Biomedical Engineering and Bioengineering Commons^™

Engineering Nanofibers: Laboratory Characterization, Microstructural Analysis, And Image Processing Insights, Sayed Ahmadreza Razian, Mohammad Arjomandi, Kaspars Maleckis

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Polymer nanofibers have attracted high interest in a wide array of applications, including biomaterial scaffolding, textiles, sensors, reinforcement in composites, and filtration systems. Many of these applications combine nanofibers into non-woven fabrics for better properties and easier manipulation. The properties and performance of nanofiber-based fabrics are affected by various microstructure parameters, including fiber alignment, diameter, and gap sizes between the nanofibers. These structural parameters can be controlled by adjusting various process parameters during manufacturing process, but the exact process parameter-microstructure relationships vary depending on the polymer system and need to be studied individually. The goal of this study is to …

Modes Of Fracture Of Flat Bone: Fracture Direction And Stress, Nolan Wang, Mary K. Holden, Everett Baker, Nathaniel Lerch, Nate Fitch

Seaver College Research And Scholarly Achievement Symposium

This study delineates the application of fractography to discern the multifaceted modes of fracture in flat bones, explicating the interplay between fracture directionality and stress states regarding the viscoelastic nature of bone. Despite the perceived brittleness, bone exhibits toughness, attributed to its intricate structure design and amalgamating properties of solid and viscous materials. This research elucidates the variegated fracture modes inherent to bone's dualistic nature by examining fracture surfaces and identifying fracture markings using stereoscopic microscopy. Our observations across seven bone specimens reveal predominant fracture patterns from top to bottom in six instances, with a singular deviation where the fracture …

La1-Xsrxcoo3 Perovskite Nanomaterial: Synthesis, Characterization, And Its Biomedical Application, Adhira Tippur, Anyet Shohag, Luke Franco, Ahmed Touhami, Swati Mohan, Mohammed Uddin

Research Symposium

Early cancer detection is paramount for effective treatment and potential cures. This research explores the application of perovskite materials, specifically Sr2+-doped Lanthanum Cobaltite (La1-xSrxCoO3) nanomaterials, in cancer detection, with a focus on rats as an experimental model. The ferroelectric nature of these materials, synthesized through a combination of sol-gel and molten-salt processes, was examined at varying Sr2+ doping levels (1-20 wt%). Rigorous characterization, employing X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy, confirmed the uniform morphology of nano cubes, laying the foundation for subsequent investigations. The magnetic properties of the perovskite nanoparticles were probed, suggesting their potential as a diagnostic tool for …

Aphid-Ant Relationships: The Role Of Cuticular Hydrocarbons And Different Chemical Stimuli In Triggeringmutualistic Behavior, Amged El-Harairy, Ahmed El-Harairy, Alaa Mahfouz

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: Faculty Publications

In ant-aphid interactions, various aphid species offer honeydew to the ant partner and increase their density by ant attendance, whilst others never attend ant species, in which case ants tend to treat them as prey. In this regard, ants should have the ability to distinguish myrmecophile aphid species from non-mutualistic species, so that mutualistic aphids will be accepted as partners rather than prey. Although ant-aphid interactions are now the focus of chemical ecology studies, the role of the different chemical stimuli in determining mutualistic interactions has not been completely clarified. Therefore, we have investigated the cuticular hydrocarbon profile of four …

Emotion Recognition As A Novel Indicator For Assessing Brain Health: A Machine Learning Approach, Nayarah Shabir, Parveen Lehana

Research Symposium

Background: Emotion is being referred to as a person’s mental state, since it relates to their ideas, feelings, and actions. There is a lot of evidence that health affects the emotion. Therefore, the nature of emotions ought to reveal the health of a person. The emotions are represented by facial expressions controlled by muscular motor actions. Brain health may affect the working of the muscles leading to the emotional changes extracted from the facial images.

