Computational Modeling Of The Human Brain For Mtbi Prediction And Diagnosis, 2020 The University of Western Ontario
Computational Modeling Of The Human Brain For Mtbi Prediction And Diagnosis, Yanir Levy
Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository
Sports related concussions and mild traumatic brain injuries have seen an increase in frequency over the past decade. The creation of highly biofidelic computational head models is an important step in understanding the mechanisms of these mild brain injuries and preventing them. Hence, the purpose of this research is to combine state-of-the-art computational models, brain imaging modalities and traditional head injury assessment protocols to simulate and predict the brains responses during traumatic head impacts. A novel, atlas-based, parcellated axon fiber embedded head model was developed which allows for in-depth analysis of the brain’s structural connectome tracts for injury diagnosis and …
The Investigation Of Surface Structures On Various Pathogens And Their Interactions With The Human Immune System, 2020 University of New Mexico
The Investigation Of Surface Structures On Various Pathogens And Their Interactions With The Human Immune System, Carmen M. Villalobos
Biomedical Engineering ETDs
The cell surface is the first interface the host immune system encounters and
its investigation has led to a better understanding of cellular biology and types of
pathways that pathogens target in a host cell. The cell surface has evolved to include
many functions such as manipulation of the cytoskeleton, cell signaling, membrane
trafficking, adhesion, and integration into host tissue. The pathogens of interest are
the pathogenic fungus, Candida albicans, and the parasite, Giardia lamblia and we
investigate the consequences of drug treatments on the cell surface, leading to
promising new targets.
Admittance Method For Estimating Local Field Potentials Generated In A Multi-Scale Neuron Model Of The Hippocampus, 2020 Case Western Reserve University
Admittance Method For Estimating Local Field Potentials Generated In A Multi-Scale Neuron Model Of The Hippocampus, Clayton S. Bingham, Javad Paknahad, Christopher Bc Girard, Kyle Loizos, Jean-Marie C. Bouteiller, Dong Song, Gianluca Lazzi, Theodore W. Berger
Engineering Faculty Articles and Research
Significant progress has been made toward model-based prediction of neral tissue activation in response to extracellular electrical stimulation, but challenges remain in the accurate and efficient estimation of distributed local field potentials (LFP). Analytical methods of estimating electric fields are a first-order approximation that may be suitable for model validation, but they are computationally expensive and cannot accurately capture boundary conditions in heterogeneous tissue. While there are many appropriate numerical methods of solving electric fields in neural tissue models, there isn't an established standard for mesh geometry nor a well-known rule for handling any mismatch in spatial resolution. Moreover, the …
Automatic Detection Of Dynamic And Static Activities Of The Older Adults Using A Wearable Sensor And Support Vector Machines, 2020 Glassdoor
Automatic Detection Of Dynamic And Static Activities Of The Older Adults Using A Wearable Sensor And Support Vector Machines, Jian Zhang, Rahul Soangra, Thurmon E. Lockhart
Physical Therapy Faculty Articles and Research
Although Support Vector Machines (SVM) are widely used for classifying human motion patterns, their application in the automatic recognition of dynamic and static activities of daily life in the healthy older adults is limited. Using a body mounted wireless inertial measurement unit (IMU), this paper explores the use of an SVM approach for classifying dynamic (walking) and static (sitting, standing and lying) activities of the older adults. Specifically, data formatting and feature extraction methods associated with IMU signals are discussed. To evaluate the performance of the SVM algorithm, the effects of two parameters involved in SVM algorithm—the soft margin constant …
A Comprehensive Analysis Of Balance, Symmetry, And Center Of Mass In The Gait Cycle Of Transfemoral Amputees, 2020 Florida International University
A Comprehensive Analysis Of Balance, Symmetry, And Center Of Mass In The Gait Cycle Of Transfemoral Amputees, Kayla T. Etienne
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
The purpose of this thesis is to create a framework that assists in the transfemoral prosthesis fitting process by calculating balance and symmetry to quantify patient comfort with an understanding of bipedal locomotion and human anatomy. Three different software applications were used to compare (1) the body position during gait cycle, (2) the natural and amputee anatomies, (3) the natural and prosthetic legs, and (4) the equilibrium and torque movements of the hip, knee, and ankle joints. Models were created in Maya for analysis in Solidworks and MEL code evaluation with MatLab. The MatLab code tested combinations of joint degrees …
3d Architectural Analysis Of Neurons, Astrocytes, Vasculature & Nuclei In The Motor And Somatosensory Murine Cortical Columns, 2020 Department of Biomedical Engineering, Florida International University
3d Architectural Analysis Of Neurons, Astrocytes, Vasculature & Nuclei In The Motor And Somatosensory Murine Cortical Columns, Jared Leichner
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Characterization of the complex cortical structure of the brain at a cellular level is a fundamental goal of neuroscience which can provide a better understanding of both normal function as well as disease state progression. Many challenges exist however when carrying out this form of analysis. Immunofluorescent staining is a key technique for revealing 3-dimensional structure, but subsequent fluorescence microscopy is limited by the quantity of simultaneous targets that can be labeled and intrinsic lateral and isotropic axial point-spread function (PSF) blurring during the imaging process in a spectral and depth-dependent manner. Even after successful staining, imaging and optical deconvolution, …
