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Full-Text Articles in Biomedical Engineering and Bioengineering

A 3d Bioprinted Hydrogel Microfluidic Device For Screening Applications, Anant Bhusal Jan 2023

A 3d Bioprinted Hydrogel Microfluidic Device For Screening Applications, Anant Bhusal

Theses and Dissertations

The microfluidic enabled the integration of engineered miniaturized tissue models for drug screening. Conventional polydimethylsiloxane or plastic-based devices require multiple fabrication steps, which are challenging. We developed a 3D bioprinting approach to create prototypes of hydrogel-based multi-material microfluidic devices integrated with microtissue models. The approach utilizes poly(ethylene glycol) diacrylate and gelatin-methacryloyl to create microfluidic chips using multi-material bioprinting capacity with a high resolution of 15µm on x-y and 50µm on the z-axis and post-printing viability of >90%. We demonstrated easy regulation of stiffness from 24±5 kPa to 1,180±9 kPa and burst pressure from 16±1kPa to 256±19 kPa in the chip …


Electro-Mechanical Data Fusion For Heart Health Monitoring, Kemal Yakut Jun 2022

Electro-Mechanical Data Fusion For Heart Health Monitoring, Kemal Yakut

Theses and Dissertations

Heart disease is a major public health problem and one of the leading causes of death worldwide. Therefore, cardiac monitoring is of great importance for the early detection and prevention of adverse conditions. Recently, there has been extensive research interest in long-term, continuous, and non-invasive cardiac monitoring using wearable technology. Here we introduce a wearable device for monitoring heart health. This prototype consists of three sensors to monitor electrocardiogram (ECG), phonocardiogram (PCG), and seismocardiogram (SCG) signals, integrated with a microcontroller module with Bluetooth wireless connectivity. We also created a custom printed circuit board (PCB) to integrate all the sensors into …


Design Of A Pneumatic Soft Robotic Actuator Using Model-Based Optimization, Mahsa Raeisinezhad Jun 2021

Design Of A Pneumatic Soft Robotic Actuator Using Model-Based Optimization, Mahsa Raeisinezhad

Theses and Dissertations

In this thesis, the design and optimization process of a novel soft intelligent modular pad (IntelliPad) for the purpose of pressure injury prevention is presented. The structure of the IntelliPad consists of multiple individual multi-chamber soft pneumatic-driven actuators that use pressurized air and vacuum. Each actuator is able to provide both vertical and horizontal motions that can be controlled independently. An analytical modeling approach using multiple cantilever beams and virtual springs connected in a closed formed structure was developed to analyze the mechanical performance of the actuator. The analytical approach was validated by a finite element analysis. For optimizing the …


Bioprinted In Vitro Model Of Human Glioblastoma, Rachel Lauren Schwartz Aug 2020

Bioprinted In Vitro Model Of Human Glioblastoma, Rachel Lauren Schwartz

Theses and Dissertations

Glioblastoma multiform (GBM) is one of the most aggressive forms of primary brain tumors. GBM is fast progressing and resistant to treatment, resulting in a low survival rate. Conventional 2-dimensional tissue culture models cannot fully replicate the complexities of cancer lesions that contain multiple cell types and structures (e.g. vessels composed of endothelial cells, cancer cells, normal cells, etc.) as well as an intricate scaffold of proteins comprising the extracellular matrix (ECM). In addition, animal models cannot translate into the clinical disease in patients. Thus, this study has developed a bioprintable organ-on-a-chip (OOAC) model that mimics the important ECM factors …


The Impact Of Patient-Specific Vascular Structure On Localized Cooling In The Human Heart, Nathan Paul Spangenberg Sep 2019

The Impact Of Patient-Specific Vascular Structure On Localized Cooling In The Human Heart, Nathan Paul Spangenberg

Theses and Dissertations

Acute Myocardial Infarction (AMI) is the leading cause of worldwide death and disability, and approximately 720,000 Americans will experience an AMI in 2018. Studies have shown that rapid hypothermia therapy (<35°C) before reperfusion in patients with AMI can reduce infarct size by 37%. Localized therapeutic hypothermia has proven the potential to cool heart tissue rapidly following AMI, 3°C in 5 minutes. Using Materialise Mimics digital imaging software and the finite volume method we analyzed temperature distributions in six patient-specific left main coronary artery (LMCA) models. A mock circulatory loop was used to determine the exiting temperatures of a standard 7 Fr catheter to feed into our model with flow rates ranging from 29.2 ml/min to 68.85 ml/min. Our work showed that therapeutic hypothermia (TH) temperatures were evident at the outlets of three out of all six heart models, which varied in each left anterior descending (LAD) and left circumflex (LCX) artery depending on flowrate. Results of this study indicate that biovariability in patient-specific vascular structures significantly impacts therapeutic hypothermia (TH) treatment methods. These results indicate that further research is needed to examine more accurate physiological effects, such as pulsatile flow and vessel wall thickness. Future models will be used to provide insight to guide more efficient TH device designs and operation parameters to optimize patient outcomes following AMI.


