Résumé : L’ictère néonatal, lié à l’hyperbilirubinémie, touche 90% des nouveau-nés prématurés. L’hyperbilirubinémie provoque des troubles neurologiques aigus (somnolence, dystonie, difficultés alimentaires, atteinte de l’audition) et a été reliée à des anomalies du contrôle respiratoire. Ces résultats suggèrent une neurotoxicité de la bilirubine sur le tronc cérébral, qui pourrait aussi affecter les centres déglutiteurs. Le but de cette étude est de tester notre hypothèse selon laquelle l’hyperbilirubinémie altère la déglutition nutritive et la coordination déglutition-respiration chez l’agneau prématuré. 11 agneaux prématurés (nés 14 jours avant terme) ont été randomisés dans un groupe contrôle (n = 6) et un groupe bilirubine (n = 5). À 5 jours de vie, une hyperbilirubinémie modérée (150-250 μmol/L) était induite pendant 17h chez les agneaux du groupe bilirubine. La déglutition était étudiée par l’enregistrement de la pression pharyngée, et la respiration était évaluée par pléthysmographie d’inductance respiratoire et oxymétrie de pouls. L’effet de l’hyperbilirubinémie sur la déglutition nutritive (DN) était évalué pendant une alimentation au biberon standardisée, avec du lait de brebis. Un second enregistrement était réalisé 48h plus tard, après normalisation de la bilirubine. L’alimentation était moins performante (mL/min) dans le groupe bilirubine (p = 0,002) avec des DN moins fréquentes (p = 0,003) et de plus petit volume (p = 0,01). Ces différences n’étaient pas retrouvées à distance de l’hyperbilirubinémie. La coordination déglutition-respiration était également altérée chez les agneaux du groupe bilirubine, indiquée par une tendance à la diminution de la durée de l’inhibition respiratoire pendant les bouffées de DN (p < 0,1), ceci pendant et après l’hyperbilirubinémie. Simultanément, pendant l’alimentation, les agneaux du groupe bilirubine passaient plus de temps en désaturations sévère (< 80%) que ceux du groupe contrôle. Enfin, une diminution de la fréquence respiratoire associée à une augmentation des apnées étaient observées dans les minutes suivant l’alimentation dans le groupe bilirubine (p < 0,05). La déglutition et la coordination déglutition-respiration sont altérées par l’hyperbilirubinémie modérée, chez l’agneau prématuré. La diminution globale d’efficacité de l’alimentation au biberon est associée à une poursuite de la respiration durant les bouffées de DN, ce qui pourrait favoriser les aspirations pulmonaires de lait. / Abstract : Rationale: Jaundice, secondary to hyperbilirubinemia (HB), develops in 90% of preterm newborns. HB induces acute neurological disorders (somnolence, abnormal tone, feeding difficulties, auditory dysfunction) and has been linked to alterations in respiratory control. These findings suggest neurotoxicity in the brainstem that could also affect swallowing centers. This study aims to test our hypothesis that HB impairs nutritive swallowing and swallowing‐breathing coordination in the preterm lamb. Methods: Two groups of preterm lambs (born 14 days prior to term), control (C, n = 6) and hyperbilirubinemia (HB, n = 5) were studied. At day 5 of life, moderate HB (150‐250 μmol/L) was induced during 17 h in HB lambs. Swallowing was assessed via recording of pharyngeal pressure, and respiration was studied by respiratory inductance plethysmography and pulsed oximetry. HB effect on nutritive swallowing was assessed during standardized bottle‐feeding with ewe milk. A second recording was performed 48 hours later, after recovery from hyperbilirubinemia. Results: Swallows were less frequent (p = 0.003) and of smaller volume (p = 0.01) in HB lambs, with a consequent decrease in minute swallowing in HB lambs (p = 0,004). These differences were not found after bilirubinemia was returned to normal. Swallowing‐breathing coordination was also impaired in HB lambs, as indicated by a tendency towards a decrease in % time with respiratory inhibition during bursts of swallows, during and after hyperbilirubinemia. Simultaneously, severe desaturations (< 80%) were longer in HB lambs than in C lambs. Finally, a decreased respiratory rate was observed immediately after feeding (p < 0,05), along with increased apneas duration. Conclusions: Both swallowing and swallowing‐breathing coordination are altered by acute, moderate HB in preterm lambs. The overall decreased efficiency at bottle‐feeding is accompanied by continuation of breathing during bursts of swallows, which may promote lung aspiration.

