Biochemical and Biomolecular Engineering Commons^™

Inorganic Hemostats: The State-Of-The-Art And Recent Advances, Sara Pourshahrestani, Ehsan Zeimaran, Ivan Djordjevic, Nahrizul Adib Kadri, Mark R. Towler

Chemical and Biochemical Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Hemorrhage is the most common cause of death both in hospitals and on the battlefield. The need for an effective hemostatic agent remains, since all injuries are not amenable to tourniquet use. There are many topical hemostatic agents and dressings available to control severe bleeding. This article reviews the most commonly used inorganic hemostats, subcategorized as zeolite and clay-based hemostats. Their hemostatic functions as well as their structural properties that are believed to induce hemostasis are discussed. The most important findings from in vitro and in vivo experiments are also covered.

Toward The Synthesis And Characterization Of Pb-Doped Zns Nanocrystals For Solar Energy Applications, Allison Durr

Online Theses and Dissertations

Efficient and affordable energy conversion and energy storage technologies are required to meet society’s increasing demands. Semiconductor nanocrystals are particularly attractive materials for solar energy conversion applications, as their tunable optoelectronic properties can be manipulated to both optimize the absorbance of solar photons and to afford desirable electronic properties. Further tunability of binary semiconductor nanocrystal systems can be realized through substitutional doping. However, doping can be difficult, as the dopants can cause significant lattice strain in the host crystals. Lead-doped ZnS nanocrystals are one promising material for the conversion of solar photons into storable fuels such as hydrogen gas. The …

Thermal Responsive Release Of A Model Drug, Rhoadmine B, From Alginate Bead System, Heather F. Fairbairn Miss

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Smart drug delivery systems have garnered increased interest in the biomedical community during recent years. Investigation into thermal, pH, and light responsive delivery systems allows for targeted drug release systems to be developed. For this project, thermal responsive release behavior was investigated for the purpose of tuning release systems to achieve 60% release in a specified time by varying the content of thermal responsive polymer. To investigate this, the release profile of a model small hydrophilic drug (rhodamine B) from polymeric alginate beads that have been modified by the addition of thermal responsive poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAAm). It was determined that when …

Nitrogen Gas Flooding For Naturally Fractured Carbonate Reservoir: Visualisation Experiment And Numerical Simulation, Zhaojie Song, Jirui Hou, Zhongchun Liu, Fenglan Zhao, Shijun Huang, Yong Wang, Jieheng Wu, Baojun Bai

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Tahe Naturally Fractured Carbonate Reservoir has implemented nitrogen gas flooding since 2013, with daily oil production of 7580 bbls and oil recovery increment of 0.83% by the end of 2015. However, the presence of fractures significantly affects gas swept volume and production performance, so large amount of oil reserves is poorly flooded due to gas channeling through fractures. The fluid flow mechanisms in fractured models were discussed in order to improve field gas flooding efficiency. Based on the geological constrains of Tahe Oilfield, fractured models with different apertures were fabricated using acrylic glass to model carbonate matrix wettability and for …

Synthesis And Characterization Of Antioxidant Conjugated Poly(Βeta-Amino Ester) Micro/Nanogels For The Suppression Of Oxidative Stress, Prachi Gupta

Theses and Dissertations--Chemical and Materials Engineering

Oxidative stress is a pathophysiological condition defined by an increased production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), which can result in the growth arrest of cells followed by cell disintegration or necrosis. A number of small molecule antioxidants (e.g. curcumin, quercetin and resveratrol) are capable of directly scavenging ROS, thereby short-circuiting the self-propagating oxidative stress state. However, poor solubility and rapid 1^st pass metabolism results in overall low bioavailability and acts as a barrier for its use as a drug to suppress oxidative stress efficiently.

To overcome this limitation, these small molecule antioxidants were covalently conjugated into poly(β-amino ester) (PβAE) …

Peptide-Functionalized Magnetic Nanoparticles For Cancer Therapy Applications, Anastasia K. Hauser

Theses and Dissertations--Chemical and Materials Engineering

Lung cancer is one of the leading causes of cancer deaths in the United States. Radiation and chemotherapy are conventional treatments, but they result in serious side effects and the probability of tumor recurrence remains high. Therefore, there is an increasing need to enhance the efficacy of conventional treatments. Magnetic nanoparticles have been previously studied for a variety of applications such as magnetic resonance imaging contrast agents, anemia treatment, magnetic cell sorting and magnetically mediated hyperthermia (MMH). In this work, dextran coated iron oxide nanoparticles were developed and functionalized with peptides to target the nanoparticles to either the extracellular matrix …

Biological Activity Of Garcinia Kola On Hepatitis C, Madeline Dwyer

Honors Theses

Hepatitis C is a liver disease caused by the hepatitis C virus (HCV). According to the World Health Organization, hepatitis C infections affect between 130-150 million people worldwide. It is a major cause of liver cirrhosis and liver cancer, and approximately 500,000 people die from hepatitis C infections or related complications each year. Although new treatments are 90% effective at curing chronic hepatitis C infections, they cost tens of thousands of dollars. Available treatments are incredibly cost prohibitive, especially considering that the regions most affected by hepatitis C are Africa and central and eastern Asia (Hepatitis C). This creates a …