Initial Development Of A Prototype Sensor Testbed For Fetal Monitoring, Christian Beauvais Aug 2019

Initial Development Of A Prototype Sensor Testbed For Fetal Monitoring, Christian Beauvais

Theses and Dissertations

The objective of this research is to design and manufacture a device that exhibits some of the bio-physiological signals relevant to fetal health monitoring. Currently, limited options exist for testing the performance of monitoring devices such as the tocodynamometer (TOCO) and electrocardiograph (ECG) that measure the bio-physiological signals of a woman and her fetus. Sensor designers need ways of generating and acquiring signals that do not carry the ethical burden of human testing. The development of such a device, as considered in this work, may involve using muscle wire or an inflatable tube as prospective foundations for simulating uterine contraction. …


Efficacy Of Eluted Antibiotics In 3d Printed Orthopaedic Implants, Mohammed Mehdi Benmassaoud Aug 2018

Efficacy Of Eluted Antibiotics In 3d Printed Orthopaedic Implants, Mohammed Mehdi Benmassaoud

Theses and Dissertations

Costs associated with musculoskeletal diseases in the United States account for 5.7 % of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) [1]. As such, there is a need to pursue new ideas in orthopaedic implants that can decrease cost and improve patient care. In the recent years, 3D printing using Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) or Stereolithography (SLA) has opened several exciting possibilities to create orthopaedic implants. Such implants can be engineered to release antibiotics in a controlled manner either by infusing the drug into the material during manufacturing or by using built-in design features such as micro-channels and reservoirs [2]. The use …


Kinematic Analysis Of Spinal Cord Injury Animals Treated With A Neurotrophin-Infused Scaffold And Body Weight Supported Treadmill Training, Alexander Herman May 2018

Kinematic Analysis Of Spinal Cord Injury Animals Treated With A Neurotrophin-Infused Scaffold And Body Weight Supported Treadmill Training, Alexander Herman

Theses and Dissertations

Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) is a condition that affects around 250,000 Americans with no cure. Existing treatments rely on physical therapies such as body weight support treadmill training (BWSTT). Treatments currently being researched include the use of implantable cells and biomaterials. Our study investigated the changes in locomotive gait and range of motion via a combinational treatment using a bioengineered scaffold [poly (N-isopropyl acrylamide) polyethylene glycol (PNIPAAm-g-PEG) with BDNF and NT-3] and rehabilitation training using BWSTT in a clinically relevant contusion SCI animal model. Five different groups of animals (Sham, Injury, BWSTT, Implant, and Combinational) were tested on a treadmill …


Thermal Fluid Models Of A Hydrogel Delivery System For Pancreatic Cancer Treatment, Nesrine Bouhrira May 2018

Thermal Fluid Models Of A Hydrogel Delivery System For Pancreatic Cancer Treatment, Nesrine Bouhrira

Theses and Dissertations

Pancreatic cancer is one of the most devastating cancers with low survival rates. This disease is difficult to detect due to the pancreas's location deep within the body. Therefore, diagnoses are often made in the later stages, making treatment options more limited and difficult. It has been hypothesized that direct injection into the tumor would enhance drug effectivenes. Therefore, we examined the use of endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) combined with a fine needle injection to deliver a drug-eluding thermosensitive hydrogel directly into the tumor. Unfortunately normal body temperatures surrounding the EUS can warm the hydrogel drug combination beyond its phase transition …


Effects Of Passive And Active Training Paradigms On Bone And Muscle Recovery After Spinal Cord Injury, Brittany Lynn King Jun 2017

Effects Of Passive And Active Training Paradigms On Bone And Muscle Recovery After Spinal Cord Injury, Brittany Lynn King

Theses and Dissertations

The effects spinal cord injury (SCI) has have been studied in both human and animal models. Specifically in incomplete SCI, the bone degradation and muscle atrophy seen in the lower limbs has been documented, along with the effects of different training paradigms on bone and muscle loss. This study implemented a clinically relevant animal model of a moderate spinal contusion injury at the T9--T10 level, along with active body weight supported treadmill training (BWSTT) and passive bike training, to compare the effects such training methods have on the bone microstructure properties and muscle masses in the lower limbs of rats. …