Biomedical Engineering and Bioengineering Commons^™

Regenerative Medicine For Tendon/Ligament Injuries: De Novo Equine Tendon/Ligament Neotissue Generation And Application, Takashi Taguchi

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Tendon and ligament injuries are debilitating conditions across species. Poor regenerative capacities of these tissues limit restoration of original functions. The first study evaluated the effect of cellular administration on tendon/ligament injuries in horses using meta-analysis. The cellular administration was effective in restoring ultrasonographic echogenicity and increasing vascularity during early phase of healing. Additionally, it improved microstructural organization of healed tissue in terms of cellularity and fiber alignment. However, the study did not support its use for increasing rate of return to performance, expression/deposition of tendon-specific genes/proteins, or mechanical properties.

The findings led to the second study that engineered implantable …

The Age-Dependent Characterization Of The Er-Alpha Positive Breast Cancer Tumor Microenvironment, Katie Marie Hamel

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

In disease states such as cancer, endocrine and paracrine signals from adipose tissue contribute to cancer progression and drug resistance. Young individuals diagnosed with estrogen receptor-alpha positive (ER-a+) breast cancer have an observed increase in resistance to endocrine therapies. This suggests that an alternative estrogen signaling pathway is active within these tumors. Despite this, the effects of stromal age on the endocrine response in breast cancer is not well known. Here, we review and highlight the involvement of the stromal age in both tumorigenesis and physiological wound healing. To identify specific differences between young and aged ER-a+ breast tumors, RNA …

Zein And Lignin-Based Nanoparticles As Delivery Systems: Pesticide Release And Nanoparticle Health Impact On Soybean Plants, Fallon Polette Salinas Gonzalez

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

This research examined the effect of biodegradable, polymeric, lignin-based nanoparticles (LNPs, 113.8±3.4, negatively charged) and zein nanoparticles (ZNP, 141.6±3.9, positively charged) on soybean plant health. The LNPs were synthesized from lignin, covalently linked to poly(lactic-co-glycolic) acid by emulsion evaporation. ZNPs were synthesized by nanoprecipitation. Soybeans grown hydroponically were treated with three concentrations (0.02, 0.2, and 2 mg/ml) of NPs at 28 days after germination. The effect of ZNPs and LNPs on plant health was determined through analysis of root and stem length, chlorophyll concentration, dry biomass of roots and stem, as well as carbon, nitrogen, and micronutrient absorption after 1, …

Development Of The Cell-Free Protein Biomanufacturing Platform For The Therapeutic Human Protein Production And The Topical Delivery Applications Using The Nanosized Hydrogel System, Jeehye Kim

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Proteins are highly structural polymers, performing an enormous range of roles within organisms. Unlike synthetic polymers, proteins have a significant hierarchical ordering that can be disrupted by many environmental factors, which limits the scale-up manufacturing capability as well as the utilization of proteins as therapeutic agents. In this study, the Cell-Free Protein Synthesis (CFPS) system was developed to enhance the production capacity and applications of the therapeutic proteins. The CFPS is an advanced biosynthetic and genetic-engineered system. It enables the efficient production of proteins when the conventional cell-based protein synthesis systems cannot be applied, and when sophisticated control is required …

Incorporation Of Lignin In Natural And Synthetic Biomaterials To Alter Mechanical And Biochemical Properties For Enhanced Wound Healing, Jorge Alfonso Belgodere

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

It is estimated that chronic, non-healing wounds affect more than 6.5 million Americans annually, with an estimated healthcare cost beyond $14 billion. Here, we attempted to create composites of natural (collagen type I or gelatin-methacrylate) or synthetic (poly(ethylene glycol) polymers incorporating a natural plant component, lignin, to combat the costs and limitations current wound healing methods face. Three-dimensional matrices of collagen type I (Col I) are widely used in tissue engineering applications for its abundance in many tissues, bioactivity with many cell types, and excellent biocompatibility. Inspired by the structural role of lignin in plant tissue, we found that sodium …

Polymeric Nanoparticles As An Antioxidant Delivery System For Age-Related Eye Disease, Sean M. Swetledge

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Advantages of polymeric nanoparticles as ocular drug delivery systems include controlled release, enhanced drug stability and bioavailability, and specific tissue targeting. Nanoparticle properties such as hydrophobicity, size, and charge, mucoadhesion, as well as administration route and suspension media affect their ability to overcome ocular barriers and distribute in the eye, and must be carefully designed for specific target tissues and ocular diseases. A review was conducted to serve as a guide to optimizing polymeric nanoparticle delivery systems for ocular drug delivery by discussing the effects of nanoparticle composition and administration method on their ocular penetration, distribution, elimination, toxicity, and efficacy, …

Experimental And Computational Tools For Single Cell Analysis In Cancer Diagnostics, Manibarathi Vaithiyanathan

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Substantial evidence shows that cellular heterogeneity commonly exists within an isogenic or clonal population. Whether in isolation or caused through a combination of the above events, cellular heterogeneity can dramatically influence cellular decision making and cell fate, however, this can be masked by the average response from a population. One approach to solve this issue is to analyze a population at the individual cell level. The goal of this work is to develop high-throughput experimental and computational platforms to screen and quantify single cancer cells for specific intracellular enzyme activities. An interdisciplinary approach was taken to 1) better understand the …

Developing An Optomechanical Approach For Characterizing Mechanical Properties Of Single Adherent Cells, Ali Mehrnezhad

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Mechanical properties of a cell reflect its biological and pathological conditions including cellular disorders and fundamental cellular processes such as cell division and differentiation. There have been active research efforts to develop high-throughput platforms to mechanically characterize single cells. Yet, many of these research efforts are focused on suspended cells and use a flow-through configuration. Therefore, adherent cells are detached prior to the characterization, which seriously perturbs the cellular conditions. Also, methods for adherent cells are limited in their throughput.

My study is aimed to fill the technical gap in the field of single cell analysis, which is a high-throughput …

Rice Hull Bioreactor For Recirculating Aquaculture, Marlon A. Greensword

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The engineering of floating media biofilters has been optimized over the years. The backwashing process has made them more energy and water efficient. Likewise, moving bed bioreactors (MBBR) are gaining interest and popularity because they are relatively affordable to build. Yet, developing countries’ aquaculture production remains largely excluded from the advances made in recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS). This discrepancy is partially driven by the high costs of media such plastic beads and Kaldnes (KMT) media, commonly used in MBBR.

This dissertation evaluates the usability and profitability of rice hulls (RH), an abundant by-product in many developing nations, as a sinking …