Engineering Commons^™

Activity Preservation Of Plasmonic Biosensors With A Metal-Organic Framework, Lu Wang

McKelvey School of Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Antibody-antigen recognition enables antibody-conjugated nanostructures to serve as plasmonic biosensors with tunable specificity. However due to the instability of antibodies, these biosensors are susceptible to changes in the environment such as heat and aridity, leading to constraints on the transportation and handling of these sensors. Here we establish a method using a metal-organic framework crystal to preserve biosensor activity under severe environmental conditions, including exposure to high temperatures, an organic solvent and a proteolytic agent. After zeolitic imidazolate framework-8 (ZIF-8) crystals formed for 12 hours on a biosensor of gold nanorods conjugated with a model antibody, rabbit IgG, 80% of …

Design Of A Modified Stewart Platform Manipulator For Misalignment Correction, Adekunle Ayoko

Master of Technology Management Plan II Graduate Projects

This thesis work is about the design of a modified Stewart platform manipulator for misalignment correction. The common version of the Stewart platform uses six actuators. The traditional Stewart platform of this kind has a moving top plate and a fixed base plate. However, in this research, the modified design of the traditional Stewart platform is studied. It is designed to be an easy connect-disconnect platform that can wrap around different structures with different cross sections and symmetrically designed. It is able to adjust position easily by using four identical but independent linear actuators populated evenly in two parts fastened …

The Efficacy Of Bionate As An Articulating Surface For Joint Hemiarthroplasty, Sarah Dedecker

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Hemiarthroplasty procedures replace the diseased side of the joint with an implant to maximize bone preservation while maintaining more native anatomy than a total joint replacement. Even though hemiarthroplasty procedures have been clinically successful, they cause progressive cartilage damage over time due to the use of relatively stiff metallic implant materials. This work investigates the role of low moduli implant material on implant-cartilage contact mechanics and early in vitro cartilage wear. A finite element simulation was developed to assess the effect of low moduli implants in the range of 0.015-0.288 GPa on contact mechanics. Higher contact area and lower peak …

The Role Of Scapular Morphology In Reverse Shoulder Arthroplasty, Ashish Gupta

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Baseplate fixation in a reverse shoulder arthroplasty depends on adequate bone stock. In cases of severe glenoid bone loss and revision shoulder arthroplasty, deficiency of the glenoid vault compels the surgeon to attain screw fixation in the three columns of the scapula. The relationship of these columns demonstrated that the coracoid is closer to the lateral scapular pillar in females than in males. Significant gender dimorphism exists between the orientations of the three columns. The gender dimorphism is further evaluated by anthropometric measurements of the scapular body and the glenoid. The clinical significance lies in the ability to reconstruct the …

Miniature Implantable Telemetry System For Pressure-Volume Cardiac Monitoring, Kyle G. Fricke

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Safety Pharmacology is becoming an increasingly important field to pharmaceutical companies in order to determine if medical treatments (drugs) are safe for use in human subjects. In the pre-clinical phase, test models, most commonly small rodents, undergo various gene alterations to affect, for example, their cardiovascular system in order to emulate human diseases. Pharmaceutical companies rely on these models to determine the drug efficacy and to ensure minimal side effects and safety for human subjects. Currently, no fully implantable left-ventricle pressure--volume (PV) telemetry systems have been implemented for Safety Pharmacology assessment applications. A fully implantable PV telemetry system would not …

Device Design Factors For Enhancing The Functionality Of Chronic Intracortical Microelectrodes, Heui Chang Lee

Open Access Dissertations

Intracortical microelectrodes are devices used in brain-computer interfaces (BCI) to help regain lost motor, sensory, and cognitive functions of individuals with neurological disorders. However, the long-term performance of microelectrode arrays is hampered by a series of inflammatory tissue responses. The consequence of the inflammatory response is the formation of a dense astroglial sheath around the vicinity of the electrode, impeding the electrical conduction between the electrode and neurons. Furthermore, due to the cascade of neuroinflammatory events, the number of neurons is significantly reduced near the electrode, manifested by decrease in signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and the yield of electrodes. Over time, …

