Biomedical Engineering and Bioengineering Commons^™

Influence Of Traumatic Impaction And Pathological Loading On Knee Menisci, Megan Leigh Killian

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports - Open

Nearly half of the US population faces the risk of developing knee osteoarthritis (OA). Both in vitro and in vivo studies can aid in a better understanding of the etiology, progression, and advancement of this debilitating disorder. The knee menisci are fibrocartilagenous structures that aid in the distribution of load, attenuation of shock, alignment and lubrication of the knee. Little is known about the biochemical and morphological changes associated with knee menisci following altered loading and traumatic impaction, and investigations are needed to further elucidate how degradation of this soft tissue advances over time. The biochemical response of porcine meniscal …

Drug-Eluting Stents For Coronary Artery Disease: A Review, David Martin, Fergal Boyle

Articles

Over the past decade the introduction of drug-eluting stents (DESs) has revolutionised the treatment of coronary artery disease. However, in recent years concern has arisen over the long-term safety and efficacy of DESs due to the occurrence of late adverse clinical events such as stent thrombosis. With this concern in mind, research and development is currently centred on increasing the long-term safety and efficacy of DESs. The aim of this paper is to provide a thorough review of currently approved and promising investigational DESs. With dozens of companies involved in the development of new and innovative anti-restenotic agents, polymeric coatings …

Ablation Of Chronic Total Occlusions Using Kilohertz-Frequency Mechanical Vibrations In Minimally Invasive Angioplasty Procedures., Garrett Mcguinness, Mark Wylie, Graham Gavin

Articles

Certain minimally invasive cardiology procedures, such as balloon angioplasty and stent implantation, critically require that the site of an arterial blockage be crossed by an intraluminal guidewire. Plaques resulting in near or totally occluded arteries are known as chronic total occlusions (CTOs), and crossing them with conventional guidewires is a significant challenge. Among the most promising proposed solutions is the delivery of high power, low frequency ultrasonic vibrations to the occlusion site via an intraluminal wire waveguide. The vibrating distal-tip of the ultrasound wire waveguide is used to transmit energy to the surrounding plaques, tissues and fluids in order to …

Dual-Stage Sugar Substitution In Strawberries With A Stevia-Based Sweetener, Juan Garcia-Noguera, Curtis L. Weller, Francisca I. P. Oliveira, Sueli Rodrigues, Fabiano A. N. Fernandes

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

The present study introduces and analyzes a new process denominated dual-stage sugar substitution (D3S). This process aims to induce sugar substitution in strawberries. In a first stage, high-calorie sugars (sucrose, fructose and glucose) are partially removed from the fruit samples and in a second stage, low-calorie sugar (stevioside and rebaudioside) is incorporated to the fruit to maintain its sweetness. The process was evaluated by studying the use of ultrasound application in one or both stages of the D3S process. Best performance of the process was obtained by subjecting the fruit samples to ultrasound in the sugar removal stage followed by …

Influence Of Compressible Aerogel Electrodes On The Properties Of An Electrochemical Cell, Chris Sponheimer

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In the biomedical field the need for intra organ pressure measurement can only be facilitated by adapting existing pressure sensing technology to the specific tissues under test. The customization of these sensors has only driven up cost and the need to explore new technologies has become increasingly more important. For this dissertation, we explore the use of a new technology, particularly electrochemical pressure sensing to provide a low-cost pressure sensor to fill this need. Preliminary testing showed that electrically conductive polymers exhibited a change in voltage when pressurized if bubbles were first electrolyzed in the gel creating an aerogel, and …

A Review Of Autoimmune Diseases Associated With Cancer, Patricia Tai, Edward Yu, Kurian Joseph, Thomas Miale

Oncology Publications

The focus of this review is on the relationships between autoimmune diseases and cancer from two closely related perspectives: 1.Those autoimmune diseases which are often associated with malignancies. 2.Those prevalent cancers which may increase the risks of developing autoimmune disorders. The review concludes with a brief discussion of some selected innovative approaches to cancer immunotherapy.

Applications Of Ultrafine Powder Coatings, A.S. Mohammad Sayem Mozumder

Digitized Theses

Powder coatings have emerged as an alternative to the conventional liquid coatings when environmental regulations become stricter every year. The advantage of powder coatings mainly renders to their solvent-free formulations, because solvent(s) used in liquid coatings are to be evaporated to environment contributing to the total volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emissions. Although advantageous, until recently, powder coating was not able to provide surface finishes comparable to the liquid coatings. However, when ultrafine powders (particularly, in the size range of 15-25 µm) becomes flowable with the aid of nano-additive(s), ultrafine powder coatings (UPCs) came into business with its thinner and smoother …

Design, Development And Biomechanical Analysis Of Scaffolds For Augmentation Of Rotator Cuff Repairs, Amit Aurora

ETD Archive

Rotator cuff tears are a source of debilitating pain that commonly affects more than 40 of our aging population. Despite advances in surgical treatment, the failure rate of rotator cuff repairs is as high as 20-90 . Extracellular matrix (ECM) derived scaffolds have recently been investigated as augmentation devices for rotator cuff repairs, but none has yet demonstrated both the appropriate biological and mechanical properties for mitigating re-tears and enhancing healing. This dissertation proposes to engineer the mechanical properties of allograft fascia lata in a manner that will allow its use as an augmentation device for rotator cuff repairs. This …