Heart rate variability (HRV) reflects dynamic variation in sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system (SNS and PNS) activity. The parasympathetic vagus nerve is responsible for HRV between 0.12 and 0.4 Hz, which is thought to index the capacity for effective coping, and is linked to physical and emotional well-being. Yogic breathing to increase vagal activity is often paced below 0.12 Hz (< 7.2 breaths per minute (BrPM)), where its impact HRV can be due to both sympathetic and parasympathetic mechanisms. Five healthy volunteers completed three pharmacological blockade sessions (placebo, sympathetic blockade with Esmolol, and parasympathetic blockade with Glycopyrrolate) about 48 hours apart, and during each session completed 11 Sudarshan Kriya Yogic breathing exercises at 4-9 BrPM. HRV was the lowest under Glycopyrrolate (p < 0.001), and there was no significant difference between placebo and sympathetic blockade with Esmolol. In addition, the spectral power of specific HRV frequencies was greatest at similar frequencies of breathing, a pattern prevented only by Glycopyrrolate. These findings suggest that heart rate is vagally influenced at all breathing rates, and that the SNS is not the mechanism by which slow breathing increases HRV.

Persistent pain conditions are a major health problem throughout the world and are one of the primary reasons that people seek medical treatment (Gureje, Von Korff, Simon, & Gater, 1998; Verhaak, Kerssens, Dekker, Sorbi, & Bensing, 1998). These conditions are characterized by complex interactions between cognitive, emotional, and physiological disturbances and are often associated with comorbid psychological disorders (Gatchel, 2004). Though previous studies have examined the effect of interventions targeting persistent pain, such as physical self-regulation interventions, few studies have examined the complex interaction between such interventions and other variables such as psychological and physiological functioning and presence of social support. The current study was designed to evaluate the effect of a physical self-regulation intervention (i.e. diaphragmatic breathing entrainment) on response to a brief physical stressor (i.e., mild thermal stimulation) as well as to evaluate whether presence or absence of a supportive partner influenced this relationship. Participant response was measured via self-report of pain intensity and unpleasantness and via physiological measures of respiration rate, blood pressure, heart rate, and heart rate variability. The study consisted of 154 female participants who participated in pairs (i.e., 77 pairs). Each participant was randomly assigned to training in diaphragmatic breathing or a control condition as well as being randomly assigned to complete the study with or without their supportive partner present. Analyses revealed that breathing entrainment resulted in significantly slower breathing rate during the thermal stressor task (p < .01). Presence of a supportive partner interacted with breathing entrainment to influence heart rate during the thermal stressor task (p < .05) such that participants who completed the study with a support person present had a lower heart rate when trained in diaphragmatic breathing than when trained in a control protocol and participants who did not have a support person present showed the opposite effect. Presence of a supportive partner also interacted with breathing entrainment to influence ratings of task unpleasantness (p < .05) such that participants who were trained in diaphragmatic breathing rated the task similarly regardless of presence or absence of a supportive partner, whereas participants who were trained in a control protocol rated the task as more unpleasant when accompanied by a supportive partner. In conclusion, the present study demonstrates the impact of training in diaphragmatic breathing and presence of social support on response to thermal stimuli as measured by both self-report (i.e., ratings of task unpleasantness) and physiological (i.e., respiration rate and heart rate) measures. This study highlights the usefulness of implementing a self-regulatory training strategy for treatment of pain and in considering the efficacy of incorporating a supportive partner into such training.

