Engineering Commons^™

Layer-By-Layer Self -Assembly For Enzyme And Dna Encapsulation And Delivery, Amish Patel

Doctoral Dissertations

Thin wall microcapsules were formed via Layer-by-Layer Self-Assembly of alternate adsorption of oppositely charged polyelectrolyte on microcores. After the core dissolution, empty polymeric shells with 20–25 nm thick walls were obtained. These microcapsules were loaded with Myoglobin, Hemoglobin and Glucose Oxidase by opening capsule pores at low pH and closing them at higher pH. The native structure of the enzyme was not affected due to different treatments. Biocompatible nanoshells were also prepared for encasing DNA. Using the same Layer-by-Layer Self-Assembly approach nanoparticle were constructed containing DNA as one of the layers. The nanoparticles of different architecture were used to deliver …

A High -Order Finite Difference Method For Solving Bioheat Transfer Equations In Three-Dimensional Triple -Layered Skin Structure, Haofeng Yu

Doctoral Dissertations

Investigations on instantaneous skin burns are useful for an accurate assessment of burn-evaluation and for establishing thermal protections for various purposes. Meanwhile, hyperthermia with radiation is important in the treatment of cancer, and it is essential for developers and users of hyperthermia systems to predict, and interpret correctly the biomass thermal and vascular response to heating. In this dissertation, we employ the well-known Pennes' bioheat transfer equation to predict the degree of skin burn and the temperature distribution in hyperthermia cancer treatment.

A fourth-order compact finite difference scheme is developed to solve Pennes' bioheat transfer equation in a three-dimensional single …

Fabrication, Characterization, And Chemical Sensing Of Silicon Dioxide Microcantilevers, Yanjun Tang

Doctoral Dissertations

The objective of this work is to design and fabricate an advanced silicon dioxide microcantilever sensor and to investigate chemical and biological sensing by microtechnology.

Microcantilever sensor technology has many advantages including fast response time, lower cost of fabrication, the possibility of sensor arrays with small overall dimensions, the ability to explore microenvironments, and improved portability for field applications. For all of these advantages, microcantilever chemical and biological sensors have drawn more and more attention.

So far, all other microcantilevers were designed and fabricated for AFM applications. We developed a novel SiO2 microcantilever especially for chemical and biological sensor applications. …

Evaluating Restored Oyster Reefs In Chesapeake Bay: How Habitat Structure Influences Ecological Function, Janet A. Nestlerode

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

A shortage of shell resources for restoring reefs of the Eastern oyster, Crassostrea virginica, has led to widespread use of substitute materials. The effectiveness of such alternative substrates as habitat for reef-associated fauna other than oysters is largely unresolved. I investigated the habitat value of oyster shell, surf clam (Spisula solidissima) shell, and pelletized coal ash reefs for benthic and nektonic communities. Oyster recruitment, survival, and growth were monitored on reefs of oyster and surf clam shell near the mouth of Chesapeake Bay and York River, USA. Oyster shell supported greater oyster growth and survival and offered the highest degree …