G-Quadruplex Mediated Splicing Of P53 Mrna, Melissa Holy

Honors Theses

The protein p53 is a master regulator of the cell cycle and its mutation/inactivation is associated with over 50% of cancer cases. Mutations in p53 are associated with worse survival rates, resistance to therapies, and other risk factors in breast cancer specifically. p53 is encoded by the TP53 gene and is expressed as several transcripts. In the G-rich portion of intron 3, secondary DNA structures known as G-quadruplexes are able to form. The stabilization of these G-quadruplexes leads to correct splicing of intron 2, thus making a functional p53 protein. A known quadruplex-stabilizing compound (TMPyP4) was tested to determine its …

The Effects Of Genistein, Thymoquinone, Epigallocatechin-3-Gallate,5-Fluorouracil, And Low Level Laser Therapy On Fadu Hypopharyngeal And Laryngeal Carcinoma Cells, Osasu Adah

Honors Theses

Laryngeal and hypopharyngeal carcinoma are two types of head and neck squamous cell carcinomas. The location of the tumor makes it hard to detect without complex tests. Overall, these types of cancer are not common, and there are no simple screening tests for such cancers. Due to this issue, laryngeal and hypopharyngeal carcinoma are usually diagnosed when signs and symptoms occur, such as sore throat, trouble swallowing, and constant coughing. With the use of FaDu, a head and neck cancer cell line of the hypopharyngeal origin, experimentation can be performed in order to initiate possible treatments. The standard treatments for …

Design And Synthesis Of Dual Opioids/Npff Ligands As Novel Analgesics With Reduced Tolerance Potential, John N. Yi

Honors Theses

Opioid use has become prevalent in today's culture. As a treatment for acute and chronic pain, opioids permeate in the public sphere as a seemingly easy solution. However, problems that come from the increased use of opiates, especially in the last fifteen years, have shown detrimental effects in society. Not only are all opioid-based analgesics considered addictive, but the nature of such painkillers also enables a phenomenon known as tolerance, where the body adapts to the use of exogenous opioids. This creates a situation where a more potent dose of painkiller is required for the same analgesic effect. The focus …

Relating Ion Release And Ph To In Vitro Cell Viability For Gallium-Inclusive Bioactive Glasses, Timothy J. Keenan, L. M. Placek, T. L. Mcginnity, Mark R. Towler, M. M. Hall, A. W. Wren

Chemical and Biochemical Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

A bioactive glass (BG) in which Ga was substituted for Zn was formulated to investigate whether the ionic form of Ga can elicit effects similar to gallium nitrate. The ion release and pH of BG extracts were evaluated, as well as the in vitro cytocompatibility of extracts in contact with mouse fibroblasts and human osteoblasts. After incubation times of 1 year, the glass (TGa-1) containing the smaller Ga-addition (8 mol%) released the most sodium (Na) (1420 mg/L), silicon (Si) (221 mg/L), and Ga (1295 mg/L), while the glass (TGa-2) containing the larger Ga-addition (16 mol%), exhibited release levels between TGa-1, …

Purification And Recovery Of Infectious Virus Particles Using Osmolyte Flocculation, Ashish Saksule

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Viral infectious diseases cause millions of deaths and severe illness all around the world affecting public health and economics. Viral vaccines are helping to fight against viral diseases, but current vaccines are expensive and unavailable, especially in poor and developing countries. When measuring the entire manufacturing processing, the downstream processing of vaccines is the major cost of production. Our goal for this research is to develop a low-cost alternative downstream processing platform for new vaccine manufacturing infrastructures. We have developed a novel osmolyte flocculation method for viral particles. To create a platform purification for several types of viral particles, we …

Noninvasive Measurement Of Electrical Events Associated With A Single Chlorovirus Infection Of A Microalgal Cell, Seung-Woo Lee, Eun-Hee Lee, Gerhard Thiel, James L. Van Etten, Ravi Saraf

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: Faculty Publications

Chlorovirus Paramecium bursaria chlorella virus 1 (PBCV-1) contains a viral-encoded K⁺ channel imbedded in its internal membrane, which triggers host plasma membrane depolarization during virus infection. This early stage of infection was monitored at high resolution by recording the cell membrane depolarization of a single Chlorella cell during infection by a single PBCV-1 particle. The measurement was achieved by depositing the cells onto a network of one-dimensional necklaces of Au nanoparticles, which spanned two electrodes 70 μm apart. The nanoparticle necklace array has been shown to behave as a single-electron device at room temperature. The resulting electrochemical field-effect transistor …

Gallium-Containing Mesoporous Bioactive Glass With Potent Hemostatic Activity And Antibacterial Efficacy, Sara Pourshahrestani, Ehsan Zeimaran, Nahrizul Adib Kadri, Nicola Gargiulo, Shani Samuel, Sangeetha Vasudevaraj Naveen, Tunku Kamarul, Mark R. Towler