Surface Microtopography Modulation Of Biomaterials For Bone Tissue Engineering Applications, Eun Jung Kim

ETD Archive

The ultimate goal of this project is to develop a biodegradable and implantable scaffold with precise surface topographies that can provide osteoconductive stimuli to connective tissue progenitor cells (CTPs), and subsequently, enhance bone regeneration applications without the complications of autogenous cancellous bone grafts. This dissertation presents the modification of surface microtextures to provide osteoconductive stimuli to CTPs for bone regeneration applications. First, the effect of surface topography on cell proliferation and osteogenic differentiation was validated through experiments using surface post microtextures and CTPs. Post microtextures accelerated CTP growth behaviors compared to smooth polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) and standard cell culture dishes. Second, …

Evaluation Of Upper Motor Neuron Pathology In Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis By Mri;Towards Identifying Noninvasive Biomarkers Of The Disease, Venkateswaran Rajagopalan

ETD Archive

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is the commonest adult motor neuron disease (MND) which causes progressive muscle paralysis and death usually within 5 years of symptom onset. As a result, only ╠â30,000 individuals in the United States are afflicted at any one time even though 5,000 or more individuals are diagnosed yearly. The diagnosis of ALS requires evidence of degeneration in upper motor neurons (UMNs) in the brain and in lower motor neurons (LMNs) that exit the brainstem and spinal cord to innervate skeletal muscles. Diagnosis can be incorrect or delayed when disease is early or atypical because non-invasive objective tests …

Cell-Taught Gene Therapy For The Preservation And Regeneration Of Cardiac Tissue Following Chronic Heart Failure, Srividya Sundararaman

ETD Archive

Heart failure is the primary cause of mortality and morbidity in the Western world. Although cell therapy has demonstrated improvement in cardiac function, these benefits are being attributed to the activation of paracrine factors, rather than the differentiation and integration of the transplanted cells into the host tissue. Based on this knowledge the focus of this thesis work was to deliver paracrine factors, and evaluate its effect on cardiac function. Gene therapy has evolved as a promising option to deliver pro-angiogenic proteins to infarct zones, thus providing cardiac benefit. This study has identified a gene design without the use of …

The Thermodynamics Of Fluid-Phase Benzene Via Molecular Simulation, John L. Tatarko

ETD Archive

Accurate values for thermodynamic properties throughout the fluid phase are a requirement for the design of separation processes. To date, very few pure substances have been completely characterized because of time and monetary constraints. Low cost computing power now permits complete determination of the thermodynamic properties of pure substances via molecular simulation. Molecular simulation is computational statistical mechanics. Benzene is an important industrial chemical and pharmaceutical precursor. It is the prototypical, symmetric, hexagonal molecule and is an ideal candidate for molecular simulation. The molecular models of three researchers in the field are submitted for Monte Carlo simulation in the virtual …

Directional Solidification Of Al - 7 Wt Si Alloy, Ravi Shanker Rajamure

ETD Archive

Al - 7 wt Si alloy has been directionally solidified from an aluminum single crystal seed with its [100] orientation parallel to the growth direction with a positive thermal gradient of 40 K/cm and over the range of growth speeds. Growth speed dependence of primary Dendrite Spacing and Primary Dendrite trunk Diameter has been analyzed during the step increase and step decrease in the growth speeds. Frequency distribution of Nearest Neighbor dendrites obtained from the statistical analysis shows the hexagonal distribution of dendrites. The interdendritic convection was present in the form of transverse macrosegregation and non uniform distribution of dendrites …

A Theoretical Model Of The Effect Of Bone Defects On Anterior Shoulder Instability: A Finite Element Approach, Piyush Walia

ETD Archive

Presence of either a Hill Sachs or a Bony Bankart lesion has been indicated as a possible cause of subluxation and anterior shoulder dislocation. Previous studies have investigated only effects of these isolated lesions on the glenohumeral instability of the shoulder. The purpose of this thesis was to investigate the effect of both Bony Bankart lesion and Hill-Sachs lesion in the glenohumeral joint on the stability of the shoulder. We hypothesize that as the size of the lesion increases, the glenohumeral joint's stability will decrease. We further hypothesize that the presence of both defects together will reduce the glenohumeral joint's …

Application Of Differential Scanning Calorimetry To Characterize Thin Film Deposition Processes, Andrew John Roger Snell

ETD Archive

With the recent increase in awareness on the environmental impact of industrial coating processes, chromate-based coating processes have been elevated to the rank of the technologies targeted by the EPA for rapid replacement by environmentally friendly processes. Therefore, there is a clear need for advances in coating technologies to identify alternative industrial practices. This thesis characterizes a process developed at Cleveland State University as an alternative deposition technique to generate uniform coatings onto solid substrates. A kinetic analysis to extract scale up parameters involved in the reaction kinetics leading to high-performance coatings is demonstrated in this research. The work consists …