Characterizing The Effects Of Repetitive Head Trauma In Female Soccer Athletes For Prevention Of Mild Traumatic Brain Injury, Diana Otero Svaldi

Open Access Dissertations

As participation in women’s soccer continues to grow and the longevity of female athletes’ careers continues to increase, prevention of mTBI in women’s soccer has become a major concern for female athletes as the long-term risks associated with a history of mTBI are well documented. Among women’s sports, soccer exhibits the highest concussion rates, on par with those of men’s football at the collegiate level. Head impact monitoring technology has revealed that “concussive hits” occurring directly before symptomatic injury are not predictive of mTBI, suggesting that the cumulative effect of repetitive head impacts experienced by collision sport athletes should be …

Dynamic Holography In Semiconductors And Biomedical Optics, Hao Sun

Open Access Dissertations

Three-dimensional scanning and display are rapidly-advancing new technologies with important commercial drivers such as 3D printing and remote imaging for big data applications. Holography is a natural approach to recording and displaying three-dimensional information because it uses phase-sensitive interferometry to record interference patterns when a reference beam encounters coherent light arriving from an object. The 3D information is contained in the values of wave optics. Holography is a broad field that goes beyond recording and displaying. For instance, holographic optical elements, which take advantage of holographic imaging principles, perform the functions of lenses, gratings or mirrors. Holographic interferometry is also …

Mathematical Analysis Of Feedback Targets Of Bmp Signaling In Drosophila Embryonic Development, Yan Luo

Open Access Theses

Bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs) drive a range of cellular processes especially in the early stages of embryonic development. This family of proteins acts as one of the most important extracellular signals in development pattern formation across the animal kingdom. Cells in embryos differentiate into different cell types in response to the concentration level of BMP. This complex process is regulated by multiple regulators that serve to tune the signal response.

Extensive experimental and computational research has been performed to analyze BMP regulation in Drosophila, a widely studied model organism, and has advanced our understanding of animal development. Because of …

Concurrent Detection And Isolation Of Cellular And Molecular Biomarkers, Wanfeng Huang

Open Access Dissertations

Detection of cancer markers such as protein biomolecules and cancer cells in bodily fluids is of great importance in early diagnosis, prognosis as well as evaluation of therapy efficacy. Numerous devices have been developed for detecting either cellular or molecular targets, however there has not yet been a system that can simultaneously detect both cellular and molecular targets effectively. Molecule and cell-based assays are important because each type of target can tell a different story about the state of the disease and the two types of information can potentially be combined and/or compared for more accurate biological or clinical assessments. …

Laser-Processed Parchment Paper For Fabrication Of Chronic Wound Dressings With Selective Oxygenation, Manuel Ochoa

Open Access Dissertations

Chronic non-healing wounds (e.g., diabetic foot ulcers and bed sores) impact over 6.5 million Americans per year, costs in excess of $25 billion to treat on an annual basis, and are on the rise due to increasing levels of obesity and diabetes compounded by an aging population. A major inhibitor of healing is suboptimal oxygenation of the wound bed. Unlike acute injuries that receive sufficient oxygen via a functional blood vessel network, chronic wounds often suffer from the lack of a proper vascular network; thus being incapable of providing sufficient oxygen for tissue growth. Typical medical treatment of hypoxic chronic …

Hollow Fiber Membranes For Artificial Lung Applications, Lauren Reed

Chemical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

Artificial lungs are in use, but difficult issues remain in the field of membrane development related to fouling issues. Currently there are external artificial lungs circulating blood outside the body, taking out the carbon dioxide, and inserting oxygenated blood back into the body. An example of this type of machine is the ExtraCorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) machine currently used in hospitals. The ECMO takes over the functions for both the lungs and the heart but is only available for short term use by patients with respiratory failure due to infections [1]. The fibers in the machine develop fouling due to …

Analog Spiking Neuromorphic Circuits And Systems For Brain- And Nanotechnology-Inspired Cognitive Computing, Xinyu Wu

