Bladder cancer is one of the most common urogenital cancers worldwide. Two techniques commonly used for bladder cancer diagnosis are urine cytology and cystoscopy. Cytology is not sensitive for detecting tumors. Cystoscopy is an invasive technique which disturbs patient comfort. In the current study, we used Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy as a novel method which is rapid and non-invasive to investigate the bladder tumor recurrence using the bladder wash samples collected in the course of control cystoscopy. This study is unique since it is the first one to use the bladder wash sample in the diagnosis of the bladder tumor by using FT-IR spectroscopy. Molecular investigation of the FT-IR spectra revealed many differences between control and tumor samples such as a considerable increase in protein, carbohydrate and nucleic acids content, and changes in protein and carbohydrate structure. On the basis of the spectral differences, cluster analysis was performed to differentiate between the control and tumorous spectra and we reached to an overall sensitivity (including all individuals with tumor) of 91.8%, a PUNLMP sensitivity of 83.3% and a papilloma sensitivity of 77.8% in spectral range 1444-1457 cm-1. Other spectral ranges also gave similar results. Our results showed that FT-IR spectroscopy can be used to detect the bladder tumors in bladder wash sample with higher sensitivity compared to cytology. In summary, we propose the utilization of the FT-IR spectroscopy for the detection of bladder tumors since specific spectral regions might be used as effective markers for the diagnosis.

Thesis (M.S.)--Washington State University, 2002. / Title from PDF title page (viewed May 26, 2005). Includes bibliographical references (p. 116-118).

Thesis (M.A.)--Portland State University, 2002. / Computer-produced typeface. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 119-123).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Washington State University, 2002. / Title from PDF title page (viewed on May 26, 2005). Includes bibliographical references (p. 275-279).

Thesis (D.W.S.)--Institute for Worship Studies, 2002. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 419-420).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Washington, 2002. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 208-218).

Thesis (M.E.S.)--The Evergreen State College, 2009. / Title from title screen (viewed 2/25/2010). Includes bibliographical references (p. 103-106).

Thesis (M.E.S.)--The Evergreen State College, 2009. / Title from title screen (viewed 2/25/2010). Includes bibliographical references (p. 102-107).

Thesis (M.E.S.)--The Evergreen State College, 2009. / Title from title screen (viewed 2/25/2010). Includes bibliographical references (leaves 44-49).