Synthetic biology views a complex biological system as an ensemble in the hierarchy of parts, devices, systems, and networks. The practice of using engineering rules such as decoupling and standardization to understand, predict, and re-build novel biological functions from model-driven designed genetic circuits is emphasized. It is one of the top ten technologies that could help solving the current and potential risks in human society. Cyanobacteria have been considered as a promising biological system in conducting oxygenic photosynthesis to convert solar energy into reducing power, which drives biochemical reactions to assimilate and generate chemicals for a specific purpose such as CO2 fixation, N2 fixation, bioremediation, or fuels production. The promoter is a key biological part to construct feedback loops in genetic circuits for a desired biological function. In this thesis, promoters that don't work in the cyanobacterium Synechocystis PCC 6803 in terms of promoter strength, and dynamic range of gene regulation are identified. Biological parts, such as ribosome binding sites, and reporter genes with and without protease tags were also characterized with the home-built broad-host-range BioBrick shuttle vector pPMQAK1. The strong L03 promoter, which can be tightly regulated in a wide dynamic range by the foreign Tet repressor, was created through an iterative promoter engineering cycle. The iteration cycle of DNA breathing dynamic simulations and quantification of a reporting signal at a single-cell level should guide through the engineering process of making promoters with intended regulatory properties. This thesis is an essential step in creating functional promoters and it could be applied to create more diverse promoters to realize the emphasized practices of synthetic biology to build synthetic cyanobacteria for direct fuel production and CO2 assimilation.

Su kvėpavimu yra susiję daug organizmo fiziologinių sistemų, ypač širdies ir kraujagyslių sistema. Įvairūs kvėpavimo pratimai yra plačiai taikomi tiek sporte, tiek reabilitacijoje kaip veiksnys veikiantis į organizmo funkcinę būklę. Todėl įdomi ir aktuali yra mokslinė problema, ar specialiai taikomi kvėpavimo pratimai turi įtakos širdies ir kraujagyslių sistemos funkciniams rodikliams ir jų kaitai fizinių krūvių metu. Tyrimo objektas – širdies ir kraujagyslių sistemos funkciniai rodikliai ir ypatybės atliekant kvėpavimo pratimus. Hipotezė: manome, kad specialiai taikomi kvėpavimo pratimai turi teigiamos įtakos širdies ir kraujagyslių sistemos funkciniams rodikliams ir jų kaitai atliekant fizinius pratimus. Darbo tikslas: nustatyti širdies susitraukimo dažnio kaitos ypatybes atliekant kvėpavimo pratimą, jungiantį hiperventiliaciją ir kvėpavimo sulaikymus. Uždaviniai: 1. Nustatyti ŠSD ir elektrokardiogramos intervalų JT ir RR santykio kaitos ypatybes aktyvios hiperventiliacijos ir kvėpavimo sulaikymų metu. 2. Nustatyti ar kinta širdies ir kraujagyslių sistemos funkcinės būklės rodiklių pasikeitimo laipsnis reaguojant į pakartotinas hiperventiliacijas ir kvėpavimo sulaikymus. 3. Nustatyti nuovargio įtaką ŠKS funkcinės būklės rodiklių kaitai atliekant kvėpavimo pratimą jungiantį hiperventiliaciją ir kvėpavimo sulaikymus. Tyrimo metodai ir organizavimas: 1. Elektrokardiografija; 2. Arterinio kraujo spaudimo matavimas; 3. Fizinio krūvio mėginiai. Tyrimas atliktas LSU... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / Breathing is related to many physiological systems, especially the cardiovascular system. Various breathing exercises are widely used both in sports and rehabilitation as a factor, acting on the body's functional status. It is therefore interesting and relevant to the scientific problem whether specific breathing exercises influence cardiovascular functional parameters and their changes during exercise. The object of investigation - cardiovascular functional state indicators and features of the breathing exercises. Aim: To identify the changing features in heart rate during breathing exercise that connects hyperventilation and respiratory detentions. Objectives: 1. To identify heart rate and the changing features of electrocardiogram intervals JT and RR ratio during active hyperventilation and breath holding. 2. To identify whether the cardiovascular functional state indicators changes in response to repeated hyperventilation and respiratory detentions. 3. To identify the fatigue influence on cardiovascular functional state indicators during breathing exercises that connects hyperventilation and breathing detentions. Hypothesis: We believe that specific breathing exercises have a positive effect on cardiovascular functional parameters and their changes during exercise. The methods: 1. Electrocardiography; 2. Arterial blood pressure measurement; 3. Exercise test. Organization of the research: The research was conducted in LSU kinesiology lab in 2012-2014. Participated eight... [to full text]

The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of tenderness on problem solving. Thirty-four female undergraduates participated. In the experimental condition, participants received instructions to reproduce a specific respiratory-posturo-facial pattern that had induced tenderness in previous studies. Participants in the control condition performed a non-emotional exercise. After either the pattern or the control exercise, participants completed one of two jigsaw puzzles. One puzzle had only an empty room while the other had a family scene. For participants who worked on the room puzzle, the tenderness pattern led to longer completion times. In contrast, for participants who worked on the family puzzle, the tenderness pattern led to shorter completion times.