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Human society is now facing grand challenges to satisfy the growing demand for computing power, at the same time, sustain energy consumption. By the end of CMOS technology scaling, innovations are required to tackle the challenges in a radically different way. Inspired by the emerging understanding of the computing occurring in a brain and nanotechnology-enabled biological plausible synaptic plasticity, neuromorphic computing architectures are being investigated. Such a neuromorphic chip that combines CMOS analog spiking neurons and nanoscale resistive random-access memory (RRAM) using as electronics synapses can provide massive neural network parallelism, high density and online learning capability, and hence, paves …

Study Of Computational Image Matching Techniques: Improving Our View Of Biomedical Image Data, Ahmadreza Baghaie

Theses and Dissertations

Image matching techniques are proven to be necessary in various fields of science and engineering, with many new methods and applications introduced over the years. In this PhD thesis, several computational image matching methods are introduced and investigated for improving the analysis of various biomedical image data. These improvements include the use of matching techniques for enhancing visualization of cross-sectional imaging modalities such as Computed Tomography (CT) and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), denoising of retinal Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT), and high quality 3D reconstruction of surfaces from Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) images. This work greatly improves the process of data …

Sensitivity Analysis Of Geometry Changes In The Simulation Of Basilar Aneurysms, Paul Eserkaln

Theses and Dissertations

Computer simulation is a useful tool in the research and treatment of basilar aneurysms. Current technology allows researchers to create 3D models from cerebral vasculature in-vivo, allowing for the investigation of surgical options with minimal risk to the patient. The method used to construct these models overlooks smaller lateral arterial branches which are difficult to discern due to resolution limits of the imaging process. These lateral branches have minimal impact on the overall blood flow through the basilar artery, but they play a significant role in the health of the patient, so it is important to ensure sufficient blood will …

Radiation Therapy And Dosing Material Transport Methodology, Robert O'Brien

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

A technique is examined here that utilizes high energy beta decays from a short lived radioisotope to treat medical conditions such as shallow cancerous lesions. A major benefit of beta particle interaction in tissue is a fixed penetration depth for the charged particle, with dose limited to the ultimate range of the beta particle. This method improves on some current techniques of radioactive brachytherapy, where "seeds" are placed inside patients through temporary or permanent implantation in order to kill cancerous cells or inhibit growth of tissue. The use of low energy gamma-rays is the most common method of treatment currently …

Multi-Modality Magnetic Resonance Imaging In Typical And Atypical Developmental Human Brain, Minhui Ouyang

Bioengineering Dissertations

Human brain development is structurally and functionally a nonlinear process and even with the tremendous advancements in the field of neuroimaging based on Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) several significant questions remain un-answered. Although brain change and adaption are part of a lifelong process, the earliest phases of maturation, especially from birth to early childhood, are perhaps the most dramatic and important. During this early developmental period, the structural and functional organization of the brain are continuously shaped by a combination of synaptogenesis, dendritic arborization, myelination and synaptic pruning. The current research aims to use more recently developed MRI techniques of …

Development Of Breast Tissue Phantoms For Enhanced Terahertz Imaging Utilizing Microdiamond And Nano-Onion Particles, Alec Walter

Electrical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

This thesis presents the work performed to develop tissue phantoms and a contrast agent that will be used in future research of terahertz time-domain imaging of breast tumor margins. Since an excised breast tumor can contain healthy fibrous and fatty tissues along with invasive ductal carcinoma (IDC), three phantom materials were developed. Solid phantom materials were made by using TX151 to solidify water in order to tune the refractive index and absorption coefficient of the fibrous tissue phantom and IDC phantom to the properties of freshly excised breast tissue. Various amounts of olive oil were added to the water prior …

Scaffold And Tissue Based Therapies To Improve Skeletal Muscle Regeneration After Volumetric Muscle Loss, Benjamin Kasukonis

