Sterilization method using plasma for sterilizing objects, wherein it is provided to introduce the objects to be sterilized into a sterilization chamber (13) and covey toward the latter a flow of air coming from a feed pipe (17) on which a plasma generator device (12) is disposed able to generate one or more gaseous compounds comprising a mixture of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and of reactive nitrogen species (RNS) so that the air is the carrier fluid which conveys the gaseous compounds toward the sterilization chamber (13); the method also provides to control the electric power used to produce the plasma as a function of the composition and/or the quantity of reactive species present in the sterilization chamber (13).

A method of making an electron beam irradiated osteoinductive implant is provided. The method comprises exposing an osteoinductive implant containing demineralized bone matrix (DBM) fibers to electron beam radiation at a dose of from about 10 kilograys to 100 kilograys for a period of time. The electron beam irradiation reduces microorganisms in the osteoinductive implant, and the electron beam irradiated osteoinductive implant retains osteoinductive properties. Methods of implantation and an irradiated osteoinductive implant are also disclosed.

A process for heating articles includes sequentially passing loaded carriers in a continuous manner through a first processing section and sequentially passing said plurality of loaded carriers in an incremental manner through a second processing section using an incremental convey segment. The incremental convey segment includes sequential carrier-receiving slots, each carrier-receiving slot configured to receive one of the loaded carriers. The incremental convey segment is further configured to be move incrementally at multiples of discrete intervals corresponding to the carrier-receiving slots. The process further includes sequentially passing the loaded carriers in a continuous manner through a third processing section and heating articles supported by the carriers with microwave energy in at least one of the processing sections, the heating of the articles occurring while the articles are at least partially submerged in a liquid bath and at an pressure greater than atmospheric pressure.

A process for heating articles in a heating system includes passing an article in a carrier through a heating chamber that is at least partially filled with a liquid medium to form a liquid bath. The process further includes heating the article in the carrier by at least partially submerging the article into the liquid bath during heating, the heating being performed, at least in part, using microwave energy. The process further includes one or more of adding fluid into and removing fluid from at least one location in the heating chamber to maintain a temperature profile across the heating chamber. In one implementation, the temperature of the liquid bath at an inlet area of the heating chamber is at least 10° C. cooler than a temperature of the liquid bath at an outlet area of the heating chamber.

The invention provides a method for inactivation or reduction of pathogens, microorganisms or parasites in a sample, media, composition, utility, device, surface or organism by treatment with an alkylating compound of Structure I, followed by elimination or reduction of the residual compound with Structure I by treatment with a neutralizing agent, which eliminates or reduces the toxicity or other undesirable properties of the alkylating compound with Structure I. The neutralizing agent may be present in a treatment solution or be part of a solid-phase agent, and preferably acts by eliminating the alkylating properties of the compound of Structure I.

The present invention provides a decontamination device capable of accomplishing a decontamination effect with a proper amount of decontamination agent supplied to a room to be decontaminated by employing a mist circulation dispersion mechanism and reducing the duration of operations such as aeration to achieve more efficient decontamination works.

The decontamination device of the present invention includes a mist supply means and a mist circulation dispersion mechanism, and the mist supply means converts a chemical for decontamination into a mist for decontamination, and supplies the same to the inside of a working chamber. The mist circulation dispersion mechanism includes vibration boards disposed adjacent to internal wall surfaces of the working chamber, and the vibration boards are subjected to ultrasonic vibration to generate sound flows from board surfaces by an ultrasound in the vertical direction. The mist for decontamination supplied to the inside of the working chamber is pressed by acoustic radiation pressure to circulate and disperse the mist for decontamination in the working chamber.

A biocompatible material for bone repair is described. The bone repair composition includes a mixture of a type I collagen, a type I collagen-glycosaminoglycan coprecipitate, tricalcium phosphate; and bioactive glass. Methods of using the composition for bone repair, and a kit for the bone repair composition are also described.

A cleaning device includes a body, a cover, a germicidal lamp, and a vibration mechanism. The body includes a cavity configured receive a fluid, a first dental appliance, and a first portion of a second dental appliance. The cover is coupled to the body and configured to selectively move between an open position and a closed position. The cover includes two holes that can each retain the second dental appliance so the first portion of the second dental appliance is positioned within the cavity and a second portion of the second dental appliance is positioned external to the cavity and the cover. The germicidal lamp is coupled to the cover and configured to provide a sanitizing light to the first dental appliance and the first portion of the second dental appliance positioned within the cavity. The vibration mechanism is configured to vibrate the body and the dental appliances.

A method for producing a protein composition containing a protein (A), a radical scavenger (RS), and at least one hydrogen-bond-formable compound (HC) selected from the group consisting of amino acids, peptides, and proteins other than the protein (A). The method including a sterilization step of radiosterilizing an unsterilized protein composition, wherein the unsterilized protein composition contains the protein (A), the radical scavenger (RS), and the hydrogen-bond-formable compound (HC), the protein (A) contains at least one functional group selected from the group consisting of sulfide, amide, hydroxyl, amino, and carboxyl groups, the hydrogen-bond-formable compound (HC) contains at least one functional group selected from the group consisting of sulfide, amide, hydroxyl, amino, and carboxyl groups, the at least one functional group in the protein (A) is capable of binding to the at least one functional group in the hydrogen-bond-formable compound (HC) via a hydrogen bond.

An UV-C device may include several UV-C light sources (e.g., UV-C LEDs) and such UV-C LEDs may have UV-C reflecting structures arranged to direct UV-C in a particular direction and at a particular size and shape. Doing so may, for example, increase the UV-C in a particular direction or working area. A UV-C generating device may be utilized in an air duct to sterilize air through that air duct. A UV-C generating device may, for example, be utilized to increase the amount of UV-C that enters a UV-C fiber optic tube. A UV-C generating device may be utilized, for example, to inactivate one or more virus (e.g., one or more different viruses and/or one or more claves of the same virus) and a UV-C inactivated virus may be utilized as a vaccination. A facility may be provided that received strains from the same clave and/or different claves and that UV sterilizes (e.g., UV-C sterilizes) the strains and combines the strains into a combinational UV-C vaccination of multiple UV-C inactivated strains.