Sense Organs Commons^™

Myo/Nog Cells Expressing Muscle Proteins Are Present In Preretinal Membranes From Patients With Proliferative Vitreoretinopathy., Jacquelyn Gerhart, Nathan Morrison, Lindsay Gugerty, David Telander, Arturo Bravo Nuevo, Mindy George-Weinstein

PCOM Scholarly Works

Proliferative vitreoretinopathy (PVR) is a complication of rhegmatogenous retinal detachment and ocular trauma. The disease is characterized by development of membranes that may apply traction to the retina and cause redetachment. Membrane contractions are attributed to myofibroblasts arising from retinal pigment epithelial cells, glia and fibroblasts. The progenitors of myofibrobasts in the lens are Myo/Nog cells that express the skeletal muscle transcription factor MyoD and bone morphogenetic protein inhibitor Noggin. The retina and choroid also contain Myo/Nog cells that respond to stress. We examined preretinal PVR membranes from three ocular trauma patients with retinal detachment for Myo/Nog cells and their …

Determining Age-Related Visual Memory And Line Length Perception In Children And Adults, Katie Exline

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Projects

There is little research in the field of visual memory and perceptual abilities of children as compared to adults. This thesis seeks to understand and provide new perspectives to this field with potential implications in the fields of optometry and education. Through two basic experiments, this thesis evaluates the abilities of individuals to perceive a visual stimulus and compare it other visual stimuli, while also observing their abilities to learn and remember various visual stimuli. Through experimentation using line length as the visual stimulus, the method of constant stimuli (MCS) evaluates subjects’ visual perception and the method of single stimuli …

Robotically Steered Needles: A Survey Of Neurosurgical Applications And Technical Innovations, Michel A. Audette, Stéphane P.A. Bordas, Jason E. Blatt

Computational Modeling & Simulation Engineering Faculty Publications

This paper surveys both the clinical applications and main technical innovations related to steered needles, with an emphasis on neurosurgery. Technical innovations generally center on curvilinear robots that can adopt a complex path that circumvents critical structures and eloquent brain tissue. These advances include several needle-steering approaches, which consist of tip-based, lengthwise, base motion-driven, and tissue-centered steering strategies. This paper also describes foundational mathematical models for steering, where potential fields, nonholonomic bicycle-like models, spring models, and stochastic approaches are cited. In addition, practical path planning systems are also addressed, where we cite uncertainty modeling in path planning, intraoperative soft tissue …

Sail: Saliency-Driven Injection Of Aria Landmarks, Ali Selman Aydin, Shirin Feiz, Vikas Ashok, Iv Ramakrishnan

Computer Science Faculty Publications

Navigating webpages with screen readers is a challenge even with recent improvements in screen reader technologies and the increased adoption of web standards for accessibility, namely ARIA. ARIA landmarks, an important aspect of ARIA, lets screen reader users access different sections of the webpage quickly, by enabling them to skip over blocks of irrelevant or redundant content. However, these landmarks are sporadically and inconsistently used by web developers, and in many cases, even absent in numerous web pages. Therefore, we propose SaIL, a scalable approach that automatically detects the important sections of a web page, and then injects ARIA landmarks …

Rotate-And-Press: A Non-Visual Alternative To Point-And-Click, Hae-Na Lee, Vikas Ashok, I. V. Ramakrishnan

Computer Science Faculty Publications

Most computer applications manifest visually rich and dense graphical user interfaces (GUIs) that are primarily tailored for an easy-and-efficient sighted interaction using a combination of two default input modalities, namely the keyboard and the mouse/touchpad. However, blind screen-reader users predominantly rely only on keyboard, and therefore struggle to interact with these applications, since it is both arduous and tedious to perform the visual 'point-and-click' tasks such as accessing the various application commands/features using just keyboard shortcuts supported by screen readers.

In this paper, we investigate the suitability of a 'rotate-and-press' input modality as an effective non-visual substitute for the visual …

A Case Study On Accessible Reading With Deaf Children, Jody H. Cripps, Samuel J. Supalla, Laura A. Blackburn

Communication Disorders & Special Education Faculty Publications

The concept of accessible reading for deaf students is new and worthy of exploration. In the face of the reading difficulties often experienced by deaf students, the lack of a specialized reading methodology that works for them must be addressed. Central to the paper is a research case study undertaken with two young deaf students, proficient in American Sign Language (ASL) and learning to read. The students participated in a tutorial with a tutor knowledgeable in a specialized reading methodology called ASL Gloss. The participating students demonstrated progress in reading skills over time. Two reading measures were adapted from English …

Theoretical Investigation Of The Low Frequency Fundamental Mechanism Of The Objective Occlusion Effect Induced By Bone-Conducted Stimulation, Kevin Carillo, Olivier Doutres, Franck Sgard