Methods: A dataset of facial images annotated with matching emotion labels is the first step in using convolutional neural networks (CNNs) for facial …

Resolving The Nanoscale Structure Of Β-Sheet Peptide Self-Assemblies Using Single-Molecule Orientation–Localization Microscopy, Weiyan Zhou, Conor L. O'Neill, Tianben Ding, Oumeng Zhang, Jai S. Rudra, Matthew D. Lew

Electrical & Systems Engineering Publications and Presentations

Synthetic peptides that self-assemble into cross-β fibrils are versatile building blocks for engineered biomaterials due to their modularity and biocompatibility, but their structural and morphological similarities to amyloid species have been a long-standing concern for their translation. Further, their polymorphs are difficult to characterize using spectroscopic and imaging techniques that rely on ensemble averaging to achieve high resolution. Here, we utilize Nile red (NR), an amyloidophilic fluorogenic probe, and single-molecule orientation-localization microscopy (SMOLM) to characterize fibrils formed by the designed amphipathic enantiomers KFE8^L and KFE8^D and the pathological amyloid-beta peptide Aβ42. Importantly, NR SMOLM reveals the helical (bilayer) …

6d Single-Fluorogen Orientation-Localization Microscopy For Elucidating The Architecture Of Beta-Sheet Assemblies And Biomolecular Condensates, Tingting Wu, Weiyan Zhou, Jai S. Rudra, Rohit V. Pappu, Matthew D. Lew

Electrical & Systems Engineering Publications and Presentations

We develop six-dimensional single-molecule orientation-localization microscopy (SMOLM) to measure the 3D positions and 3D orientations simultaneously of single fluorophores. We show how careful optimization of phase and polarization modulation components can encode phase, polarization, and angular spectrum information from each fluorescence photon into a microscope’s dipole-spread function. We used the transient binding and blinking of Nile red (NR) to characterize the helical structure of fibrils formed by designed amphipathic peptides, KFE8^L and KFE8^D, and the pathological amyloid-beta peptide Aβ42. We also deployed merocyanine 540 to uncover the interfacial architectures of biomolecular condensates.

Single And Dual Cell Encapsulation Via Liquid Core Hydrogels Using Pico Injection, Jade Houston

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In this project, a comprehensive microfluidic device, along with several interdependent subsystems, was designed and developed in SolidWorks, leveraging a combination of 3D resin printing with biocompatible resin and micromachining with polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA). The microfluidics chip integrated both passive and active components to facilitate its primary function: dual cell encapsulation via liquid core sodium alginate hydrogel droplets.

Integral to the microfluidics chip design were key features including a 5-convolution Archimedes spiral for particle sorting, a flow focusing junction for droplet generation, and a pico injector for injecting additional cells into passing droplets via the manipulation of an electric field.

An …

Temporospatial Deep Learning Strategies For Prediction Of Disease Progression In Radiology, John D. Mayfield

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

While the fields of machine learning and medicine are deeply rooted in axiomatic scientific principles, there is an element of art that makes the practice imperfect, yet innately human. As the two fields have seen the greatest overlap in their collective history, there remains a chasm between them in terms of practical translation for the patients who desire and deserve personalized medicine. As presented in this dissertation, I and my collaborators have contributed to the groundwork for future exploration of predicting disease progression by identifying signals within sequential medical imaging to provide a temporospatial relationship upon which we can make …

Blow-Spun Hybrid Pcl-Peo/Hnts Scaffolds With Enhanced Biological And Mechanical Properties, Meichen Liu

Doctoral Dissertations

With the development of technology and engineering, nanotechnology has been a multidisciplinary scientific field applied in nearly all science areas, including medicine, genetics, food industry, robotics. In this respect, nanomedicine has gained increasing attention and been a useful, effective therapy for cancer diagnosis, gene transfer, and drug delivery. To design an ideal nano drug delivery system with controlled drug releasing and improved encapsulated drug’s pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic profiles, hydrogels and polymer composites have witnessed increased research interest during the last decades. Recently, numerous polymers have been studied to fabricate the ideal wound dressing with biocompatibility, biodegradability, porous structural, and suitable …

