Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
- Keyword
-
- Breast Cancer (2)
- Breast cancer (2)
- Ankle prosthesis (1)
- Biofluids (1)
- Biomechanics (1)
-
- Biophysics (1)
- Bone metastasis (1)
- Breastmilk (1)
- Cell Fusion (1)
- Cross-sectional geometry (1)
- Dendrite (1)
- Design (1)
- Embryo (1)
- Engineering (1)
- Ergometer (1)
- Exoskeleton (1)
- FSI (1)
- Finite element analysis (1)
- Geometric Transformations (1)
- Humerus (1)
- In-vitro (1)
- Isokinetic (1)
- Isotonic (1)
- Kinematics (1)
- Knee Contact Forces (1)
- Knee Osteoarthritis (1)
- Lead (1)
- Level Walking (1)
- Lighthouse Technology (1)
- Loading (1)
- Publication Type
Articles 1 - 10 of 10
Full-Text Articles in Mechanical Engineering
Surface Engineering And Microfabrication Of Pdms-Based Devices For Women’S Health Applications, Jamar Hawkins
Surface Engineering And Microfabrication Of Pdms-Based Devices For Women’S Health Applications, Jamar Hawkins
Doctoral Dissertations
Poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) is a widely used polymer in biomedical and microfluidics research due to its optical transparency, castability, gas permeability, and relative biocompatibility. However, while the favorable intrinsic properties of the polymer are typically suitable for preventing experimental artifacts, the true advantage of these devices often comes from their customized patterning and design, which can be tailored to specific applications. Critical parameters in biomedical applications such as chemical concentration profiles, fluid streamlines, substrate topography, and mechanical stiffness can all be fine-tuned simply by selecting the appropriate dimensions and arrangement of PDMS microstructures. To address challenges in expanding the application of …
Characterizing Mechanical Regulation Of Bone Metastatic Breast Cancer Cells, Boyuan Liu
Characterizing Mechanical Regulation Of Bone Metastatic Breast Cancer Cells, Boyuan Liu
Doctoral Dissertations
Breast cancer most frequently metastasizes to the skeleton. Bone metastatic cancer is incurable and induces wide-spread bone osteolysis, resulting in significant patient morbidity and mortality. Mechanical stimuli in the skeleton are an important microenvironmental parameter that modulates tumor formation, osteolysis, and tumor cell-bone cell signaling, but which mechanical signals are the most beneficial and the corresponding molecular mechanisms are unknown. This work focused on bone matrix deformation and interstitial fluid flow based on their well-known roles in bone remodeling and in primary breast cancer. The goal of our research was to establish a platform that could define the relationship between …
Design And Biomechanical Evaluation Of A Clutch-Based Energy Storage And Release Assistive Knee Brace, Ericber Jimenez Francisco
Design And Biomechanical Evaluation Of A Clutch-Based Energy Storage And Release Assistive Knee Brace, Ericber Jimenez Francisco
Doctoral Dissertations
Knee osteoarthritis (OA) is a serious degenerative disease affecting over 240 million people around the world. The most disabling symptoms are joint pain, joint stiffness, and reduction in joint functionality. Medial compartment knee OA is the most common case of unicompartmental knee OA, and pain and progression have been associated with tibiofemoral alignment in early to moderate knee OA patients, mainly due to its association with knee loading as measured by knee adduction moment (KAM) and tibiofemoral contact forces (KCF). Valgization knee braces have been developed to correct the malalignment at the tibiofemoral joint, but they have no direct effect …
Application And Evaluation Of Lighthouse Technology For Precision Motion Capture, Soumitra Sitole
Application And Evaluation Of Lighthouse Technology For Precision Motion Capture, Soumitra Sitole
Masters Theses
This thesis presents the development towards a system that can capture and quantify motion for applications in biomechanical and medical fields demanding precision motion tracking using the lighthouse technology. Commercially known as SteamVR tracking, the lighthouse technology is a motion tracking system developed for virtual reality applications that makes use of patterned infrared light sources to highlight trackers (objects embedded with photodiodes) to obtain their pose or spatial position and orientation. Current motion capture systems such as the camera-based motion capture are expensive and not readily available outside of research labs. This thesis provides a case for low-cost motion capture …
Microenvironment Regulates Fusion Of Breast Cancer Cells, Peiran Zhu
Microenvironment Regulates Fusion Of Breast Cancer Cells, Peiran Zhu
Masters Theses