Études primaires

The objective occlusion effect induced by bone-conducted stimulation refers to the low frequency acoustic pressure increase that results from occluding the ear canal opening. This phenomenon is commonly interpreted as follows: the bone-conducted sound “leaks” through the earcanal opening and is “trapped” by the occlusion device. This instinctive interpretation misrepresents the fundamental mechanism of the occlusion effect related to the earcanal impedance increase and already highlighted by existing electro-acoustic models. However, these models simplify the earcanal wall vibration (i.e., the origin of the phenomenon) to a volume velocity source which, in the authors' opinion, (i) hinders an exhaustive comprehension of …

Application Of A Brain-Inspired Spiking Neural Network Architecture To Odor Data Classification, Anup Vanarse, Josafath Israel Espinosa-Ramos, Adam Osseiran, Alexander Rassau, Nikola Kasabov

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Existing methods in neuromorphic olfaction mainly focus on implementing the data transformation based on the neurobiological architecture of the olfactory pathway. While the transformation is pivotal for the sparse spike-based representation of odor data, classification techniques based on the bio-computations of the higher brain areas, which process the spiking data for identification of odor, remain largely unexplored. This paper argues that brain-inspired spiking neural networks constitute a promising approach for the next generation of machine intelligence for odor data processing. Inspired by principles of brain information processing, here we propose the first spiking neural network method and associated deep machine …

Melanopsin-Expressing Retinal Ganglion Cells In Control Vs. Glaucomatous Retinas, Edward Hamad

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Glaucoma is a common cause of vision loss worldwide and has a large scope of symptoms, ranging from pupillary reflex defects to sleep disorders. These issues can be explained partially by a recently found subtype of retinal ganglion cells that express melanopsin, denoted melanopsin-expressing retinal ganglion cells or mRGCs for short. These cells function primarily as photoreceptors in the non-image forming pathway, but can receive input from rods and cones. Since mRGCs play a role in the pupillary reflex and regulation of the sleep-wake cycle, I investigated if glaucoma leads to the degeneration of these cells in a mouse model …

Analysis Of Adult Neural Retina Extracellular Vesicle Release, Rna Transport And Proteomic Cargo, Jason Mighty, Jing Zhou, Alberto Benito-Martin, Sami Sauma, Samer Hanna, Onyekwere Onwumere, Cui Shi, Martin Muntzel, Moira Sauane, Michael Young, Henrik Molina, Dianne Cox, Stephen Redenti

Publications and Research

PURPOSE. Extracellular vesicles (EVs) contain RNA and protein cargo reflective of the genotype and phenotype of the releasing cell of origin. Adult neural retina EV release, RNA transfer, and proteomic cargo are the focus of this study.

METHODS. Adult wild-type mouse retinae were cultured and released EV diameters and concentrations quantified using Nanosight. Immunogold transmission electron microscopy (TEM) was used to image EV ultrastructure and marker protein localization. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) was used to analyze retinal cell transcripts present in EVs. Super-resolution microscopy was used to image fluorescent (green) RNA and (red) lipid membrane labeled EVs, released …

Towards Making Videos Accessible For Low Vision Screen Magnifier Users, Ali Selman Aydin, Shirin Feiz, Vikas Ashok, Iv Ramakrishnan

Computer Science Faculty Publications

People with low vision who use screen magnifiers to interact with computing devices find it very challenging to interact with dynamically changing digital content such as videos, since they do not have the luxury of time to manually move, i.e., pan the magnifier lens to different regions of interest (ROIs) or zoom into these ROIs before the content changes across frames.

In this paper, we present SViM, a first of its kind screen-magnifier interface for such users that leverages advances in computer vision, particularly video saliency models, to identify salient ROIs in videos. SViM's interface allows users to zoom in/out …

Conception D’Oreilles Artificielles Réalistes Dédiées À L’Étude Du Confort Acoustique Et Physique Des Protecteurs Auditifs Intra-Auriculaires, Simon Benacchio, Olivier Doutres, Éric Wagnac, Franck Sgard

Rapports de recherche scientifique

Au Québec, environ 360 000 travailleurs sont exposés quotidiennement à des niveaux de bruit susceptibles d’engendrer des problèmes d’audition. Les protecteurs auditifs individuels sont souvent utilisés pour pallier ce problème. Cependant, l’inconfort lié à l'utilisation de ces protecteurs limite la durée du port et donc l'efficacité de la protection. Le développement d'outils de conception acoustique minimisant les sources d’inconforts auditifs et physiques de ces protecteurs tout en assurant une atténuation adéquate constitue le contexte de cette recherche.