Selective Targeting Of Microglia By Quantum Dots And Green Synthesis Of Metal Organic Biohybrids; Applications In Dynamic Cell And Assay Systems, Navya Uppu

Doctoral Dissertations

Neurological disorders are the leading cause of physical and cognitive disability across the globe, currently affecting approximately 15% of the worldwide population. Part of the glioma microenvironment are microglia, resident immune cells of the CNS that were thought to be involved in the pathogenesis of diverse neurodegenerative diseases. Though it remains uncertain what triggers microglial activation in these disorders, targeting and tracking microglial functions using nanotools like Quantum Dots (QDs) could help us elucidate them in such neurological diseases. This research focuses on the comparative study of different QDs formulations and their selective uptake by brain microglia in primary cultures …

Development And Characterization Of Injectable, Cell-Encapsulated Chitosan-Genipin Hydrogels, Tyler R. Priddy-Arrington

Doctoral Dissertations

Over 150,000 patients undergo lower extremity amputation every year in the United States, most commonly caused by complications due to diabetes mellitus, peripheral vascular disease, and trauma. Diseased or damaged tissues that are unable to naturally repair themselves must either be fully removed or replaced, otherwise the injuries can lead to further complications such as infection or death. Tissue resection and amputation, as forms of removing damaged tissue, are not favorable to patients as they can cause pain, reduce mobility, and negatively impact quality of life. However, replacing lost or damaged tissues with donor tissues carries the risks of tissue …

Interpatient Differences In Neural Recruitment Patterns During Pudendal Nerve Stimulation – A Computational Investigation, Amolak S. Jhand, Luis C. Ruiz, Nystha Baishya, Ehsan Mirzakhalili, Gaurang Shah, Priyanka Gupta, Tim M. Bruns, Scott F. Lempka

Medical Student Research Symposium

Bladder dysfunction impairs the quality of life for millions of individuals around the world. Common causes of bladder dysfunction include aging, trauma, and neurological disorders. Due to inadequacies in conventional treatments, neuromodulation therapies to address bladder dysfunction, such as sacral nerve stimulation, have emerged. However, patient needs still remain unmet. Pudendal nerve stimulation (PNS) has recently gained clinical interest as a promising treatment for bladder dysfunction. While PNS has been extensively investigated in preclinical settings, there is a gap in our understanding of the mechanisms of action and efficacy of PNS as limited studies of PNS have been performed on …

Comparison Of Scanning Electron Microscopy And Confocal Laser Microscopy For Tissue Surface Roughness Characterization, Tarnvir Dhaliwal

Master's Theses

It was found that the measurements captured by confocal microscopy and scanning electron microscopy had a statistically significant difference for bovine tissue. There was not a statistically significant for porcine and poultry tissue.

The intent of the study is to perform a comparative study to examine efficacy of two distinct technologies for a singular purpose: tissue surface roughness characterization. The two technologies compared are a confocal reflectance microscope and a scanning electron microscope. The comparison was made by comparing two surface roughness parameters [Ra and Rq] within ImageJ.

The study examined three different animal species [porcine, bovine, and poultry] to …

Development Of An In Vitro 3-Dimensional Co-Culture Human Colorectal Cancer Model In Microfluidic Devices, Abby Jens

Master's Theses

Colorectal cancer is the second most common cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States, with the relative 5-year survival rate for distant stage cancer being only 14%. The most common treatment for colorectal cancer is with chemotherapeutic drugs; however, the discovery of these drugs is costly, time-consuming, and often requires the use of animal models that do not yield results that translate to clinical trials. Due to these shortcomings, researchers seek to develop physiologically relevant in vitro tumor models that more accurately mimic the tumor microenvironment for cheaper and faster high-throughput drug screening. The aim of this research was …

