Happy New Year – can you even believe that 2021 is almost behind us? As you know, at Berkshire we aim to bring you the very best of controlled environment news. Last year, we looked at copper and tobacco as allies in the fight against COVID-19 and took a leisurely break from viral problems to [Read More…]
Often, we use the terms’ bacterial endotoxin’ and ‘pyrogen’ interchangeably. They refer to phospholipid-polysaccharides (also termed lipopolysaccharides, or LPS). And there’s a chance that these pyrogens may be released from decaying Gram-negative bacteria such as E. coli. Following cell death, these complex macromolecules emanate from compromised outer cell walls. If unchecked, it can induce and [Read More…]
Contact Plates and Clean-Up In the compounding of pharmaceuticals, Primary Engineering Controls (PECs) are critical in ensuring final product integrity and public safety. Equipment such as compounding aseptic isolators (CAIs) and biological safety cabinets (BSCs) must be contamination free, and this requires diligent monitoring to maintain standards to PEC ISO 5 classification. According to USP [Read More…]
From cocci which are round in shape, to bacilli which look like rods, to spirals which are sub-classed according to the number of their twists per cell, microorganisms are fascinating little creatures. At least to those who study them. In structure, the three types are not only differentiated by shape but also by arrangement such [Read More…]
We’ve Got You Covered It has been said that one of the (arguably very few) upsides of the COVID pandemic has been the opportunity to step out of our own reality and appreciate another person’s perspective, to walk, metaphorically at least, in their shoes. During the last year, for instance, we have certainly been given [Read More…]
In the cleanroom environment, there is none more popular than isopropyl alcohol. It wields great power and has many useful qualities. According to strict definition from Britannica.com, ‘alcohols are among the most common organic compounds. They are used as sweeteners and in making perfumes, are valuable intermediates in the synthesis of other compounds, and are [Read More…]
Biosensing Technology When we think of fungi – and who doesn’t when we all have so much extra time to ponder the bizarre? – we tend to think of either the mushrooms we add to our Friday night pizza or the trippy psilocybin-laden ‘magic mushrooms’ that are, we understand, enjoying something of a renaissance as [Read More…]
We recently revisited the subject of fungal and microbial pathogens in contamination-controlled environments such as cleanrooms and were pleasantly excited to note the significant degree to which the topic sparked discussion. One of the main threads within our community concerned the selection and application of the most effective disinfectants to thwart the advances of the [Read More…]
Compounding the Problem? If we were called upon to characterize last year in just two words, we would undoubtedly select unprecedented and pandemic as the most obvious watchwords of 2020. And at this point in time their definition is abundantly clear. But, as we start 2021, a couple of terms have resurfaced that apparently remain [Read More…]
Happy New Year and here’s to shutting the door firmly on the horror that was 2020. It’s hard to imagine that the terms ‘Best of…’ and ‘2020’ can come together in a sentence, but we’re running with it nonetheless. Every week of this annus horribilis, we have brought you stories that inform, inspire, and uplift, [Read More…]
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