Havsmiljöer är idag den slutliga anhalten för den nedskräpning av plast som kommer ifrån avloppsvatten och allmän nedskräpning. Stora mängder plastpartiklar i olika storlekar har upptäckts i haven och även inuti djur som misstagit plasten som föda. Forskning visar att en stor del av plasten är av mikroskopisk storlek, så kallade mikroplaster. Inom denna grupp förekommer textilfibrer som likt andra plaster är svårnedbrytbara i naturen. Det har genom studier påvisats att små textila fiber rinner ut med avloppsvattnet och hamnar i haven. PET är en av de vanligaste plasterna och utifrån denna tillverkas polyesterfiber som är det i särklass mest använda materialet inom textiltillverkning. Att plastfragment från textilier skadar havsmiljön är en ny upptäckt och ämnet behöver undersökas i fler dimensioner än vad forskningen hittills gjort. Projektet syftar därför till att klargöra vilka egenskaper som påverkar mängden emission av polyesterfiber vid hushållsnära tvättning. Detta uppnås genom experimentella undersökningar av olika materialkombinationer som tvättas under lika omständigheter. Tvättvattnet analyseras och fibrerna räknas för att erhålla en jämförande studie kring polyestermaterials tendens till fällning av fibrer. Tre faktorer stod till grund för framtagning av metod: utveckling och förbättring av nuvarande metod, att efterlikna hushållstvätt samt tillförlitlighet i resultat. Detta har uppnåtts genom att laborationstvättmaskiner använts istället för kommersiella då detta ger ett vetenskapligt mer säkerställt resultat, något som har bejakats i största möjliga mån i varje steg. Alla polyestermaterial är stickade, färgade och mekaniskt bearbetade på Textilhögskolan för att garantera att samtliga material är tillverkade under samma förhållanden. Olika filtreringsmetoder har testats för att fastställa säkerhet i resultatet. Framtagning av material, tvättning, filtrering och analys var de centrala huvudmomenten för det praktiska arbetet. Analysen har gjorts manuellt där varje partikel på filtret har räknats. Resultatet visade att mikrofibergarn generellt fällde mer än filamentgarn. En högre delning vid stickning gav mer emission än en lägre och att material som slitits resulterade i mer shedding. Kombination av dessa tre faktorer; mikrofibergarn, hög delning och material som slitits gav ett resultat markant större mängd fiberemission än de tyger med endast två av dessa faktorer sammansatta. Tygerna som endast innehöll en av dessa faktorer gav betydligt lägre mängd fällning. Fleecematerial stickat i mikrofibergarn visade sig fälla mindre än en slätstickad vara med samma garntyp stickad i högre delning. Metoden som använts vid framtagning av fleecematerial är ifrågasatt, då kvalitén av dessa inte tycktes motsvara en industriellt framtagen fleecevara. Därför ställer man sig kritisk till detta resultat. De tyger som gav störst respektive minst andel emission av fibrer tvättades ytterligare för att studera inverkan av upprepad tvättning. Emissionen ökade med antal tvättar tills den så småningom avtog när fibrer slitits bort. Resultatet visar att man i största möjliga mån inte bör kombinera polyestervaror i trikå med garn 100den/144f, delning 28 som är smärglad. / The marine environment today, has become the end station for plastics, waste from wastewater and general litter. Large quantities of plastic particles of different sizes have been detected in the ocean, with resulting animals ingesting this mistaking it for food. Science shows that a large part of these plastic fragments are of microscopic size, named microplastics, and within this group there are textile fibres that like other plastics are resistant and detrimental to nature. Studies have shown that when washing, the wastewater carries these small textile fibres and allows them to pass trough the purification.   PET is one of the most used plastics and common in polyester fibre manufacture, by far the most used material in textile manufacturing. A new discovery, finds that the plastic fragments damage the marine environment, and the subject needs to be analysed in more detail than research has covered so far. This project aims to clarify which properties affect the amount of polyester fibre emissions when domestic washing. To investigate this, experimental tests were carried out on different material combinations washed under the same circumstances. Water from the wash was analysed and fibres were counted in order to complete a comparative study of polyester materials tend to shed.   Three factors were considered for developing the method: development and improvement of existing method, aiming to resemble household wash and ensure reliability of results, all done by laboration washers instead of using commercial washing machines. Safety of results has been considerably affirmed during every step. Every polyester material was knitted, coloured and mechanically processed by the research group to guarantee that all of the materials was manufactured under same conditions. Different filter methods have been used to determine safety in results. Manufacturing of material, washing, filtering and analysis were the central focus for the practical work. The analysis came from manual count of every fibre particle.   The result showed that microfiber yarn generally shed more than the filament yarn. A higher gauge gave more emission than a lower and that a worn material resulted in more shedding. The combination of these three factors; microfiber yarn, high gauge and a worn material gave markedly higher results than when tested with only two factors. The tests that only contained one of these factors gave significantly lower amount of emission. Fleece knitted in microfiber yarn had a lower level of shedding than a single jersey material in same yarn type with higher gauge. The method used for manufacturing is questioned, because the quality that should correspond an industrial produced fleece was not matched. Therefore, the result is critically inspected. The two combinations from the chosen parameters that gave the most respective and the least amount fibre emission were analysed additionally with more wash to assess their further effect. Here the emission seemed to increase with the amount of wash until it eventually subsided when more or less the fibres had worn away. Based on this result, one can finally say that these three factors should not be combined to manufacture knitted material in polyester.