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Description
Aqueous solutions of temperature-responsive copolymers based on N-isopropylacrylamide (NIPAAm) hold promise for medical applications because they can be delivered as liquids and quickly form gels in the body without organic solvents or chemical reaction. However, their gelation is often followed by phase-separation and shrinking. Gel shrinking and water loss is

Aqueous solutions of temperature-responsive copolymers based on N-isopropylacrylamide (NIPAAm) hold promise for medical applications because they can be delivered as liquids and quickly form gels in the body without organic solvents or chemical reaction. However, their gelation is often followed by phase-separation and shrinking. Gel shrinking and water loss is a major limitation to using NIPAAm-based gels for nearly any biomedical application. In this work, a graft copolymer design was used to synthesize polymers which combine the convenient injectability of poly(NIPAAm) with gel water content controlled by hydrophilic side-chain grafts based on Jeffamine® M-1000 acrylamide (JAAm). The first segment of this work describes the synthesis and characterization of poly(NIPAAm-co-JAAm) copolymers which demonstrates controlled swelling that is nearly independent of LCST. The graft copolymer design was then used to produce a degradable antimicrobial-eluting gel for prevention of prosthetic joint infection. The resorbable graft copolymer gels were shown to have three unique characteristics which demonstrate their suitability for this application. First, antimicrobial release is sustained and complete within 1 week. Second, the gels behave like viscoelastic fluids, enabling complete surface coverage of an implant without disrupting fixation or movement. Finally, the gels degrade rapidly within 1-6 weeks, which may enable their use in interfaces where bone healing takes place. Graft copolymer hydrogels were also developed which undergo Michael addition in situ with poly(ethylene glycol) diacrylate to form elastic gels for endovascular embolization of saccular aneurysms. Inclusion of JAAm grafts led to weaker physical crosslinking and faster, more complete chemical crosslinking. JAAm grafts prolonged the delivery window of the system from 30 seconds to 220 seconds, provided improved gel swelling, and resulted in stronger, more elastic gels within 30 minutes after delivery.
ContributorsOverstreet, Derek (Author) / Caplan, Michael (Thesis advisor) / Massia, Stephen (Committee member) / Mclaren, Alexander (Committee member) / Vernon, Brent (Committee member) / McLemore, Ryan (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
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Description
This report provides information concerning qualities of methylcellulose and how those properties affect further experimentation within the biomedical world. Utilizing the compound’s biocompatibility many issues, ranging from surgical to cosmetic, can be solved. As of recent, studies indicate, methylcellulose has been used as a physically cross-linked gel, which

This report provides information concerning qualities of methylcellulose and how those properties affect further experimentation within the biomedical world. Utilizing the compound’s biocompatibility many issues, ranging from surgical to cosmetic, can be solved. As of recent, studies indicate, methylcellulose has been used as a physically cross-linked gel, which cannot sustain a solid form within the body. Therefore, this report will ultimately explore the means of creating a non-degradable, injectable, chemically cross-linking methylcellulose- based hydrogel. Methylcellulose will be evaluated and altered in experiments conducted within this report and a chemical cross-linker, developed from Jeffamine ED 2003 (O,O′-Bis(2-aminopropyl) polypropylene glycol-block-polyethylene glycol-block-polypropylene glycol), will be created. Experimentation with these elements is outlined here, and will ultimately prompt future revisions and analysis.
ContributorsBundalo, Zoran Luka (Author) / Vernon, Brent (Thesis director) / LaBelle, Jeffrey (Committee member) / Overstreet, Derek (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / Harrington Bioengineering Program (Contributor)
Created2013-05
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Description
Biofilm derived orthopedic infections are increasingly common after contamination of an open bone fracture or the surgical site pre- and post-orthopedic prosthetic insertion or removal. These infections are usually difficult to eradicate due to the resistant nature of biofilms to antimicrobial therapy. Difficulty of treatment of biofilm derived infections is

Biofilm derived orthopedic infections are increasingly common after contamination of an open bone fracture or the surgical site pre- and post-orthopedic prosthetic insertion or removal. These infections are usually difficult to eradicate due to the resistant nature of biofilms to antimicrobial therapy. Difficulty of treatment of biofilm derived infections is also partly due to the presence of persister cells in the biofilm matrix. Persister cells are tolerant to antimicrobial therapy delivered via the systemic route. It is thus possible for these cells to repopulate their environment once systemic antimicrobial delivery is discontinued. The antimicrobial concentration required to eradicate bacterial biofilms, minimum biofilm eradication concentration (MBEC), can be determined in vitro by exposing biofilms to different regimens of antimicrobial solutions. Previous studies have demonstrated that values of the MBEC vary depending on the material and surface the biofilm grows on. This study investigated the relationship between antimicrobial susceptibility and antimicrobial exposure time, and the effects of surface material type on the antimicrobial susceptibility of staphylococcal biofilms. It was concluded that antimicrobial susceptibility increases with increased antimicrobial exposure time, and that the investigated surface and material properties did not have an effect on the susceptibility of staphylococcal biofilms to antimicrobial therapy. Further investigation is however necessary to confirm these results due to some inconsistent data obtained over the course of the trials.
ContributorsTavaziva, Gamuchirai Clinton (Author) / Vernon, Brent (Thesis director) / Overstreet, Derek (Committee member) / Castaneda, Paulo (Committee member) / Harrington Bioengineering Program (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2016-05