Biomedical Commons^™

Synthesis And Characterization Of Thermoresponsive Hydrogels Based On N-Isopropylacrylamide Crosslinked With 4,4′-Dihydroxybiphenyl Diacrylate, Shuo Tang, Martha Floy, Rohit Bhandari, Manjula Sunkara, Andrew J. Morris, Thomas D. Dziubla, J. Zach Hilt

Chemical and Materials Engineering Faculty Publications

A novel crosslinker [4,4′-dihydroxybiphenyl diacrylate (44BDA)] was developed, and a series of temperature-responsive hydrogels were synthesized through free radical polymerization of N-isopropylacrylamide (NIPAAm) with 44BDA. The temperature-responsive behavior of the resulting gels was characterized by swelling studies, and the lower critical solution temperature (LCST) of the hydrogels was characterized through differential scanning calorimetry. Increased content of 44BDA led to a decreased swelling ratio and shifted the LCST to lower temperatures. These novel hydrogels also displayed resiliency through multiple swelling–deswelling cycles, and their temperature responsiveness was reversible. The successful synthesis of NIPAAm-based hydrogels crosslinked with 44BDA has led to a …

3d Printed Pcu/Uhmwpe Polymeric Blends For Artificial Knee Meniscus, Raissa Araujo Borges

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

3D printing was used to fabricate porous artificial knee meniscus material from biocompatible polymeric blends of polycarbonate-urethane (PCU) and ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) to enable “weep” lubrication that mimics the native meniscus. 3D printed and molded pure PCU, as well as molded PCU and UHMWPE, were used for comparison. Preliminary printing was done to evaluate the impact of process parameters on the results. The samples were subject to a variety of rotational oscillating friction and wear tests under simulated body fluid and loading conditions to replicate the natural motion of the knee. Results show that 3D printed PCU samples yielded a …

Computer-Aided Diagnoses (Cad) System: An Artificial Neural Network Approach To Mri Analysis And Diagnosis Of Alzheimer's Disease (Ad), Berizohar Padilla Cerezo

Master's Theses

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a chronic and progressive, irreversible syndrome that deteriorates the cognitive functions. Official death certificates of 2013 reported 84,767 deaths from Alzheimer’s disease, making it the 6th leading cause of death in the United States. The rate of AD is estimated to double by 2050. The neurodegeneration of AD occurs decades before symptoms of dementia are evident. Therefore, having an efficient methodology for the early and proper diagnosis can lead to more effective treatments.

Neuroimaging techniques such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can detect changes in the brain of living subjects. Moreover, medical imaging techniques are the …

Portable 6 Lead 4 Electrode Ekg, Cody Magnuson, Wes Archbold

Electrical Engineering

This project focused on designing a small, portable, 6 lead 4 electrode electrocardiogram (EKG) machine with enough accuracy and resolution to successfully diagnose clinical issues. The electrical design used to measure signals originating from the heart can be broken up into three stages. The first stage is the human device interface. Next, is the analog block that filters out common mode noise and conditions the signal for digital encoding using instrumentation amplifiers, a right leg circuit, high pass, low pass, and an amplifier. This circuit filters all frequencies above and below the frequency band of meaningful data (1-160Hz), rejects signals …

Hierarchical Fusion Based Deep Learning Framework For Lung Nodule Classification, Kazim Sekeroglu

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Lung cancer is the leading cancer type that causes the mortality in both men and women. Computer aided detection (CAD) and diagnosis systems can play a very important role for helping the physicians in cancer treatments. This dissertation proposes a CAD framework that utilizes a hierarchical fusion based deep learning model for detection of nodules from the stacks of 2D images. In the proposed hierarchical approach, a decision is made at each level individually employing the decisions from the previous level. Further, individual decisions are computed for several perspectives of a volume of interest (VOI). This study explores three different …

Activation Of The Phospholipid Scramblase Tmem16f By Nanosecond Pulsed Electric Field (Nspef) Facilitates Its Diverse Cytophysiological Effects, Claudia Muratori, Andrei G. Pakhomov, Elena Gianulis, Jade Meads, Maura Casciola, Peter A. Mollica, Olga N. Pakhomova

