8 research outputs found

    Development of novel synthetic and systems biology tools for investigating and obviating the effect of atherogenic blood flow on vascular cells

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    The high mortality from cardiovascular diseases is caused by atherosclerosis. Atherosclerosis develops due to multiple factors, including biomechanical factors, such as shear stress generated by the flow of blood on the inner lining of blood vessels. In order to tackle this serious life-threatening condition, we aimed to develop synthetic and systems biology tools for studying the effect of atherogenic shear stress regimes on vascular cells. Our tools could potentially also lead to the identification of drug targets and of drug candidates against cardiovascular disease. The first tool that we developed is a network of genes consisting of a shear stress sensor module, a reporter module and a linker module which signals from the sensor to the reporter module. This circuit is capable of processing the shear stress or ligand activation signal into a fluorescent readout, allowing screening for drug candidate compounds that modify the activity of the shear stress sensor. Instead of the reporter module, the gene network could be coupled to therapeutic genes in order to express these genes under atherogenic shear stress conditions. Our second developed tool is a flow chamber which facilitates exposure of vascular cells to linearly increasing shear stress along the length of the channel floor for in vitro cellular biomechanical studies. This device outperforms currently available linear shear stress inducing devices in terms of the magnitude of shear stress range, linearity of shear stress along the channel length, and the large sampling area granted by the uniformity of shear stress across the channel width. The third tool that we developed is an electroporation and flow device capable of inserting genetic material into primary vascular cells in their adherent state, exposing these cells to fluid flow. This device allows investigations into cardiovascular mechanotransduction pathways under relevant physiological flow conditions.Open Acces

    Technology Entrepreneurship : A Treatise on Entrepreneurs and Entrepreneurship for and in Technology Ventures. Band 2

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    The treatise is the first coherent and comprehensive presentation of the important sub-field of "technology entrepreneurship" emphasizing the science and engineering perspectives. It is a presentation of technology entrepreneurship as an inter-cultural approach referring to the US and Germany. It integrates micro- and macro aspects referring to numerous cases of firms\u27 foundations. The book provides also a new semi-quantitative approach to growth of new technology ventures

    THIESEL 2022. Conference on Thermo-and Fluid Dynamics of Clean Propulsion Powerplants

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    The THIESEL 2022. Conference on Thermo-and Fluid Dynamic Processes in Direct Injection Engines planned in Valencia (Spain) for 8th to 11th September 2020 has been successfully held in a virtual format, due to the COVID19 pandemic. In spite of the very tough environmental demands, combustion engines will probably remain the main propulsion system in transport for the next 20 to 50 years, at least for as long as alternative solutions cannot provide the flexibility expected by customers of the 21st century. But it needs to adapt to the new times, and so research in combustion engines is nowadays mostly focused on the new challenges posed by hybridization and downsizing. The topics presented in the papers of the conference include traditional ones, such as Injection & Sprays, Combustion, but also Alternative Fuels, as well as papers dedicated specifically to CO2 Reduction and Emissions Abatement.Papers stem from the Academic Research sector as well as from the IndustryXandra Marcelle, M.; Payri Marín, R.; Serrano Cruz, JR. (2022). THIESEL 2022. Conference on Thermo-and Fluid Dynamics of Clean Propulsion Powerplants. Editorial Universitat Politècnica de València. https://doi.org/10.4995/Thiesel.2022.632801EDITORIA

    Safety and Reliability - Safe Societies in a Changing World

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    The contributions cover a wide range of methodologies and application areas for safety and reliability that contribute to safe societies in a changing world. These methodologies and applications include: - foundations of risk and reliability assessment and management - mathematical methods in reliability and safety - risk assessment - risk management - system reliability - uncertainty analysis - digitalization and big data - prognostics and system health management - occupational safety - accident and incident modeling - maintenance modeling and applications - simulation for safety and reliability analysis - dynamic risk and barrier management - organizational factors and safety culture - human factors and human reliability - resilience engineering - structural reliability - natural hazards - security - economic analysis in risk managemen

    Systems Perspectives on Electromobility 2013

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    The transportation of goods and people is at the heart of the industrial society. Yet transportation relies heavily upon oil – a scarce fossil fuel that contributes to climate change and local air pollution. The term ‘electromobility’ refers to an alternative transportation system based on vehicles propelled by electricity. Electromobility is increasingly seen as favourable in that it could circumvent problems related to both oil and biofuels whilst meeting our mobility needs and desires. However, the virtue of electromobility is not uncontested and a range of issues come to the fore. Are electric vehicles energy efficient? Are they safe? How much greenhouse gas is emitted in the production of electricity and advanced vehicle components? Will battery production lead to new resource problems? Will electromobility promote or hinder the diffusion of renewable energy? Will driving patterns shape or be shaped by new types of vehicles? Is electromobility suitable for cars but not freight transport? How is technical knowledge for electromobility produced and by whom? Is the automotive industry up to the challenge? Is there a need for new business models and governmental policy support (or both) to stimulate market demand for electric vehicles? There is no simple answer to these questions. However, studying electromobility from different systems perspectives can help to resolve these complex issues. Systems Perspectives on Electromobility 2013 is composed of fifteen chapters that address different topics related to the immensely important issue of whether – and to what extent – our transport systems can and should be energised by electricity. The book is far from complete, but we hope it may be a useful starting point for future discussions and debates

    The Plastics Collection Reference Packet

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    This reference packet is an informational tool to support further research into the history of plastics—whether interested in companies, individuals within the plastics industry\u27s history, historical plastics materials, essays, and more. All content featured within this packet was previously published on the former plastics.syr.edu website as part of a Syracuse University Libraries and Special Collections Research Center (SCRC) partnership established in 2007 with the Plastics Pioneers Association (PPA)—an association of plastics industry professionals interested in preserving the plastics industry\u27s past

    Annual Report

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    The development of microfluidic based processes

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    Doctor of Science (DSc) thesis.Full version unavailable due to 3rd party copyright restrictions
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