Approved for public release, distribution is unlimited / Operational characteristics of a valveless pulse detonation engine system were characterized by experimental measurements of thrust, fuel flow, and internal gas dynamics. The multi-cycle detonation experiments were performed on an axis-symmetric engine geometry operating on an ethylene/air mixtures. The detonation diffraction process from a small 'initiator' combustor to a larger diameter main combustor in a continuous airflow configuration was evaluated during multi-cycle operation of a pulse detonation engine and was found to be very successful at initiating combustion of the secondary fuel/air mixture at high frequencies. The configuration was used to demonstrate the benefit of generating an overdriven detonation condition near the diffraction plane for enhanced transmission of the larger combustor. Results have shown that the addition of optical sensors, such as tunable diode lasers, to provide fuel profile data are invaluable for providing high fidelity performance results. The performance results demonstrated the ability of the valveless pulse detonation engine to run at efficiencies similar to valved pulse detonation engine geometries and may be a low cost alternative to conventional air-breathing propulsion systems. / Funded By: N00014OWR20226. / Lieutenant, United States Navy

Bibliographische Beschreibung Krupnik, Viktoria Koordination zwischen Atmung und rhythmischen Unterarm-Trackingbewegungen bei unterschiedlichen mentalen Bedingungen der Trackingaufgabe Universität Leipzig, Dissertation 55 Seiten, 49 Lit., 9 Abb., 2 Tab., 1 Artikel Referat: Präzisionsbewegungen kommt eine steigende Rolle im täglichen Leben zu, z.B. bei der Bedienung von Smartphones und Computern. Sie unterliegen, wie alle motorischen Aktionen, der Koordination. Koordination bezeichnet die gegenseitige Beeinflussung des zeitlichen Ablaufs gleichzeitig ablaufender motorischer Prozesse, welche die Verschmelzung zu einem gemeinsamen Rhythmus oder die Einstellung stabiler Frequenz- bzw. Phasenbeziehungen zur Folge hat. Von besonderem Interesse ist die Koordination intendierter Bewegungen mit der stetig ablaufenden Atmung, die die Funktionsziele beider Prozesse beeinträchtigen kann. Wir untersuchten Atmungs-Bewegungs-Koordination (MRC) bei visuell geführten Folgebewegungen des Unterarms unter zwei hauptsächlichen Fragestellungen: a) Beeinträchtigt MRC die Genauigkeit der Folgebewegung? b) Wie beeinflussen erhöhte Genauigkeitsanforderung, Üben und aufgabenbezogene Belastung die Stärke der MRC? Ausgangshypothese war, dass die Folgegenauigkeit durch MRC verschlechtert wird. Außerdem vermuteten wir, dass die Stärke der MRC durch erhöhte Aufmerksamkeit und wiederholtes Üben verstärkt, durch höhere aufgabenspezifische Belastung (höhere Komplexität der