Bioelectrics Publications

Nanosecond pulsed electric fields (nsPEF) are emerging as a novel modality for cell stimulation and tissue ablation. However, the downstream protein effectors responsible for nsPEF bioeffects remain to be established. Here we demonstrate that nsPEF activate TMEM16F (or Anoctamin 6), a protein functioning as a Ca²⁺-dependent phospholipid scramblase and Ca²⁺-activated chloride channel. Using confocal microscopy and patch clamp recordings, we investigated the relevance of TMEM16F activation for several bioeffects triggered by nsPEF, including phosphatidylserine (PS) externalization, nanopore-conducted currents, membrane blebbing, and cell death. In HEK 293 cells treated with a single 300-ns pulse of 25.5 kV/cm, …

Gui For Mri-Compatible Neural Stimulator And Recorder, Soo Han Soon, Nishant Babaria, Ranajay Mandal, Zhongming Liu

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and electroencephalography (EEG) are useful tools to analyze brain activities given active stimulation. However, the electromagnetic noise from the MRI distorts the brain signal recording and damages the subject with excessive heat generated on the electrodes attached to the skin. MRI-compatible recording and stimulation systems previously developed at LIBI lab were capable of removing the electromagnetic noise during the imaging process. Previously, the hardware systems had required the integrative software that could control both circuits simultaneously and enable users to easily change recording and stimulation parameters. Graphical user interface (GUI) programmed with computer language informed …

Optimization Of Prosthetic Hands: Utilizing Modularity To Improve Grip Force, Grasp, And Versatility, Jordan William Harris

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

It has been demonstrated that although many varieties of upper limb prosthetics exist, commercially available prosthetics are outdated and unsatisfactory. Ineffectiveness and limitations have led to some prosthesis wearers having to own multiple devices, whereas others have given up on them entirely. Even though ample research has been conducted to design and test new hand designs, the industry appears to rest in an overall stagnated state.

It was proposed here, that one problem with prosthetic research is an excess of variables involved in testing, and therefore the improper application of the scientific method. It seems that each time a research …

Perspective: The Physics, Diagnostics, And Applications Of Atmospheric Pressure Low Temperature Plasma Sources Used In Plasma Medicine, M. Laroussi

Electrical & Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Low temperature plasmas have been used in various plasma processing applications for several decades. But it is only in the last thirty years or so that sources generating such plasmas at atmospheric pressure in reliable and stable ways have become more prevalent. First, in the late 1980s, the dielectric barrier discharge was used to generate relatively large volume diffuse plasmas at atmospheric pressure. Then, in the early 2000s, plasma jets that can launch cold plasma plumes in ambient air were developed. Extensive experimental and modeling work was carried out on both methods and much of the physics governing such sources …

Skin Tone Tracking Device (Chromaband), Ziyang Bian

Computer Engineering

It’s long been said that your skin is a window into your health and with many illnesses the first signs of trouble actually show up in your skin. So if we have this natural warning system, then why isn’t anyone able to effectively use it to predict changes in our health? The problem is that currently there is no reliable way to accurately measure the change in skin tone and how these changes may or may not change with variations in health. This project’s aim is to design and develop a device that will record the changes in a user’s …

Poly Drop, Zachary T. Scott, Lilly J. Paul

Computer Engineering

Poly Drop is a software interface to control an Open Drop digital micro-fluidics system. We obtained a hardware system from Gaudi labs. Our task was to create a Graphical User Interface that made the control of the device easier and more automated for better testing. We created software that had 3 parts: a control GUI, arduino code to control the hardware, and Image Analysis that gives the user information such as location and color of liquid drops as they move across the electrode grid of the Open Drop system. The GUI was developed using Java Swing. The communication between the …

Ecg Classification Using Adaptive Neuro-Fuzzy Inference System, Jason N. Rivera, Kelsey C. Rodriguez