Raman Spectroscopic Modeling Of T- Lymphocyte Activation And Detection Of Acute Renal Allograft Rejection, Kristian L. Brown

Wayne State University Dissertations

ABSTRACT

RAMAN SPECTROSCOPIC MODELING OF T-LYMPHOCYTE ACTIVATION AND DETECTION OF ACUTE RENAL ALLOGRAFT REJECTION

By

KRISTIAN L. BROWN

2010

Advisor: Gregory Auner, PhD

Major: Biomedical Engineering

Degree: Doctor of Philosophy

Despite the advances made in the area of kidney transplantation, the disparity between the demand and available donated organs remains a dominant and unresolved issue. Given the paucity of available renal allografts the preservation of existing grafts is vital. One factor that has negatively impacted renal allograft survival is acute rejection (AR). Traditionally, kidney transplant centers have used elevations in serum creatinine as a screening tool for detecting AR. However, …

Identification Of Neuroblastoma And Its Prognostic Markers Using Raman Spectroscopy, Rachel Kast

Wayne State University Dissertations

Introduction: Neuroblastoma is the most common cancer of infancy. It is one of several peripheral nervous system tumors, including ganglioneuroma, peripheral nerve sheath tumor, and pheochromocytoma. It is commonly situated on the adrenal gland. It displays similar histology to other small round blue cell tumors, including non-Hodgkin lymphoma, rhabdomyosarcoma, and Ewing sarcoma. One method of judging neuroblastoma aggressiveness uses tumor histology factors, including mitosis-karyorrhexis index, Schwannian stromal development, degree of differentiation, and patient age. Tumor aggressiveness can also be judged based on the amplification of certain genes, including MYCN. Raman spectroscopy is a physics-based method which identifies the biochemical …

Understanding The Molecular Dynamics Of Ypel3 And Fhit Gene Expression, Kevin Daniel Kelley

Browse all Theses and Dissertations

A comprehensive understanding of the molecular signaling pathways that regulate cell growth and proliferation is essential in the realization of new therapeutic options to facilitate early detection and eradication of malignancy. Understanding the transcriptional regulation of the YPEL3 and FHIT genes forms the basis of this dissertation. YPEL3, or Yippee-like 3, is a newly identified p53 target gene that inhibits tumor cell growth and is thus itself, a novel tumor suppressor gene. FHIT, or Fragile histidine triad, is a well known tumor suppressor gene and is regulated at the transcriptional level by another growth inhibitory protein, FOXO3a, a Forkhead box …

Nonequilibrium Thermodynamics Modeling Of Coupled Biochemical Cycles In Living Cells, Yaşar Demirel

Yaşar Demirel Publications

Living cells represent open, nonequilibrium, self organizing, and dissipative systems maintained with the continuous supply of outside and inside material, energy, and information flows. The energy in the form of adenosine triphosphate is utilized in biochemical cycles, transport processes, protein synthesis, reproduction, and performing other biological work. The processes in molecular and cellular biological systems are stochastic in nature with varying spatial and time scales, and bounded with conservation laws, kinetic laws, and thermodynamic constraints, which should be taken into account by any approach for modeling biological systems. In component biology, this review focuses on the modeling of enzyme kinetics …

Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy Study Of Metabolic Profiles In Brain Tumors, Aditya Manoj Patel

Bioengineering Theses - Archive

Metabolic profiles in brain tumors were measured using proton (1H) magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) at 3T. Spectra were obtained from normal tissues and tumor mass regions of 6 low-grade gliomas, 7 anaplastic astrocytomas and 23 glioblastoma (GBM) patients, using PRESS at two echo times (TE = 54 and 112 ms). Glutamate (Glu), glutamine (Gln) and lactate (Lac) were well resolved at TE = 112 ms. The ratio of Gln and Glu concentrations, [Gln]/[Glu], was elevated significantly (p < 0.05) in all the tumor types compared to normal tissue. Elevation of Gln was confirmed through [Gln]/[water]; the ratio was increased in all the three tumor types but the increase was significant only in GBM. Glycine (Gly) was increased significantly in GBM. Alanine was detectable from GBM only, indicating its elevation for most malignant tumor. Other observations included significant increases in choline (Cho) and Lac (p < 0.05) and decrease in NAA (N-acetylaspartate), in consistent with prior studies. The creatine to water ratio was observed to decrease in tumor patients but was not significant. Myo-inositol (mIns) was observed to decrease in low grade patients as compared to normal tissue, but was seen to increase with grade of tumor, but was not significant. [Lac]/[water] was significantly higher and [Cho]/[Lac] significantly lower for GBM patients indicating the increase in Lac as compared to normal tissue.Treatment had a significant impact on tumor cells. After radiation therapy the Lac was observed to be elevated significantly and decrease after bevacizumab treatment. [Cho]/[Cr], [Cho]/[NAA], [Gln]/[Glu] and [Cho]/[Gly] was reduced significantly after the bevacizumab treatment. Gly was not detectable after Bevacizumab treatment. Some of the patients showed no infiltrating tumor cells after successful surgery and therapy with ratios close to that of normal tissue. These observations can help in characterizing the effect of various therapies on brain metabolites and tumor cells.