Shampoo, conditioner and hair washing

<p>Modern shampoos are much more than just cleansing agents. With rising demands for new milder and ‘greener’ products, the developments in the field of shampoo and conditioners are moving at a faster pace than ever before. Soaps were initially used to clean scalp but are not recommended for hair cleansing because they leave behind a soap scum when mixed with hard water that is difficult to rinse from the hair and scalp. There are different types of shampoos. Besides “normal” cleaning shampoo, there are “specific” shampoos that have additional ingredients targeting some hair problems. Dermatologists most frequently prescribe shampoos but little is taught in medical schools about the hair cosmetics. Most of the prescriptions are based only on the treatment of the scalp and usually disregards the hair fibre health. Hence it is imperative for dermatologists to known about the mechanism of shampoos, different surfactants and where to choose which shampoo.</p>

Investigative Study of Chicken Feather and Synthetic Hair Fibre on Mechanical and Microstructural Properties of Interlocking Concrete Block

Efforts have been made to improve the quality and performance of concrete structures especially its permeability and durability properties. Concrete is a heterogeneous material containing several components (sand, aggregate, cement, etc.) which vary in size and geometry, and their positions in the concrete enclosure are randomly distributed, giving them defects even before experiencing any form of mechanical loading. In this study, the compositions of Chicken Feather Fibre (CFF) and Synthetic Hair Fibre (SHF) by weight were varied by 0%, 1.5%, 2.5%, 3.5% and 5% for Samples A to E respectively. Physical and Mechanical properties such as water absorption (WA), thickness swelling (TS), compressive and split tensile strength were determined. Results showed that WA and TS property of the fibre reinforced concrete block decreased with decrease in percentage by weight of CFF and SHF and curing days with highest value being 10.01 to a lowest value of 0.14. Also, compressive strength (CS) for sample A increased with increase in curing days from 16.98MPa at 7 days to 20.66MPa at 28 days and sample B has its highest CS at 14 days with 9.98 MPa while other samples decreased progressively. Split Tensile Strength (STS) for sample A increases with increase in curing days from 9.84MPa to 13.64MPa while sample B decreases from 7 to 21 days of curing from 5.43MPa to 4.79MPa and increased at 28 days to 4.92MPa. Samples C, D and E follow same trend as sample B. The SEM study shows that the interlocking concrete block (ICB) containing 0% of chicken feather and synthetic hair fibre has brittle characteristics while other samples containing different percentage by weight of chicken feather and synthetic hair fibre shows ductile characteristics. CFF and SHF enhanced WA, TS, CS and STS of fibre reinforced concrete.

Exceptional ancient DNA preservation and fibre remains of a Sasanian saltmine sheep mummy in Chehrābād, Iran

Mummified remains have long attracted interest as a potential source of ancient DNA. However, mummification is a rare process that requires an anhydrous environment to rapidly dehydrate and preserve tissue before complete decomposition occurs. We present the whole-genome sequences (3.94 X) of an approximately 1600-year-old naturally mummified sheep recovered from Chehrābād, a salt mine in northwestern Iran. Comparative analyses of published ancient sequences revealed the remarkable DNA integrity of this mummy. Hallmarks of postmortem damage, fragmentation and hydrolytic deamination are substantially reduced, likely owing to the high salinity of this taphonomic environment. Metagenomic analyses reflect the profound influence of high-salt content on decomposition; its microbial profile is predominated by halophilic archaea and bacteria, possibly contributing to the remarkable preservation of the sample. Applying population genomic analyses, we find clustering of this sheep with Southwest Asian modern breeds, suggesting ancestry continuity. Genotyping of a locus influencing the woolly phenotype showed the presence of an ancestral ‘hairy’ allele, consistent with hair fibre imaging. This, along with derived alleles associated with the fat-tail phenotype, provides genetic evidence that Sasanian-period Iranians maintained specialized sheep flocks for different uses, with the ‘hairy’, ‘fat-tailed’-genotyped sheep likely kept by the rural community of Chehrābād's miners.

Human Hair as Fiber Reinforced Concrete for Enhancement of Tensile Strength of Concrete

FRC (Fibre Reinforced Concrete) is fibrous material which increases its structural integrity, resists to explosive spalling in case of environmental affects, improves mix cohesion, improves ductility, reduces of steel reinforcement requirements and reduces the voids due to good stiffness. It contains short discrete fibres that are uniformly distributed. Mostly, natural fibers are the waste material which may have negative impact on environment. Synthetic fibres include steel fibres and glass fibres but natural fibres are coconut fibres and human hair fibres which tends to vary the properties to concrete. In addition, the character of FRC changes with varying concrete, fibre material, geometries, distribution, orientation and densities. Hair fibre concrete gives a practical, cost-effective and convenient method to avoid cracks and deficiencies regarding strength and proper mixing ratio which occurs at a longer period. Fibres have been used to reduce plastic shrinkage and drying shrinkage in concrete. In some structural elements, fibrous concrete can be used to reduce the cost of structure. Different fibres are used to improve the tensile strength of concrete. Human hair are strong in tension. Hair fibres can be utilized as a strengthening material. Hair fibre is a non-decay able matter and available at a cheap rate. Experiments have been performed on fibrous concrete cylinders containing various percentages of human hair which is 0, 0.5, 1 and 1.5% by the weight of cement. A total of seventy-two cylinders have been prepared with FRC having different %ages of hair content. Workability, compressive strength and split tensile strength have been checked at three curing ages i.e. 7, 14 and 28 days. This research will open a new wicket in the horizon of reuse of waste material efficiently in construction industry. This innovation in construction industry will save our natural resources and use fibre in productive and an effective approach.

Fusion proteins with chromogenic and keratin binding modules

The present research relates to a fusion protein comprising a chromogenic blue ultramarine protein (UM) bound to a keratin-based peptide (KP). The KP-UM fusion protein explores UM chromogenic nature together with KP affinity towards hair. For the first time a fusion protein with a chromogenic nature is explored as a hair coloring agent. The KP-UM protein colored overbleached hair, being the color dependent on the formulation polarity. The protein was able to bind to the hair cuticle and even to penetrate throughout the hair fibre. Molecular dynamics studies demonstrated that the interaction between the KP-UM protein and the hair was mediated by the KP sequence. All the formulations recovered the mechanical properties of overbleached hair and KP-UM proved to be safe when tested in human keratinocytes. Although based on a chromogenic non-fluorescent protein, the KP-UM protein presented a photoswitch phenomenon, changing from chromogenic to fluorescent depending on the wavelength selected for excitation. KP-UM protein shows the potential to be incorporated in new eco-friendly cosmetic formulations for hair coloration, decreasing the use of traditional dyes and reducing its environmental impact.