Electrical Engineering

ECG classification using Adaptive Neuro-Fuzzy Inference System (ANFIS), sponsored by Professor Yu, involves the diagnosis of six cardiovascular conditions by analyzing one single neural network. Today’s ECG signal instrumentation does not have the ability to characterize cardiovascular diseases without a doctor’s complete evaluation and diagnosis. Our project gives a promising solution to the inability in the current market’s ECG signal instrumentation to correctly evaluate and diagnose cardiovascular diseases. ECG signal reportings is a non-invasive process that will lead to many more applications of advanced signal processing and data analysis/diagnosis of cardiovascular diseases. The inputs to the ANFIS are annotations of …

Wax Bee Gone: A Safe, Effective Solution To Ear Wax Removal, Robert G. Shenon, Shanvir S. Dhinsa

Electrical Engineering

This project sought to combine conventional methods such as scraping and water pressure to removal ear wax, but with electronic automation to removal the potential for human error as much as possible. Through the use of a 9V battery, and Arduino microcontroller, DC motors, and other circuitry, this project has developed a prototype for a device that can properly remove ear wax without any discomfort or risk to the user. Much of this project involved learning how to properly manipulate and provide the necessary power requirements DC motors from an Arduino and a 9V battery. Additionally, creating a 3D printed …

Hand (Motor) Movement Imagery Classification Of Eeg Using Takagi-Sugeno-Kang Fuzzy-Inference Neural Network, Rory Larson Donovan

Master's Theses

Approximately 20 million people in the United States suffer from irreversible nerve damage and would benefit from a neuroprosthetic device modulated by a Brain-Computer Interface (BCI). These devices restore independence by replacing peripheral nervous system functions such as peripheral control. Although there are currently devices under investigation, contemporary methods fail to offer adaptability and proper signal recognition for output devices. Human anatomical differences prevent the use of a fixed model system from providing consistent classification performance among various subjects. Furthermore, notoriously noisy signals such as Electroencephalography (EEG) require complex measures for signal detection. Therefore, there remains a tremendous need to …

Using Pet/Mri To Assess Hepatic Radioembolization Of Yttrium-90 Microspheres, Nichole Millward Maughan

McKelvey School of Engineering Graduate Student Theses & Dissertations

Radioembolization of yttrium-90 (Y-90) microspheres is used to treat primary and secondary cancers in the liver. Though this therapy has existed for decades, the treatment is not well optimized from treatment planning to post-procedural assessment. Recently, there has been a surge to utilize the small positron yield from the radioactive decay of Y-90 for post-radioembolization positron emission tomography (PET) imaging of the microsphere activity distribution. These images provide promise for dosimetry assessment, identifying extrahepatic uptake and possible under-dosed lesions that may benefit from subsequent therapy. However, due to the low positron statistics and high flux of Bremsstrahlung radiation, PET imaging …

Pet/Mr Imaging Of Hypoxic Atherosclerotic Plaque Using 64cu-Atsm, Xingyu Nie

McKelvey School of Engineering Graduate Student Theses & Dissertations

ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION

PET/MR Imaging of Hypoxic Atherosclerotic Plaque Using 64Cu-ATSM

by

Xingyu Nie

Doctor of Philosophy in Biomedical Engineering

Washington University in St. Louis, 2017

Professor Pamela K. Woodard, Chair

Professor Suzanne Lapi, Co-Chair

It is important to accurately identify the factors involved in the progression of atherosclerosis because advanced atherosclerotic lesions are prone to rupture, leading to disability or death. Hypoxic areas have been known to be present in human atherosclerotic lesions, and lesion progression is associated with the formation of lipid-loaded macrophages and increased local inflammation which are potential major factors in the formation of vulnerable …

The Electrophysiology Of Resting State Fmri Networks, Carl David Hacker

McKelvey School of Engineering Graduate Student Theses & Dissertations

Traditional research in neuroscience has studied the topography of specific brain functions largely by presenting stimuli or imposing tasks and measuring evoked brain activity. This paradigm has dominated neuroscience for 50 years. Recently, investigations of brain activity in the resting state, most frequently using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), have revealed spontaneous correlations within widely distributed brain regions known as resting state networks (RSNs). Variability in RSNs across individuals has found to systematically relate to numerous diseases as well as differences in cognitive performance within specific domains. However, the relationship between spontaneous fMRI activity and the underlying neurophysiology is not …