La présente étude se concentre sur deux indicateurs du confort associés au port des bouchons d’oreille : l’atténuation et l’effet d’occlusion. L’atténuation quantifie …

Counseling For Patients With Hyperacusis, Mary Maraist

Communication Sciences and Disorders: Student Scholarship & Creative Works

Hyperacusis is the phenomenon of experiencing moderately loud sounds as overly loud and/or intensely annoying. Hyperacusis can also cause fear or pain in response to sound. There is no one known cause of hyperacusis, and because of the variety of ways it presents itself, the approximate prevalence is difficult to determine. Despite the ambiguity of hyperacusis, the audiologist is an important part of diagnosing and educating clients with hyperacusis. During this project we aimed to discover the challenges individuals with hyperacusis face. These include anxiety, depression and avoidance behavior, and sometimes co-occurring tinnitus and hearing loss. Another aim was to …

Human Anatomy And Physiology I: Course Map With Expected Learning Outcomes, Carlos Liachovitzky

Open Educational Resources

This document contains a list with all the Anatomy and Physiology I expected learning outcomes organized by topics, and grouped into ten units: 1. Introduction to A&P: body plan & organization; 2. Introduction to A&P: homeostasis; 3. The chemical level of organization; 4. Levels of organization: the cellular level of organization; 5. Levels of organization: the tissue level of organization; 6. Support and movement: integumentary system; 7. Support and movement: skeletal system & articulations; 8. Support and movement: muscular system; 9. Regulation, integration, and control: nervous system; 10. Regulation, integration, and control: special senses

Each learning outcome is referred to …

Fluorometholone Modulates Gene Expression Of Ocular Surface Mucins, Jonathan Taniguchi, Ajay Sharma

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

Purpose

Mucins are vital to keep the ocular surface hydrated. Genes encoding for mucins contain a glucocorticoid response element. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of fluorometholone, a glucocorticoid receptor agonist used in the management of dry eye, on the gene expression of conjunctival and corneal epithelial cell mucins.

Methods

Stratified cultures of human conjunctival and corneal epithelial cells were exposed to 25, 50 and 100 nM of fluorometholone alone or in presence of mifepristone, a glucocorticoid receptor antagonist. The mRNA was isolated from the cells and reverse transcribed to cDNA. The cDNA was used for …

The Effects Of Ocular Dominance On Visual Processing In College Students, William Alexander Holland

James Madison Undergraduate Research Journal (JMURJ)

The role of ocular dominance in processing visual memory and analytic tasks is unknown. Research has variably showed both significant effects and no effect of ocular dominance on visual perception, motor control, and sports performance. The goal of this study was to determine if there is a relationship between ocular dominance and visual processing under a variety of computer gaming tasks. This was accomplished by first determining subjects’ ocular dominance through the Miles test, and then examining the subjects’ visual performance on four different Lumosity games under three conditions: left eye, right eye, and both eyes. Results suggest a relationship …

A Hardware-Deployable Neuromorphic Solution For Encoding And Classification Of Electronic Nose Data, Anup Vanarse, Alexander Rassau, Peter Van Der Made

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

In several application domains, electronic nose systems employing conventional data processing approaches incur substantial power and computational costs and limitations, such as significant latency and poor accuracy for classification. Recent developments in spike-based bio-inspired approaches have delivered solutions for the highly accurate classification of multivariate sensor data with minimized computational and power requirements. Although these methods have addressed issues related to efficient data processing and classification accuracy, other areas, such as reducing the processing latency to support real-time application and deploying spike-based solutions on supported hardware, have yet to be studied in detail. Through this investigation, we proposed a spiking …

Real-Time Classification Of Multivariate Olfaction Data Using Spiking Neural Networks, Arnup Vanarse, Adam Osseiran, Alexander Rassau, Therese O'Sullivan, Jonny Lo, Amanda Devine

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Recent studies in bioinspired artificial olfaction, especially those detailing the application of spike-based neuromorphic methods, have led to promising developments towards overcoming the limitations of traditional approaches, such as complexity in handling multivariate data, computational and power requirements, poor accuracy, and substantial delay for processing and classification of odors. Rank-order-based olfactory systems provide an interesting approach for detection of target gases by encoding multi-variate data generated by artificial olfactory systems into temporal signatures. However, the utilization of traditional pattern-matching methods and unpredictable shuffling of spikes in the rank-order impedes the performance of the system. In this paper, we present an …

Use Of Magnetic Resonance Image Registration To Estimate Displacement In The Human Earcanal Due To The Insertion Of In-Ear Devices, Simon Benacchio, Olivier Doutres, Arthur Varoquaux, Éric Wagnac, Arnaud Le Troter, Virginie Callot, Franck Sgard

Études primaires

In-ear devices are used in a wide range of applications for which the device's usability and/or efficiency is strongly related to comfort aspects that are influenced by the mechanical interaction between the device and the walls of the earcanal. Although the displacement of the earcanal walls due to the insertion of the device is an important characteristic of this interaction, existing studies on this subject are very limited. This paper proposes a method to estimate this displacement in vivo using a registration technique on magnetic resonance images. The amplitude, the location and the direction of the earcanal wall displacement are …

Photoreception And Eye Regeneration Mechanisms In Planarians, Taylor R. Birkholz

Dissertations

Although humans lack the ability to regenerate complete organs and limbs following amputation or injury, there are many other species (both vertebrates and invertebrates) that can. Significant advances have been made in understanding the genetic mechanisms that regulate organ regeneration in these species, including regeneration of eye tissues such as the lens and retina. Planarians are an established historical model used to study regeneration due to their ability to regenerate any organ, including the eye. With recent advances in molecular genetic analyses, planarians are now an emerging model for the specific study of eye regeneration mechanisms. Furthermore, regeneration of the …