Enabling Media. W.J. Brown, B.P. Fraser, Celebrity Identification in Entertainment-Education. S. Sood, T. Menard, K. Witte, The Theory Behind Entertainment-Education. Part II: Research and Implementation. S. Usdin, A. Singhal, T. Shongwe, S. Goldstein, A. Shabalala, No Short Cuts in Entertainment-Education: Designing Soul City Step-by-Step. W.N. Ryerson, N. Teffera, Organizing a Comprehensive National Plan for Entertainment-Education in Ethiopia. B.S. Greenberg, C.T. Salmon, D. Patel, V. Beck, G. Cole, Evolution of an E-E Research Agenda. V. Beck, Working With Daytime and Prime-Time Television Shows in the United States to Promote Health. M. Bouman, Entertainment-Education Television Drama in the Netherlands. M.J. Cody, S. Fernandes, H. Wilkin, Entertainment-Education Programs of the BBC and BBC World Service Trust. A.C. La Pastina, D.S. Patel, M. Schiavo, Social Merchandizing in Brazilian Telenovelas. E.M. Rogers, Delivering Entertainment-Education Health Messages Through the Internet to Hard-to-Reach U.S. Audiences in the Southwest. Part III: Entertainment-Education Interventions and Their Outcomes. R.A. Abdulla, Entertainment-Education in the Middle East: Lessons From the Egyptian Oral Rehydration Campaign. Y. Yaser, The Turkish Family Health and Planning Foundation's Entertainment-Education Campaign. N. McKee, M. Aghi, R. Carnegie, N. Shahzadi, Cartoons and Comic Books for Changing Social Norms: Meena, the South Asian Girl. A. Singhal, D. Sharma, M.J. Papa, K. Witte, Air Cover and Ground Mobilization: Integrating Entertainment-Education Broadcasts With Community Listening and Service Delivery in India. A. Singhal, Entertainment-Education Through Participatory Theater: Freirean Strategies for Empowering the Oppressed. T. Tufte, Soap Operas and Sense-Making: Mediations and Audience Ethnography. J.D. Storey, T.L. Jacobson, Entertainment-Education and Participation: Applying Habermas to a Population Program in Nepal. Epilogue.

This study investigated castile soap versus normal saline irrigation delivered by means of high, low, or very low pressure for open fractures. Reoperation rates were similar, regardless of irrigation pressure; the rate was higher in the soap group than in the saline group. The initial management of open fractures requires thorough irrigation and débridement 1 – 4 to prevent infection and promote wound and bone healing. 2 , 4 Clinicians accomplish débridement by removing all visible debris and necrotic tissue and by providing copious irrigation of the wound. Controversy exists regarding the choice of irrigation pressure and solution. 4 – 13 High pressure may be more effective than low pressure in removing particulate matter and bacteria 7 – 10 but at the expense of bone damage 8 , 11 and a resultant delay in bone healing. 12 Low pressure may avoid bone damage and delayed healing but at the possible cost of less effective . . .

A novel sanitizer tablet containing clove essential oil (CO) microemulsion was developed. A preformulation study using nuclear magnetic resonance and thermal analyses showed component compatibility. The main components of the samples remained intact despite a color change, probably due to a strong acid-base interaction between eugenol and diethanolamine. The CO microemulsion showed acaricidal and larvicidal activities superior to the commercial product, with product efficacy of 99.9% and larvae mortality of 94%. Optimal spray-drying conditions were achieved with inlet and outlet temperatures of 50°C and 40°C, respectively, an aspiration rate of 1 m 3 min⁻ 1 , and a 0.25 L h⁻ 1 injection flow. The feed suspension comprised 50% (v/v) liquid soap, 37.5% (v/v) water, 12.5% (v/v) ethanol, and 5.0% (w/v) silica. This formulation and processing parameters allowed for successful free-flow powder formation, providing a suitable matrix for incorporating the CO microemulsion via wet granulation without heating. Finally, sanitizer tablets produced from such granules resulted in a uniform product with low weight variation (coefficient of variation of 0.15%), eugenol content of 95.5% ± 3.3, and friability of 0.58%. Furthermore, the tablets showed rapid aqueous dispersion, forming a colloidal system with particle sizes of 221 nm and a zeta potential of -17.2 mV. Antimicrobial activity tests demonstrated the effectiveness of the sanitizer tablet against bacteria and fungi, exhibiting comparable antimicrobial potency to isolated CO. Hence, the sanitizer tablet developed represents a promising candidate as a practical and efficient solution for pest control, offering strong antimicrobial and acaricidal activity.