Development And Applications Of Novel Fluorescent Molecular Probe Strategies, Dolonchampa Maji

McKelvey School of Engineering Graduate Student Theses & Dissertations

Optical imaging and spectroscopy technologies offer the ability to provide structural and functional information in a fast, low-cost, ionizing radiation free, highly sensitive and high throughput fashion. The diverse contrast mechanisms and complementary imaging platforms form the foundation for the application of optical imaging in pre-clinical studies of pathophysiological development as well as direct clinical application as a tool for diagnosis and therapy. Fluorescence imaging techniques have been one of the most rapidly adopted methods in biology and biomedicine. Visualization of biological processes and pathologic conditions at the cellular and tissue levels largely relies on the use of exogenous fluorophores …

Multidataset Independent Subspace Analysis: A Framework For Analysis Of Multimodal, Multi-Subject Brain Imaging Data, Rogers F. Silva

Electrical and Computer Engineering ETDs

Mental illnesses are serious disorders of the brain that have devastating effects on individuals and society. In addition to their disabling and impairing effects, mental illnesses have deep social and economical implications, accounting for an estimated loss of 12 billion working days and a care cost surge to $6 trillion a year by 2030. For diseases such as depression and anxiety, enhancing preventive programs and treatment accessibility, in combination with accurate early diagnosis and personalized treatments, are projected to result in a four-fold return on every dollar invested, a strategy that can drastically help curtail those losses. Notably, within the …

An Exact Analysis For Four-Order Acousto-Optic Bragg Diffraction Which Incorporates Both Incident Light Angle And Sound Frequency Dependencies, Adeyinka Sunday Ademola

Electrical Engineering Theses

This thesis extends the prior work which produced an exact solution to the four-order acousto-optic (AO) Bragg cell with assumed fixed center frequency and with exact Bragg angle incident light. The extension predicts the model that incorporates the dependencies of both the input angle of light and the sound frequency. Specifically, a generalized 4^th order linear differential equation (DE), is developed from a simultaneous analysis of four coupled AO system of DEs. Through standard methods, the characteristic roots, which requires solving a quartic equation, is produced. Subsequently, a derived system of homogeneous solutions, which absorbs the roots obtained using …

Development Of An Oxygen Saturation Monitoring System By Embedded Electronics, Manikandan Venkatesan Gomathy

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Measuring Oxygenation of blood (SaO2) plays a vital role in patient’s health monitoring. This is often measured by pulse oximeter, which is standard measure during anesthesia, asthma, operative and post-operative recoveries. Despite all, monitoring Oxygen level is necessary for infants with respiratory problems, old people, and pregnant women and in other critical situations.

This paper discusses the process of calculating the level of oxygen in blood and heart-rate detection using a non-invasive photo plethysmography also called as pulsoximeter using the MSP430FG437 microcontroller (MCU). The probe uses infrared lights to measure and should be in physical contact with any peripheral points …

Estimation Of Localized Ideal Oximetry Sensor Lag Via Oxygen Desaturation-Disordered Breathing Event Cross-Correlation, Brian Snider, A Kain

Faculty Publications - Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science

In previous work, we attempted to identify events using sensor data from full-night polysomnography studies using a global 20-second oximetry sensor lag across all studies. However, we observed that oxygen desaturation onset trailed the corresponding human expert-labeled events by varying amounts of time, even within the same study. In this work, we estimate the localized ideal oximetry (SpO₂) sensor lag using the cross-correlation between the labeled disordered breathing event and the observed desaturation.