Reading Robot, 2020 California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo
Reading Robot, Gillian Watts, Andrew Myers, Sabrinna Tan, Taylor Klein, Omeed Djassemi
General Engineering
Presently, there is an insufficient availability of human experts to assist students in reading competency and comprehension. Our team’s goal was to create an improved socially assistive robot for use by therapists, teachers, and parents to help children and adults develop reading skills while they do not have access to specialists. HAPI is a socially assistive robot that we created with the goal of helping students practice their reading comprehension skills. HAPI enables a student to improve their reading skills without an educator present, while enabling educators to review the student's performance remotely. Design constraints included: physical size, weight, duration …
Septal Closure Device, 2020 California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo
Septal Closure Device, Olivia N. Welch, Hillal H. Jarrar, Kai Harrison
Biomedical Engineering
The septal closure device was designed to seal defects in the atrial septum. To fully seal an atrial defect, the device was designed to consist of two circular seals to cover the defect in both the right and left atria, attached with a central rod. The materials were chosen for compressibility (for ease of insertion), biocompatibility, and tissue ingrowth. A CAD model was drafted in SolidWorks. Key customer requirements include ease of implantation (specifications: adjustable sizing and clear directions for use), physician controlled (specifications: short implantation time and compatibility with current catheter/scope techniques), and a long lifetime (specifications: materials that …
Investigation Of Experimental Variation Of Bovine Sphingomyelin As A Novel Ingredient For Ultraviolet Protection, 2020 California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo
Investigation Of Experimental Variation Of Bovine Sphingomyelin As A Novel Ingredient For Ultraviolet Protection, Esther Chen
Master's Theses
Skin cancer is a prevalent disease that globally affects 2-3 million people per year [1]. This number is expected to grow tenfold as depletion of the ozone layer contributes to harsher rays reaching Earth’s surface [2]. A common way to protect against those ultraviolet waves is to apply sunscreen, however, recent reports call into question the safety of some active ingredients as they can enter through the skin into the bloodstream [3]. This thesis aims to investigate an alternative solution that uses bovine sphingomyelin (BSM) as photoprotective solution against UV irradiation.
In order to evaluate the effectiveness of BSM against …
Screening And Characterization Of A Pan-Gtpase Inhibitor, 2020 University of New Mexico - Main Campus
Screening And Characterization Of A Pan-Gtpase Inhibitor, Leyla Akhadov
Biomedical Engineering ETDs
Abnormal functioning of small GTPases is implicated in a variety of diseases, ranging from neurological and developmental diseases to cancer. In fact, mutant GTPases are found in up to 30% of cancers. Thus, small GTPases are a highly relevant target in drug discovery and development. High-throughput targeted screening of small molecules is the most productive method of discovering compounds that can give insights into drug development. This thesis describes improvements made to a high-throughput GTPase-targeted screening method to minimize confounding systematic error. It also describes the follow-up characterization of a compound that was identified in a high-throughput screen. The compound …
Exploring Attacks And Defenses In Additive Manufacturing Processes: Implications In Cyber-Physical Security, 2020 Washington University in St. Louis
Exploring Attacks And Defenses In Additive Manufacturing Processes: Implications In Cyber-Physical Security, Nicholas Deily
McKelvey School of Engineering Theses & Dissertations
Many industries are rapidly adopting additive manufacturing (AM) because of the added versatility this technology offers over traditional manufacturing techniques. But with AM, there comes a unique set of security challenges that must be addressed. In particular, the issue of part verification is critically important given the growing reliance of safety-critical systems on 3D printed parts. In this thesis, the current state of part verification technologies will be examined in the con- text of AM-specific geometric-modification attacks, and an automated tool for 3D printed part verification will be presented. This work will cover: 1) the impacts of malicious attacks on …
Implementation Of A Computer-Vision System As A Supportive Diagnostic Tool For Parkinson’S Disease, 2020 University of Mississippi
Implementation Of A Computer-Vision System As A Supportive Diagnostic Tool For Parkinson’S Disease, Diego Machado Reyes
Honors Theses
Parkinson’s disease is the second most common neurodegenerative disorder, affecting nearly 1 million people in the US and it is predicted that the number will keep increasing. Parkinson’s disease is difficult to diagnose due to its similarity with other diseases that share the parkinsonian symptoms and the subjectivity of its assessment, thus increasing the probabilities of misdiagnosis. Therefore, it is relevant to develop diagnostic tools that are quantitatively based and monitoring tools to improve the patient’s quality of life. Computer-based assessment systems have shown to be successful in this field through diverse approaches that can be classified into two main …
Ml-Medic: A Preliminary Study Of An Interactive Visual Analysis Tool Facilitating Clinical Applications Of Machine Learning For Precision Medicine, 2020 University of Colorado, Aurora
Ml-Medic: A Preliminary Study Of An Interactive Visual Analysis Tool Facilitating Clinical Applications Of Machine Learning For Precision Medicine, Laura Stevens, David Kao, Jennifer Hall, Carsten Görg, Kaitlyn Abdo, Erik Linstead
Engineering Faculty Articles and Research