Fusion of cancer cells has been observed in tumors for more than a century and is thought to contribute to tumor development and drug resistance. The low frequency of cell fusion events and the instability of fused cells have hindered our ability to understand the molecular mechanisms that govern cell fusion. We have developed a patterned gel system that can isolate cell fusion events and we demonstrate that several breast cancer cell lines can fuse into multinucleated giant cells in vitro, and the initiation and longevity of fused cells can be regulated solely by biophysical factors. Dynamically tuning the adhesive …
The Effects Of Mechanical Loading And Tumor Factors On Osteocyte Dendrite Formation, Wenbo Wang
The Effects Of Mechanical Loading And Tumor Factors On Osteocyte Dendrite Formation, Wenbo Wang
Masters Theses
Advanced breast cancer predominantly metastasizes to the skeleton, at which point patients suffer bone loss, pain, heightened fracture risk and their prognosis significantly declines. The skeleton is sensitive to its highly dynamic mechanical environment whereby bone mass is increased when applied loads are increased whereas bone loss occurs when applied loads are reduced. Increased mechanical loading inhibited bone metastatic tumor formation and progression in vivo, but the underlying mechanisms are currently under investigation. Here, we focus on the osteocyte, a specialized bone cell well-known as the primary mechanosensor and director of remodeling in the skeleton. Osteocytic dendrites are important for …
Effects Of Malformed Or Absent Valves To Lymphatic Fluid Transport And Lymphedema In Vivo In Mice, Akshay S. Pujari
Effects Of Malformed Or Absent Valves To Lymphatic Fluid Transport And Lymphedema In Vivo In Mice, Akshay S. Pujari
Masters Theses
Lymph is primarily composed of fluid and proteins from the blood circulatory system that drain into the space surrounding cells, interstitial space. From the interstitial space, the fluid enters and circulates in the lymphatic system until it is delivered into the venous system. In contrast to the blood circulatory system, the lymphatic system lacks a central pumping organ dictating the predominant driving pressure and velocity of lymph. Transport of lymph via capillaries, pre-collecting and collecting lymphatic vessels relies on the synergy between pressure gradients, local tissue motion, valves and lymphatic vessel contractility. The direction of lymph transport is regulated by …
A Magnetic Resonance Compatible Knee Extension Ergometer, Youssef Jaber
A Magnetic Resonance Compatible Knee Extension Ergometer, Youssef Jaber
Masters Theses
The product of this thesis aims to enable the study of the biochemical and physical dynamics of the lower limbs at high levels of muscle tension and fast contraction speeds. This is accomplished in part by a magnetic resonance (MR) compatible ergometer designed to apply a load as a torque of up to 420 Nm acting against knee extension at speeds as high as 4.7 rad/s. The system can also be adapted to apply the load as a force of up to 1200 N acting against full leg extension. The ergometer is designed to enable the use of magnetic resonance …
Were Neandertal Humeri Adapted For Spear Thrusting Or Throwing? A Finite Element Study, Michael Anthony Berthaume
Were Neandertal Humeri Adapted For Spear Thrusting Or Throwing? A Finite Element Study, Michael Anthony Berthaume
Masters Theses
An ongoing debate concerning Neandertal ecology is whether or not they utilized long range weaponry. The anteroposteriorly expanded cross-section of Neandertal humeri have led some to argue they thrusted their weapons, while the rounder cross-section of Late Upper Paleolithic modern human humeri suggests they threw their weapons. We test the hypothesis that Neandertal humeri were built to resist strains engendered by thrusting rather than throwing using finite element models of one Neandertal, one Early Upper Paleolithic (EUP) human and three recent human humeri, representing a range of cross-sectional shapes and sizes. Electromyography and kinematic data and articulated skeletons were used …
Semi-Active Damping For An Intelligent Adaptive Ankle Prosthesis, Andrew K. Lapre
Semi-Active Damping For An Intelligent Adaptive Ankle Prosthesis, Andrew K. Lapre
Masters Theses 1911 - February 2014
Modern lower limb prostheses are devices that replace missing limbs, making it possible for lower limb amputees to walk again. Most commercially available prosthetic limbs lack intelligence and passive adaptive capabilities, and none available can adapt on a step by step basis. Often, amputees experience a loss of terrain adaptability as well as stability, leaving the amputee with a severely altered gait. This work is focused on the development of a semi-active damping system for use in intelligent terrain adaptive ankle prostheses. The system designed consists of an optimized hydraulic cylinder with an electronic servo valve which throttles the hydraulic …