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Volumetric muscle loss (VML) is an injury to skeletal muscle characterized by a loss of more than 20% of a muscles volume. The combination of the bulk loss of tissue, transection and separation of myofibers proximal and distal to the injury, loss of innervation and blood supply, and the depletion of muscle progenitor cells results in permanent fibrosis and functional deficits due to loss of contractile tissue. Scaffolds, cells, and engineered constructs have been explored as potential therapeutic interventions to induce myogenesis at the site of a VML injury in animal models, in addition to limited clinical trials. This dissertation …

Laboratory Development Of A Self-Powered Fontan For Treatment Of Congenital Heart Disease, Arka Das

Doctoral Dissertations and Master's Theses

Around 8% of all newborns with a Congenital Heart Defect (CHD) have only a single functioning ventricle. The Fontan operation has served as a palliation for this anomaly for decades, but the surgery entails multiple complications and survival rate is less than 50% by adulthood. A rapidly testable novel alternative is proposed by creating a bifurcating graft, or Injection Jet Shunt (IJS), used to “entrain” the pulmonary flow and thus provide assistance while reducing the caval pressure. A benchtop Mock Flow Loop (MFL) is configured to validate this hypothesis. The MFL is based on a Lumped-Parameter Model (LPM) of the …

Examination Of Pseudomonas Fluorescence As A Recombinant Expression Host: Cloning, Expression, And Chromatography, Ahmed K.Ali Elmasheiti

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In an effort to expand the pool of bacterium useful for biotechnology applications, Pseudomonas fluorescens, a common gram negative microbe, was examined for its ability to function in a recombinant setting. P. fluorescens is ubiquitous in nature and was initially identified as a soil bacterium found in dirt and is typically associated with plant material. Past literature indicates that it shared characteristics common to Escherichia coli and Bacillus subtilis, including simple growth conditions and potential cloning vectors, providing motivation to look into both the upstream and downstream characteristics of this bacterium. First, it was demonstrated that P. fluorescens could be …

A Portable And Automatic Biosensing Instrument For Detection Of Foodborne Pathogenic Bacteria In Food Samples, Zhuo Zhao

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Foodborne diseases are a growing public health problem. In recent years, many rapid detection methods have been reported, but most of them are still in lab research and not practical for use in the field. In this study, a portable and automatic biosensing instrument was designed and constructed for separation and detection of target pathogens in food samples using nanobead-based magnetic separation and quantum dots (QDs)-labeled fluorescence measurement. The instrument consisted of a laptop with LabVIEW software, a data acquisition card (DAQ), a fluorescent detector, micro-pumps, stepper motors, and 3D printed tube holders. First, a sample in a syringe was …

Development Of A Semi-Interpenetrating Network Hydrogel To Study The Effects Of Mild Traumatic Brain Injury On Astrocyte Remodeling, Amanda Ederle

Health, Human Performance and Recreation Undergraduate Honors Theses

Traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) are a widespread public health concern affecting over 2.5 million people in the United States alone (1). TBIs are the leading cause of death and disability in children (ages 0-14), and their devastating effects can also be seen in vast population subsets such as professional athletes and combat soldiers (1).

Damaged astrocytes, the specialized glial cells associated with the maintenance of the brain’s environment, respond to injury by altering regulation of certain proteins and ion channels in an attempt to maintain homeostasis (3). Studies have also shown that following a TBI, astrocytes seek to regenerate, a …

A Multi-Channel 3d-Printed Bioreactor For Evaluation Of Growth And Production In The Microalga Dunaliella Sp, Cristian A. Cox

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

We explored the capabilities of additive manufacturing using a photo-cured jetted material 3D printer to manufacture a milli-microfluidic device with direct application in microalgae Dunaliella sp growth and intracellular compounds biosynthesis tests. A continuous microbioreactor for microalgae culture was CAD designed and successfully built in 1 hour and 49 minutes using black photopolymer cured by UV and a support material. The microreactor was made up of 2 parts including the bioreactor itself and a microchannel network for culture media fluids and microalgae. Both parts were assembled to form a single unit. Additional optical and auxiliar components were added. An external …

