Iodine-based contrast agents (ICMs) are crucial substances in medical imaging because of their potent X-ray characteristics and chemical stability. However, their persistence and poor removal in conventional wastewater treatment have led to increasing environmental concern. Although ICMs exhibit low acute toxicity, their transformation during water disinfection can generate iodine-based disinfection by-products (I-DBPs), like iodo-trihalomethanes, which display notable cytotoxic, genotoxic, and ecotoxic effects and compromise drinking water quality. Advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) have become promising methods for breaking down persistent ICMs and limiting the formation of I-DBPs. Techniques including ozonation, UV/H₂O₂, UV/chlorine, photocatalysis with TiO₂, Fenton reactions, and electrochemical oxidation utilize highly reactive radicals to decompose persistent compounds like iopamidol, iohexol, iopromide, and diatrizoate. Despite high degradation efficiencies under laboratory conditions, limitations such as incomplete mineralization, secondary product formation, and elevated operational costs hinder large-scale implementation. Future research should focus on optimizing AOP conditions under realistic water matrices, evaluating by-product toxicity, and developing cost-effective hybrid systems. Advancing these technologies is critical to reducing the environmental burden of ICMs and safeguarding aquatic ecosystems and public health.

The impact of cold atmospheric plasma (CAP) treatment on the enamel of twelve primary teeth (incisors, canines, and molars) collected from six children was examined in order to evaluate the possibility of using the CAP technique in dental applications. A radio-frequency dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) plasma jet operating at a voltage of 3.25 kV using a mixture of helium and oxygen as the working gas was used for the generation of plasma as part of the electro-technological method for the treatment of biological material. The plasma exposure time for the primary teeth was 5, 10, and 20 min. The properties of tooth enamel (color, contact angles, surface roughness, surface topography, elemental composition) were examined before (control) and after the plasma treatment. As shown by the results, the plasma treatment time is a key parameter that can induce desired features, such as whitening or improved wettability. However, with prolonged plasma treatment (20 min), the enamel surface may be permanently damaged. The cold-plasma-treated samples were characterized by a higher value of the brightness L* parameter and thus a lighter color, compared to the CAP-untreated teeth. It was also evidenced that the plasma treatment increased the hydrophilicity of tooth surfaces, and the contact angles effectively decreased with the time of the CAP treatment. The tooth surface also became much more heterogeneous and rough with much greater amplitudes in heights. The surface of the primary teeth after the CAP treatment lost its homogeneity, as evidenced by the SEM micrographs. The analysis of the elemental composition revealed only minor changes after the plasma process, which may suggest that the observed morphological changes in the enamel surface are mainly physical and are not a consequence of chemical reactions between the enamel and the reactive components of the cold plasma. Plasma treatment of teeth opens up new possibilities of using this method as an alternative to whitening or pre-treatment before other dental procedures.

The aim of this study was to determine the possibilities of using cold-plasma technology in counteracting the development of denture stomatitis (DS) in patients using different kinds of prosthetic restorations. The study focused mainly on the effect of cold atmospheric plasma on prosthetic materials, such as acryl (AR), acetal (AT), and a prosthetic metal alloy (MA). The materials were tested in terms of the effect of the plasma exposure time (5, 10, and 20 min) on changes in the chemical composition, morphology, and surface topography (FT-IR, SEM-EDS, optical profilometer) as well as changes in the color and contact angle (spectrophotometer, goniometer) after the plasma process. Furthermore, the ability of reference fungi (C. albicans and C. glabrata) to adhere to non-modified and cold atmospheric plasma (CAP)-modified dental materials was examined to evaluate the susceptibility of dental material surfaces to 12 h fungal contamination. The obtained results demonstrate that CAP appears viable for the surface modification of the acetal resin and the metal alloy, not compromising their structural integrity while variably limiting fungal overgrowth involved in the development of DS, whereas its application to the acrylic resin may be inadvisable due to morphological and optical alterations.

The aim of the study was to present a method for assessing the condition of cell culture by measuring the impedance of cells cultured in the presence of nickel. For this purpose, an impedance measurement technique using nickel comb capacitors was used. The capacitor electrodes were made using a thin film magnetron sputtering. In the experimental part, the culture of cells of mouse fibroblasts on the prepared substrate was performed. The cell culture lasted 43 hours and showed that the presented technique allows it to be used to analyze the effect of nickel on cells.

The paper proposes an innovative method of using microheaters for research on cells in vitro. A method of local heating of a single culture well, compatible with an Electric Cell-substrate Impedance (ECIS) system is presented. A microheater and culture well system for cell culture was modelled. Electrical and thermal simulation of the system under operating conditions was carried out. Correct distribution of heat was observed at the site of the cell culture suspension in the medium, while not affecting the conditions in adjacent wells. As part of the experiment, a heating element of nichrome (NiCr) was created using the magnetron sputtering process. Electrical and thermal measurements of the manufactured device were carried out. It has been shown that it is possible to establish the desired temperature over the long term. In addition, the structures made were characterised by work stability, precision in maintaining the right temperature, and the possibility of being controlled with high accuracy. There is a problem with the precise and reproducible carrying out of a cell culture experiment that differs only in the process temperature. In this work, a technique for increasing the temperature locally, in a single culture well, in a medium containing eight such wells was proposed and analyzed. The use of this method will allow avoidance of the impact of potential changes in parameters other than temperature on the culture. That may occur when comparing cells grown at different temperatures by means of the ECIS (Electric Cell-substrate Impedance) method.