Accessible interactive tools that integrate machine learning methods with clinical research and reduce the programming experience required are needed to move science forward. Here, we present Machine Learning for Medical Exploration and Data-Inspired Care (ML-MEDIC), a point-and-click, interactive tool with a visual interface for facilitating machine learning and statistical analyses in clinical research. We deployed ML-MEDIC in the American Heart Association (AHA) Precision Medicine Platform to provide secure internet access and facilitate collaboration. ML-MEDIC’s efficacy for facilitating the adoption of machine learning was evaluated through two case studies in collaboration with clinical domain experts. A domain expert review was also …
From Branches To Fibers - Investigating F-Actin Networks With Biochemistry And Mathematical Modeling, 2020 James Madison University
From Branches To Fibers - Investigating F-Actin Networks With Biochemistry And Mathematical Modeling, Melissa A. Riddle
Senior Honors Projects, 2020-current
F-actin networks have different structures throughout the cell depending on their location or mechanical role. For example, at the leading edge of a migrating cell, F-actin is organized in a region called the lamellipodia as a branched network responsible for pushing the membrane outwards. Behind the lamellipodia is a lamellar actin network where focal adhesions and stress fibers originate, and then within the cell cortex, actin is arranged in a gel-like network. Stress fibers are an important organization of F-actin and how they arise from either the branched lamellipodia network or the gel-like cortex network is poorly understood. Our approach …
The Utilization Of Autofluorescence To Study The Effects Of L-Buthionine-Sulfoximine On Cellular Metabolism In Vitro, 2020 University of Arkansas, Fayetteville
The Utilization Of Autofluorescence To Study The Effects Of L-Buthionine-Sulfoximine On Cellular Metabolism In Vitro, Madison Belew
Biomedical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses
Oxidative damage and stress impacts metabolic activity and has been implicated in a number of diseases . These medical conditions have been found to be associated with a lack of glutathione (GSH). There is a need to study the effects that the absence of glutathione has in order to expand knowledge of indicators that cause conditions like cataracts, cancer, or impaired wound healing. L-buthionine-sulfoximine (BSO) has been used in past studies to hinder GSH production and induce oxidative stress within a cell. This study explores the effects of BSO and induced oxidative stress on the metabolic activity and processes within …
Theoretical Applicability Of Crispr-Mediated Exon Skipping In Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, 2020 University of Arkansas, Fayetteville
Theoretical Applicability Of Crispr-Mediated Exon Skipping In Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, Andrew Greek
Biomedical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses
Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) affects approximately 1 in 5,000 males. DMD results from genetic mutations within the gene that interrupts the open reading frame and prematurely truncates the protein. From a non-functional dystrophin protein, DMD results in serious muscle weakening and muscle wasting ultimately leading to death around the age of 26. In some cases of muscular dystrophy, a mutation can occur in areas of the gene that are less essential. In Becker muscular dystrophy (BMD), these mutations cause less significant consequences in phenotype as the dystrophin protein is still semi-functional. With gene editing techniques, it may be possible to …
Synthetic Lethality In Pediatric Brain Cancer Cells By Optimized Plga Nanoparticles And Drug Combinations, 2020 University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Synthetic Lethality In Pediatric Brain Cancer Cells By Optimized Plga Nanoparticles And Drug Combinations, Megan Ruckman, Megan Otte, Forrest Kievit
UCARE Research Products
Here we test drugs effectiveness to inhibit various DNA repair pathways with the purpose of sensitizing cancer cells to radiotherapy. We work on optimizing delivery of DNA repair pathway inhibiting drugs by the use of PLGA nanoparticles.
Development Of Gaussian Learning Algorithms For Early Detection Of Alzheimer's Disease, 2020 Florida International University
Development Of Gaussian Learning Algorithms For Early Detection Of Alzheimer's Disease, Chen Fang
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most common form of dementia affecting 10% of the population over the age of 65 and the growing costs in managing AD are estimated to be $259 billion, according to data reported in the 2017 by the Alzheimer's Association. Moreover, with cognitive decline, daily life of the affected persons and their families are severely impacted. Taking advantage of the diagnosis of AD and its prodromal stage of mild cognitive impairment (MCI), an early treatment may help patients preserve the quality of life and slow the progression of the disease, even though the underlying disease cannot …
Solostand, 2020 California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo
Solostand, Hau Nhat Doan, Sydney Gray, Celina Dioso
Biomedical Engineering
The purpose of this scope of work is to highlight the progress and development of SoloStand sponsored by Derek Herrera, chief technical officer and founder of SpinalSingularity. SoloStand is an attachment to a wheelchair that will benefit paraplegics that use wheelchairs. A portable and customizable attachment to a wheelchair will allow the user to do everyday tasks without transferring into a separate standing wheelchair and travel more easily. This document outlines everything that has been done in fulfillment of our senior project requirements.
Ikioo Flying Robot, 2020 California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo
Ikioo Flying Robot, Nicholas Michael Lapidus, Bosung Josh Kim, Jenny Fong
Biomedical Engineering
No abstract provided.