Paintings and painted objects are quite susceptible to degradation, as paint layers are usually composed of complex mixtures of materials that can participate in chemical degradation processes. The identification of the constituent materials in paint (including binders, pigments, and fillers) and the degradation products within paint layers is of particular importance to ensuring the conservation of paintings, by providing important information both about their material history as well as their state of conservation. Metal fatty acid salts (metal soaps) are degradation products that can form in situ from interactions between inorganic pigments and free fatty acids in oil-based binding media, and can cause significant condition issues in paintings. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy is one of the leading analytical techniques for the study of metal soaps. In this article, the materials analysis of several cross-sections from paintings and painted objects from works in Canadian collections is presented. Recent results on the use of external reflection FTIR (R-FTIR) spectroscopy to identify and map the distribution of paint components and metal soap degradation products is presented. In particular, zinc, lead, calcium, and copper fatty acid salts were all readily identified in paint cross-sections by R-FTIR spectroscopy, along with several pigments and the oil binding medium. The results shown here are among the first detailed examinations of these metal soaps in paint cross-sections using R-FTIR spectroscopy. The use of highly polished samples in which specular reflection is dominant allowed for spectral transformations to be applied to generate transmission/absorption-like spectra which facilitated identification of these species. The distribution of these species across the cross-sections was mapped by integrating characteristic absorption features in the R-FTIR spectra. Attenuated total internal reflection (ATR) FTIR spectroscopy was also performed on several samples, which provided additional compositional details at the interface of paint layers and degradation products.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0306862.].

Saponification is the process in which triglycerides are combined with a strong base to form fatty acid metal salts during the soap-making process. The distribution of unsaturated and saturated fatty acid determines the hardness, aroma, cleansing, lather, and moisturizing abilities of soaps. Plant extracts, such as rosemary, vegetable, and essential oils are frequently added to soaps to enhance quality and sensory appeal. Three natural soaps were formulated using cold saponification to produce a base or control bar (BB), hibiscus rosehip bar (H), and a forest grove bar (FG). Rosemary extract (R) or essential oil (A) blends were added as additives to each formulation prior to curing to evaluate the effects of natural plant additives on the lipid composition and sensory characteristics of these natural herbal soaps. A total of seven natural soaps, three without additives (BB, H, FG) and four with additives (BBR, HA, FGR, FGA), were manufactured and studied. The majority (86–99%) of the polyunsaturated fatty acids (5.0–7.0 µg/mg) remained unsaponified in the manufactured natural soaps regardless of feedstock used. Principal component analysis (PCA) analyses showed the unsaponifiable fatty acids were different in the hibiscus bar compared to the other bars. There was a very strong correlation between the content of unsaponified C18:3n3 and C18:1n9 in all natural soaps. These results indicate that unsaponified fatty acids are important contributors to the quality and overall sensory perception and preference of natural herbal soaps following manufacturing by cold saponification.

The transmission of microorganisms via hands is a critical factor in healthcare-associated infections (HAIs), underscoring the importance of rigorous hand hygiene. The rise of antimicrobial-resistant microorganisms, driven in part by the overuse of antibiotics in clinical medicine, presents a significant global health challenge. Antimicrobial soaps, although commonly used, may exacerbate bacterial resistance and disrupt skin microbiota, posing additional health risks and environmental hazards. Essential oils, with their broad-spectrum antimicrobial properties, offer a promising alternative. This study evaluates the antimicrobial activity of essential oils against various bacterial and fungal strains, including multidrug-resistant isolates. Using a range of in vitro and in vivo antimicrobial assays, including minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC), minimal bactericidal concentration (MBC), and minimal fungicidal concentration (MFC), the essential oils were tested against a broad spectrum of pathogens. Additionally, the chemical composition of the oils was analyzed in detail using gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (CG–MS). Clove, oregano, and thyme oils demonstrated potent inhibition of all tested ATCC bacterial strains, with MIC values ranging from 3.125 to 50 μL/mL. These oils also showed significant activity against multidrug-resistant Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains. Notably, clove oil exhibited remarkable efficacy against fungal strains such as Aspergillus fumigatus and Trichophyton rubrum, with MIC values as low as 1.56 μL/mL. Synergy tests revealed that combinations of clove, oregano, and thyme oils yielded significantly lower MIC values than individual oils, indicating additive or synergistic effects. The formulation of a soap incorporating clove and oregano oils demonstrated efficacy comparable to synthetic antiseptics in vivo. These findings highlight the exceptional antimicrobial potential of essential oils, mainly clove and oregano, against resistant microorganisms, offering a viable alternative to conventional antimicrobial agents.

Staphylococcus aureus is an important cause of surgical-site infections. In this randomized trial, eradication of colonization by rapid screening at admission and subsequent decolonization (with intranasal mupirocin and chlorhexidine skin washes) were associated with a decrease in postoperative surgical-site infections. In this randomized trial, eradication of colonization with S. aureus by rapid screening at admission and subsequent decolonization (with intranasal mupirocin and chlorhexidine skin washes) were associated with a decrease in postoperative surgical-site infections. Nasal carriers of high numbers of Staphylococcus aureus organisms have a risk of health care–associated infection with this microorganism that is three to six times the risk among noncarriers and low-level carriers. 1 – 3 More than 80% of health care–associated S. aureus infections are endogenous. 4 – 6 Intranasal application of mupirocin has been shown to be effective for the decolonization of this microbe and the prevention of invasive S. aureus infections in patients receiving long-term dialysis treatment. 7 – 10 However, in other nonsurgical patients, mupirocin had no effect on the rate of health care–associated S. aureus infections. 11 Mupirocin nasal ointment was reported to . . .