Design And Basic Verification Of A Discrete Event Simulator For Glucose Metabolism In Human Beings, Elizabeth Andrews

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis describes the design and basic verification of a discrete event simulator for glucose metabolism in human beings. The simulator implements the glucose metabolism related behavior of various organs in the human body and tracks the blood plasma glucose level as the human body goes through a sequence of diet and exercise events. The simulator can mimic insulin resistance in various organs as well as the loss of insulin production in the pancreas and the adverse impact of these changes on the metabolic behavior of various organs. Thus, the simulator can serve as a model for people with diabetes. …

Quantitative Optical Studies Of Oxidative Stress In Rodent Models Of Eye And Lung Injuries, Zahra Ghanian

Theses and Dissertations

Optical imaging techniques have emerged as essential tools for reliable assessment of organ structure, biochemistry, and metabolic function. The recognition of metabolic markers for disease diagnosis has rekindled significant interest in the development of optical methods to measure the metabolism of the organ.

The objective of my research was to employ optical imaging tools and to implement signal and image processing techniques capable of quantifying cellular metabolism for the diagnosis of diseases in human organs such as eyes and lungs. To accomplish this goal, three different tools, cryoimager, fluorescent microscope, and optical coherence tomography system were utilized to study the …

Bi-Directional Fatigue Life Behavior Of Bovine Meniscus, Jaremy Creechley

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Meniscal injuries due to tissue tearing are prevalent in the U.S. yet the failure behavior of the meniscus is poorly understood. Clinical studies indicate that fatigue failure causes many of these tears. The highly circumferentially aligned fibers result in transversely isotropic material properties. Tears preferentially align bi-directionally to the fiber orientation. The aim of this study is to present the bi-directional fatigue life behavior of meniscal fibrocartilage. A novel fatigue life approach was developed to achieve this aim. Forty-eight bovine specimens were subjected to cyclic sinusoidal tension-tension stress at 2 Hz until rupture. Normalized peak tensile stresses were determined at …

Measuring The Effects Of High-Altitude Flight And Upper Atmospheric Radiation On Muscle Cells, Annelise Dykes

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

There are several physiological barriers to long-term space travel, including the effects of launch, landing, and microgravity on muscle cells. A payload capsule was designed to maintain cell growth during a high altitude balloon flight to model some of these physiological processes. Murine muscle cells (strain C2C12) were cultured and launched in a capsule on a balloon satellite in November 2016. Cells were monitored for changes due to temperature, flight motion, radiation, and gravity differences by quantifying cell characteristics before and after the flight using physical measurements and cell viability. Instruments were selected to monitor flight data, and a payload …

A Bifunctional Nanocomposites Based Electrochemical Biosensor For In-Field Detection Of Pathogenic Bacteria In Food, Meng Xu

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This research focused on the application of electrochemical biosensors for the rapid detection of pathogenic bacteria, Escherichia coli O157:H7 and Salmonella Typhimurium, in foods. The possible presence of pathogenic bacteria in foods has always been a great threat to the wellbeing of people and the revenue of food companies. Therefore, the demand for rapid and sensitive methods to detect foodborne pathogens is growing. In this research, an impedimetric immunosensor was first developed for the rapid detection of E. coli O157:H7 and S. Typhimurium in foods. It was based on the techniques of immunomagnetic separation, enzyme labelling, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy …

Exploring The Production Of Extracellular Matrix By Astrocytes In Response To Mimetic Traumatic Brain Injury, Addison Walker

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Following injury to the central nervous system, extracellular modulations are apparent at

the site of injury, often resulting in a glial scar. Astrocytes are mechanosensitive cells, which can create a neuroinhibitory extracellular environment in response to injury. The aim for this research was to gain a fundamental understanding of the affects a diffuse traumatic brain injury has on the astrocyte extracellular environment after injury. To accomplish this, a bioreactor culturing astrocytes in 3D constructs delivered 150G decelerations with 20% biaxial strain to mimic a traumatic brain injury. Experiments were designed to compare the potential effects of media type, number of …