Bewegung) dagegen verringert wird. 35 Probanden führten 8 Versuche unter verschiedenen Bedingungen durch: positive (gleichsinnige) Signal- Response-Beziehung (SRR), negative (gegensinnige) SRR als aufgabenbezogene Belastung, strenge (Leistungsanforderung) und weniger strenge (lockere) Instruktion. Die Versuche mit positiver und negativer SRR wurden zur Untersuchung von Übungseffekten je dreimal vorgenommen. Während die Stärke der MRC unter allen Bedingungen gleich blieb, variierte das Phasenkopplungsmuster. Unter positiver SRR und weniger strenger Instruktion wurde eine bestimmte Phasenbeziehung zur Atemperiode bevorzugt. Bei negativer SRR und strenger Instruktion zeigte sich ein engeres Kopplungsmuster mit zwei bevorzugten Phasenbeziehungen zur Atemperiode. MRC verbesserte die Folgegenauigkeit unter allen Versuchsbedingungen mit Ausnahme derjenigen mit lockerer Instruktion. Zur Verbesserung der Folgegenauigkeit trug vor allem ein geringerer Amplitudenfehler bei. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass erhöhte Konzentration die Phasenkopplung zwischen Folgebewegungen und Atmung verstärkt und die MRC-bedingte Verbesserung der Folgegenauigkeit weiter steigert.

A new dual fuel Controlled Auto-Ignition (CAI) combustion concept was proposed and researched for lower exhaust emissions and better fuel economy. The concept takes the advantage of the complementary physical and chemical properties of high octane number gasoline and high cetane number Di-Methyl Ether (DME) to organize the combustion process. Homogeneous gasoline/air mixture is utilized as the main combustible charge, which is realised by a low-cost Port Fuel Injection (PFI) system. Pressurised DME is directly injected into cylinder via a commercial Gasoline Direct Injection (GDI) injector. Flexible DME injection strategies are employed to realise the controlled auto ignition of the premixed charge. The engine is operated at Wide Open Throttle (WOT) in the entire operating region in order to minimize the intake pumping loss. Engine load is controlled by varing the amount of internal Exhaust Gas Recirculation (iEGR) which is achieved and adjusted by Positive Valve Overlap (PVO) and/or exhaust back pressure, and exhaust rebreathing method. The premixed mixture can be of either stoichiometric air/fuel ratio or fuel lean mixture and is heated and diluted by recycled exhaust gases. The use of internal EGR is considered as a very effective method to initiate CAI combustion due to its heating effect and moderation of the heat release rate by its dilution effect. In addition, the new combustion concept is compared to conventional SI combustion. The results indicate that the new combustion concept has potential for high efficiency, low emissions, enlargement of the engine operational region and flexible control of CAI combustion.