Chemical and Biochemical Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Haemorrhage remains the leading cause of potentially survivable death in both military and civilian populations. Although a large variety of hemostatic agents have been developed, many of them have an inadequate capacity to induce hemostasis and are not effective in killing bacteria. In recent years, mesoporous bioactive glasses (MBGs) were found to be effective in inducing hemostasis. However, the materials may not be considered as ideal hemostats since they do not offer antimicrobial activity. The gallium ion (Ga⁺³) not only exhibits antibacterial properties but also accelerates the blood coagulation cascade. The aim of this study was to develop …

Production And Harvest Of Microalgae In Wastewater Raceways With Resource Recycling, Alexander Colin Roberts

Master's Theses

Microalgae can be grown on municipal wastewater media to both treat the wastewater and produce feedstock for algae biofuel production. However the reliability of treatment must be demonstrated, as well as high areal algae productivity on recycled wastewater media and efficient sedimentation harvesting. This processes was studied at pilot scale in the present research.

A pilot facility was operated with nine CO₂-supplemented raceway ponds, each with a 33-m² surface area and a 0.3-m depth, continuously from March 6, 2013 through September 24, 2014. The ponds were operated as three sets of triplicates with two sets continuously fed …

Effects Of Magnetically Induced Micro-Mixing On Nanofiltration Performance, Guanghui Song

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Nanofiltration (NF) is a relatively new membrane separation process mainly used for removing low molecular weight species from aqueous and non-aqueous solutions. NF membranes suffer from concentration polarization leading to membrane fouling thus compromised membrane performance. Magnetically responsive nanofiltration (NF) membranes functionalized with superparamagnetic nanoparticles (SPNs) attached to the chain ends of grafted polymer nanolayers have been shown to be effective in breaking concentration polarization at the membrane-liquid interface under an appropriate external oscillating magnetic field. Under an oscillating magnetic field, the movement of the polymer chains acts as micro-mixer leading to the suppression of concentration polarization and improved filtration …

Local Time-Averaged Gas Holdup In Fluidized Bed Reactor Using Gamma Ray Computed Tomography Technique (Ct), Abdelsalam Efhaima, Muthanna H. Al-Dahhan

Chemical and Biochemical Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Many Invasive and Non-Invasive Techniques Have Been Used to Analyze the Hydrodynamics of Fluidized Beds. in This Study, the Effect of Superficial Gas Velocity and Bed Particle Density on the Hydrodynamics of Gas–solid Fluidized Beds Was Investigated by using a Cylindrical Plexiglas Fluidized Bed Column, 14 Cm in Diameter. Air at Room Temperature Was Used as the Fluidizing Gas and Two Different Geldart Type-B Particles Were Used: Glass Beads and Copper Particles with Material Densities of 2.5 and 5.3 G/cm3, Respectively, with the Same Size Particle, 210 µm. to Measure the Time-Averaged Cross-Sectional Gas and Solid Holdup Distribution, Gamma Ray …

Raman Spectroscopy Applied To The Noninvasive Detection Of Monosodium Urate Crystal Deposits, Declan J. Curran, Laurence Rubin, Mark R. Towler

Chemical and Biochemical Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

An off-the-shelf Raman Spectrometer (RS) was used to noninvasively determine the presence of monosodium urate (MSU) crystals on the metatarsophalangeal joint (MTPJ) of a single gout sufferer. The spectrum sourced from the clinically diagnosed gout sufferer was compared to that sourced from an age-matched healthy subject scanned using the same protocol. Minimal signal processing was conducted on both spectra. Peaks characteristic of MSU crystals were evident on the spectrum sourced from the gout sufferer and not on the spectrum from the healthy control.

Chemoselective Transfer Hydrogenation Of Nitroarenes Catalyzed By Highly Dispersed, Supported Nickel Nanoparticles, Chengjun Jiang, Zeyu Shang, Xinhua Liang

Chemical and Biochemical Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

A recyclable highly dispersed Ni/SiO₂ catalyst was prepared by atomic layer deposition. Chemo selective reduction of nitroarenes was studied using the prepared Ni/SiO₂ as the catalyst and hydrazine hydrate as a hydrogen donor. Different kinds of nitroarenes were converted to the corresponding anilines with high yields. The high activity of the catalysts could be a result of the highly dispersed Ni nanoparticles. (Chemical Presented).

Thermodynamic Analysis Of Phenylpropanoid Pathway In Arabidopsis Thanliana, Patrick J. Ioerger, Rohit Jaini, John A. Morgan

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Biofuels represent a renewable alternative to traditional fossil fuels. As dependence on fossil fuels rise so does the importance of improving the production of alternative fuels. Lignin poses one obstacle in the development of such alternative fuels. Its presence strengthens cell walls and hinders degradation of polysaccharides into monosaccharides, increasing cost and time while decreasing efficiency of the process. Lignin is composed of three monolignols, each of which is produced through the Phenylpropanoid pathway; a series of chemical reactions. This work aims to determine which reactions in the pathway are least thermodynamically favorable and thus most limiting. From metabolic mapping …