Silent Communication Device, Christopher Wayne Schutter

Master's Theses

Oral communication has constituted as a necessary aspect of how people interact with one another, but there are always situations where this form of communication can create distractions, irritation, or even danger. Take for example, a student in a laboratory who needs to communicate effectively with a lab partner without creating a distraction to those trying to work around said student or a soldier on a battlefield who needs to relay information effectively to his or her comrades without revealing his or her position to the enemy. It becomes apparent that people need a more exclusive form of communication in …

T1, T2, And Off-Resonance Mapping Using A Non-Linear Least-Squares Fit Of The Bssfp Signal, Meredith Taylor, Joseph Valentine, Steven Whitaker, Neal Bangerter

Biomedical Engineering Western Regional Conference

The mapping of MR relaxation times has found a broad variety of applications in the study of disease. Unfortunately, the gold standards for acquiring T₁ and T₂ maps require long scan times, and are therefore more suited to 2D acquisitions with limited slices. For reasonable scan times, resolution is limited making these scans less useful for showing fine morphological detail. A rapid 3D sequence at higher resolutions that could be used to provide both morphological detail and relaxation time maps would be particularly useful. We propose a technique with potential to provide simultaneous band-free 3D datasets and estimates …

Bssfp Elliptical Signal Model With Grappa Parallel Imaging, Grayson Tarbox, Joseph Valentine, Meredith Taylor, Neal Bangerter

Biomedical Engineering Western Regional Conference

In magnetic resonance imaging, balanced steady-state free precession acquisition using the elliptical signal model geometrical solution can be combined with a GRAPPA parallel imaging reconstruction that preserves phase information to shorten scan times.

Water Fat Separation With Multiple-Acquisition Bssfp Mri, Michael A. Mendoza 8232743, Joseph Valentine, Neal Bangerter

Biomedical Engineering Western Regional Conference

We present a technique that combines the advantages of bSSFP MRI with Dixon reconstruction in order to produce robust water fat separation with high SNR in a short imaging time, while simultaneously reducing banding artifacts that traditionally degrade image quality.

3d Printed Microfluidics, Hua Gong, Clayton Ramstedt, Adam T. Woolley, Gregory P. Nordin

Biomedical Engineering Western Regional Conference

3D printing for microfluidic (lab-on-a-chip) devices

Toward Improving Electrocardiogram (Ecg) Biometric Verification Using Mobile Sensors: A Two-Stage Classifier Approach, Robin Tan, Marek Perkowski

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Electrocardiogram (ECG) signals sensed from mobile devices pertain the potential for biometric identity recognition applicable in remote access control systems where enhanced data security is demanding. In this study, we propose a new algorithm that consists of a two-stage classifier combining random forest and wavelet distance measure through a probabilistic threshold schema, to improve the effectiveness and robustness of a biometric recognition system using ECG data acquired from a biosensor integrated into mobile devices. The proposed algorithm is evaluated using a mixed dataset from 184 subjects under different health conditions. The proposed two-stage classifier achieves a total of 99.52% subject …

Respiratory Prediction And Image Quality Improvement Of 4d Cone Beam Ct And Mri For Lung Tumor Treatments, Seonyeong Park

Theses and Dissertations

Identification of accurate tumor location and shape is highly important in lung cancer radiotherapy, to improve the treatment quality by reducing dose delivery errors. Because a lung tumor moves with the patient's respiration, breathing motion should be correctly analyzed and predicted during the treatment for prevention of tumor miss or undesirable treatment toxicity. Besides, in Image-Guided Radiation Therapy (IGRT), the tumor motion causes difficulties not only in delivering accurate dose, but also in assuring superior quality of imaging techniques such as four-dimensional (4D) Cone Beam Computed Tomography (CBCT) and 4D Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI). Specifically, 4D CBCT used in CBCT …

Enhanced Breast Cancer Classification With Automatic Thresholding Using Support Vector Machine And Harris Corner Detection, Mohammad Taheri

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Image classification and extracting the characteristics of a tumor are the powerful tools in medical science. In case of breast cancer medical treatment, the breast cancer classification methods can be used to classify input images as benign and malignant classes for better diagnoses and earlier detection with breast tumors. However, classification process can be challenging because of the existence of noise in the images, and complicated structures of the image. Manual classification of the images is timeconsuming, and need to be done only by medical experts. Hence using an automated medical image classification tool is useful and necessary. In addition, …