Development Of A Cell Culture Incubator Capable Of Providing A Hypoxic Environment, Grant Austin Coe

Master's Theses

In order to perform more robust and physiologically relevant research, the Microphysiological Systems laboratory required a method of culturing cells where the level of oxygen could be adjusted. To fulfill this need, I designed and manufactured a hypoxic cell culture incubator. I employed a Quality Function Deployment to understand the customer requirements and convert them into engineering specifications. Based on these specifications, I created various conceptual designs. I evaluated the conceptual designs as compared to existing products and decided to move forward with the control system separated from a small, standard chamber. I developed the circuitry schematics for the temperature …

Immersive Virtual Reality-Based Learning As A Supplement For Biomedical Engineering Labs: Challenges Faced And Lessons Learned, Ishita Tandon, Vitali Maldonado, Megan Wilkerson, Amanda Walls, Raj R. Rao, Mostafa Elsaadany

Biomedical Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Introduction: Immersive virtual reality (VR) based laboratory demonstrations have been gaining traction in STEM education as they can provide virtual hands-on experience. VR can also facilitate experiential and visual learning and enhanced retention. However, several optimizations of the implementation, in-depth analyses of advantages and trade-offs of the technology, and assessment of receptivity of modern techniques in STEM education are required to ensure better utilization of VR-based labs.

Methods: In this study, we developed VR-based demonstrations for a biomolecular engineering laboratory and assessed their effectiveness using surveys containing free responses and 5-point Likert scale-based questions. Insta360 Pro2 camera and Meta Quest …

Neonatal Respiratory Therapy Interface, Kennedy Austin, Evan Manley, Parker Murray, Harrison Oen

Biomedical Engineering

This Final Report reviews and outlines the scope, objectives, and deliverables for the BCPAP Interface Redesign project, aimed at enhancing the functionality, usability, and patient experience of the existing BCPAP interface. It also includes detailed testing results and manufacturing plans for the device prototype. The current system has challenges in universal usability, time constraints, and patient comfort, which this project intends to address effectively. The goal of this project is to reevaluate and redesign the interface of the bubble continuous positive air pressure (BCPAP) machine’s attachment site with the infant. Due to the millions of premature neonates and thousands of …

Biobesoothe, Noah M. Taylor, Jillian Trilevsky, Sam Rosenkranz

Biomedical Engineering

This document details the background, design process, and functional prototype for the BioBesoothe senior project. The project aimed to address difficulties with self-regulation in children with autism. It focused on encouraging even, slow breathing to activate the parasympathetic nervous system, which in turn lowers heart rate, blood pressure, and stress levels. The project was guided by research into ways to achieve an appropriate breathing rate. In addition to functionality, emphasis was placed on engagement, ergonomics, and affordability. It was highly important for this product to be engaging to hold the interest of its patients and allow for extended periods of …

Multilayer Pva/Gelatin Nanofibrous Scaffolds Incorporated With Tanacetum Polycephalum Essential Oil And Amoxicillin For Skin Tissue Engineering Application, Ebrahim Soleiman-Dehkordi, Vahid Reisi-Vanani, Samanesadat Hosseini, Zahra Lorigooini, Vajihe Azimian Zvareh, Mahour Farzan, Elham Moghtadaie Khorasgani, Karen Lozano, Zohreh Abolhassanzadeh

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications

Wound infection is still an important challenge in healing of different types of skin injuries. This highlights the need for new and improved antibacterial agents with novel and different mechanisms of action. In this study, by electrospinning process Tanacetum polycephalum essential oil (EO), as a natural antibacterial and anti-inflammatory agent, along with Amoxicillin (AMX) as an antibiotic are incorporated into PVA/gelatin-based nanofiber mats individually and in combination to fabricate a novel wound dressing. Briefly, we fabricated PVA/gelatin loaded by Amoxicillin as first layer for direct contact with wound surface to protects the wound from exogenous bacteria, and then built a …