Search results for "Biomedical engineering"
showing 10 items of 2020 documents
Polyester vascular prostheses coated with a cyclodextrin polymer and activated with antibiotics: Cytotoxicity and microbiological evaluation
2008
Abstract Polyester (PET) vascular grafts are used to replace or bypass damaged arteries. To minimize the risk of infection during and after surgical interventions, a PET vascular prosthesis (Polythese®) was functionalized with cyclodextrin polymers (PolyCDs) in order to obtain the controlled release of antibiotics (ABs: ciprofloxacin, vancomcyin and rifampicin). An epithelial cell line (L132) was used to determine the viability of the antibiotics, and human pulmonary microvascular endothelial cells (HPMEC) were used for cell proliferation by cell counting and cell vitality with Alamar Blue fluorescent dye. Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli and Enteroccocus sp. were used to determine t…
Unfolding dynamics of small peptides biased by constant mechanical forces
2018
We show how multi-ensemble Markov state models can be combined with constant-force equilibrium simulations. Besides obtaining the unfolding/folding rates, Markov state models allow gaining detailed insights into the folding dynamics and pathways through identifying folding intermediates and misfolded structures. For two specific peptides, we demonstrate that the end-to-end distance is an insufficient reaction coordinate. This problem is alleviated through constructing models with multiple collective variables, for which we employ the time-lagged independent component analysis requiring only minimal prior knowledge. Our results show that combining Markov state models with constant-force simu…
Bioresponsive poly(amidoamine)s designed for intracellular protein delivery.
2013
Poly(amidoamine)s with bioreducible disulfide linkages in the main chain (SS-PAAs) and pH-responsive, negatively charged citraconate groups in the sidechain have been designed for effective intracellular delivery and release of proteins with a net positive charge at neutral pH. Using lysozyme as a cationic model protein these water soluble polymers efficiently self-assemble into nanocomplexes by charge attraction. At pH 5 (the endosomal pH) the amide linkages connecting the citraconate groups in the sidechains of the SS-PAAs are hydrolyzed by intramolecular catalysis, resulting in expulsion of the negative citraconate groups and formation of protonated amine groups, resulting in charge reve…
Critical parameters for adduct formation of the carcinogen (+)-anti-benzo[a]pyrene-7,8-dihydrodiol 9,10-epoxide with oligonucleotides.
1997
Various parameters relevant for the formation of dG adducts produced in the reaction of individual benzo[a]pyrene diol epoxide (BPDE) stereoisomers with oligonucleotides have been studied. Reaction time, temperature, pH, molar ratio of diol epoxide and oligonucleotide, base sequence, and buffer system were shown to affect the amount of (+)-anti-BPDE dG adducts formed. Optimum experimental conditions for dG adduct formation were different depending on the base sequence context of the oligonucleotide employed [5'-d(CCTATAGATATCC) or 5'-d(CCTATTGCTATCC)]. In general, low temperature to allow a longer reaction time, slightly alkaline Tris-HCl (pH 7.5-8.0) or alkaline phosphate buffer (pH 11), l…
A stereotactic device for rabbits based on mandibular and cranial landmarks
2008
✓ The authors have developed a stereotactic device for use in rabbits that uses the plane at the base of the mandible combined with cranial sutures as an anatomical reference. The device was developed for a study designed to evaluate catheters for infection prophylaxis, and this required the implantation of silicone catheters along a reproducible trajectory through the lateral ventricle. Cadaver and atlas studies demonstrated consistent spatial relationships between intracranial structures and the surface plane on which the animals were resting during the surgery. This plane is formed by the 2 mandibular angles and the mandibular tip. The authors developed a stainless steel stereotactic dev…
Diffusion of ionic and non-ionic contrast agents in articular cartilage with increased cross-linking--contribution of steric and electrostatic effect…
2013
Abstract Objective To investigate the effect of threose-induced collagen cross-linking on diffusion of ionic and non-ionic contrast agents in articular cartilage. Design Osteochondral plugs (O=6mm) were prepared from bovine patellae and divided into two groups according to the contrast agent to be used in contrast enhanced computed tomography (CECT) imaging: (I) anionic ioxaglate and (II) non-ionic iodixanol. The groups I and II contained 7 and 6 sample pairs, respectively. One of the paired samples served as a reference while the other was treated with threose to induce collagen cross-linking. The equilibrium partitioning of the contrast agents was imaged after 24h of immersion. Fixed char…
Hadamard NMR imaging with slice selection
1996
Stochastic NMR imaging is one of the less common NMR imaging techniques. Nevertheless, stochastic rf excitation is characterized by some remarkable features: the rf excitation power is at least two orders of magnitude lower in comparison to conventionally pulsed NMR imaging schemes. Thus, the technique is of interest for imaging of large objects. The systematic noise inherent in images obtained with random noise excitation has been eliminated by using pseudorandom noise together with Hadamard transformation for data evaluation. Data acquisition times are comparable to those of ultrafast imaging techniques. For slice selection, z magnetization is destroyed outside the slice region with speci…
Registration and fusion of segmented left atrium CT images with CARTO electrical maps for the ablative treatment of atrial fibrillation
2005
This study aims to extract the interior surface of the left atrium (LA) and pulmonary veins (PVs) from threedimensional tomographic data and to integrate it with LA CARTO electrical maps. The separation of LA and PVs from other overlapping structures of the heart was performed processing 3D CT data by marker-controlled watershed segmentation and surface extraction. CARTO maps were then registered on the L A internal surface by a stochastic optimization algorithm based on simulated annealing. The residual registration error resulted inferior to 3 mm. The integration between electrophysiological and high resolved anatomic information of LA results feasible and may constitute a significant sup…
Recent advances in surface plasmon resonance biosensors for microRNAs detection
2020
miRNAs are a large family of non-coding RNAs which play important roles in translational and post-transcriptional regulation of gene expression and biological processes. Abnormal expression of miRNAs is related to the initiation and progression of different diseases which make them be promising candidates for early medical diagnostics. Thus, accurate detection of miRNAs has great significance for disorder diagnosis. Nevertheless, their intrinsic characteristics such as short sequence, low concentration and sequence homology challenge routine techniques. The detection assays need to be extremely sensitive and selective in small value of intricate RNA samples. Biosensor-based strategies have …
Formation of protein multilayers and their competitive replacement based on self-assembled biotinylated phospholipids.
1994
Based on specific recognition processes the build-up of protein multilayers was achieved using streptavidin layers as a docking matrix. For this purpose, streptavidin was organized at biotin-containing monolayers, liposomes, and self-assembled layers on gold. Thus, mixed double and triple layers of streptavidin, Con A, Fab fragments, and hormones were prepared and characterized by fluorescence microscopy and plasmon spectroscopy. Using biotin analogues with lower binding constants several cycles of multilayer formation followed by competitive replacement could be achieved.