Respiratory motion poses significant problems in the radiotherapy of tumors located at sites (lung, liver, pancreas, breast) that are affected by such motion. Effects of respiratory motion on the different stages of the radiotherapy process (imaging, treatment planning and treatment delivery), has formed the focus of significant research over the last decade. Results from such research have revealed that respiratory motion affects the instantaneous position of almost all structures in the thorax and abdomen to different degrees based on their corresponding anatomic location and muscular attachments. As an example, diaphragm motion was found to be of the order of 1.5 cm, predominantly in the superior-inferior (SI) direction during normal breathing. This indicates a similar magnitude of motion for tumors located in the lower lobes of the lung and in the abdomen.The conventional method of accounting for such motion is to add a margin (based on an estimate of the expected range of organ motion) around the clinical target volume (CTV) that is delineated from the image data. This margin also includes errors due beam-bony anatomy alignment during radiation delivery and errors in patient position between simulation and subsequent treatment delivery sessions. Such a margin estimate may or may not encompass the "current" extent of motion exhibited by the tumor, resulting in either a higher dose to the surrounding normal tissue or a potential cold spot in the tumor volume. Several clinical studies have reported the existence of a direct relationship between the reduction in mean dose to the lung and the incidence of radiation induced pneumonitis. Therefore, subjecting additional normal lung tissue to high dose radiation by adding large margins based on organ motion estimates may result in an increased risk of radiation induced lung injury.Monitoring and accounting for respiratory motion can however potentate a reduction in the amount of normal tissue that receives high dose radiation, thereby decreasing the probability of normal tissue complication and also increasing the possibility for dose escalation to the actual tumor volume. The management (monitoring and accounting) of respiratory motion during radiation oncology forms the primary theme of this dissertation.Specific aims of this thesis dissertation include (a) identifying the deleterious effects of respiratory motion on conventional radiation therapy techniques (b) examining the different solutions that have been proposed to counter the deleterious effects of respiratory motion during radiotherapy (c) summarizing the relevant work conducted at our institution as part of this thesis in addressing the issue of respiratory motion and (d) visualizing the future direction of research in the management of respiratory motion in radiation oncology.Among the various techniques available to manage respiratory motion in radiation oncology such as respiratory gated and breath hold based radiotherapy, our research initially focused on respiratory gated radiotherapy, employing a commercially available external marker based real time position monitoring system. Multiple session recordings of simultaneous diaphragm motion and external marker motion revealed a consistent linear relationship between the two signals indicating that the external marker motion (along the anterior-posterior (AP) direction) could be used as a "surrogate" for motion of internal anatomy (along the SI direction). The predictability of diaphragm motion based on such external marker motion both within and between treatment sessions was also determined to be of the order of 0.1 cm.Analysis of the parameters that affected the accuracy and efficacy of respiratory gated radiotherapy revealed a direct relationship between the amount of residual motion and the width of the "gate" window. It also followed therefore that a trade-off existed between the width of the "gate" and the accuracy of gated treatments and also the overall "Beam ON" time. Further, gating during exhale was found to be more reproducible than gating during inhale. Although, it was evident that a reduction in the width of the "gate" implied a reduction in the margins added around the clinical target volume (CTV), such a reduction was limited by setup error.A study of the potential gains that could be derived from respiratory gating (based on motion phantom experimental set up) indicated a potential CTV-PTV margin reduction of 0.2-1.1 cm while employing gating alone in combination with an electronic portal imaging device, thus decreasing the amount of healthy tissue receiving radiation. In addition, gating also improved the quality of images obtained during simulation by reducing the amount of motion artifacts that are typically seen during conventional spiral CT imaging.Imparting some form of training was hypothesized to better enable patients to breathe in a reproducible fashion, which was further thought to increase the accuracy and efficacy of gated radiotherapy, especially when the "gate" was set close to the inhale portion of the breathing cycle. An analysis of breathing patterns recorded from five patients over several sessions under conditions of normal quiet breathing, breathing with audio instructions and breathing with visual feedback indicated that training improved the reproducibility of amplitude or frequency of patient breathing cycles.An initial exploration into respiration synchronized radiotherapy was thought to facilitate realization of reduced margins without having to hold the radiation beam delivery during a breathing cycle (as is the case with gating). A feasibility study based on superimposition of respiratory motion of a tumor (simulated by a sinusoidal motion oscillator) onto the initial beam aperture as formed by the multileaf collimator (MLC) revealed that tumor dose measurements obtained with such a set up were equivalent to those delivered to a static tumor by a static beam.Finally, a feasibility study for a method to acquire respiration synchronized images of a motion phantom and a patient (in order to perform respiration synchronized treatment planning and delivery) yielded success in the form of a 4D CT data set with reduced motion artifacts.In summary, respiratory gated radiotherapy and respiration synchronized are both viable approaches to account for respiratory motion during radiotherapy. While respiratory gated radiotherapy has been successfully implemented in some centers, several technical advances are required to enable similar success in the implementation of respiration synchronized radiotherapy. However, the potential clinical gains that can be obtained from either of the above approaches and their relative contributions to margin reduction will determine their future applicability as routine treatment procedures.