Introdução: A angioplastia transluminal periférica com o uso de stents revestidos tem se tornado uma opção viável para o tratamento da doença arterial obstrutiva em casos específicos, principalmente na região fêmuro-poplítea, apesar da incidência significativa de reestenose com papel importante do processo inflamatório. As citocinas são proteínas secretadas pelas células da imunidade natural e adquirida e participam de forma fundamental no processo inflamatório local e sistêmico. Objetivo: Avaliar as concentrações séricas de IL-1?, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, TNF-?, TGF-?1e PCR, além do colesterol total e leucometria antes e após o implante de stents revestidos e a possível associação com a reestenose precoce em pacientes com doença arterial periférica fêmoropoplítea. População e método: Foram recrutados 38 pacientes consecutivos do ambulatório de Cirurgia Vascular e Endovascular do HCFMRP-USP com indicação de angioplastia transluminal periférica nos quais foram utilizados stents revestidos no segmento fêmoro- poplíteo para tratamento de doença arterial obstrutiva periférica aterosclerótica. Todos os pacientes foram acompanhados com exames clínicos e de ultrassom Doppler durante até seis meses após o procedimento com dosagens séricas de citocinas, além da proteína C reativa, colesterol total e hemograma. Foi considerado reestenose estreitamentos maiores que 50% do lúmen do vaso, mensurados, inicialmente, pelo ultrassom e confirmado através da arteriografia. Resultados: Dentre os 27 pacientes que foram incluídos no estudo, 23 não apresentaram reestenose (85,2%) e quatro casos evoluíram com reestenose precoce (14,8%). Nenhuma das citocinas estudadas - IL-1?, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, TNF-? e TGF-? - mostrou correlação com a reestenose (p>0.05). Também não houve correlação do processo de reestenose com a proteína C reativa, colesterol total ou a leucometria (p>0.05). O índice tornozelo-braquial mostrou boa correlação com a evolução clínica dos pacientes. Conclusão: O perfil inflamatório de pacientes submetidos à angioplastia transluminal percutânea periférica com stents de nitinol revestidos de politetrafluoretileno avaliado através das citocinas séricas IL-1?, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, TNF-? e TGF-? mostrou significativo aumento das citocinas pró-inflamatórias logo após o procedimento. Não houve correlação de nenhuma das interleucinas estudadas ou ainda da proteína C reativa com o processo de reestenose. / Introduction: The peripheral transluminal angioplasty with the use of coated stents has become a viable option for the treatment of obstructive arterial disease in specific cases, mainly in the femoral-popliteal region, despite the significant incidence of restenosis with important role of the inflammatory process. Cytokines are proteins secreted by cells of natural and acquired immunity and participate in a fundamental way in the local and systemic inflammatory process. Objective: To evaluate the serum concentrations of IL-1?, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, TNF-?, TGF-?1 and PCR, as well as total cholesterol and leucometry before and after the implantation of coated stents and the possible association with early restenosis in patients with peripheral femoralpopliteal arterial disease. Population and method: 38 consecutive patients from the outpatient clinic of vascular and endovascular surgery of the HCFMRP-USP were recruited with indication of peripheral transluminal angioplasty in which the stent was coated in the femoropopliteal segment for the treatment of atherosclerotic peripheral obstructive arterial disease. All patients were followed up with clinical examinations and Doppler ultrasound for up to six months after the procedure with serum levels of cytokines, as well as C-reactive protein, total cholesterol and hemogram. It was considered restenosis narrowings greater than 50% of vessel lumen, measured, initially, by the ultrasound and confirmed by arteriography. Results: Of the 27 patients included in the study, 23 did not present restenosis (85.2%) and four cases evolved with early restenosis (14.8%). None of the cytokines studied - IL-1?, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, TNF-? and TGF-? - showed a correlation with restenosis (p> 0.05). There was also no correlation of the restenosis process with the C-reactive protein, total cholesterol or leucometry (p> 0.05). The ankle-brachial index showed a good correlation with the clinical evolution of the patients. Conclusions: The inflammatory profile of patients undergoing peripheral percutaneous transluminal angioplasty with polytetrafluoroethylene-coated nitinol stents evaluated through the serum cytokines IL-1?, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, TNF-? and TGF-? showed a significant increase in proinflammatory cytokines soon after the procedure. There was no correlation of any of the interleukins studied or the C-reactive protein with the restenosis process.

Thesis ( MPH.) --University of Limpopo, 2014 / The purpose of this study was to investigate the knowledge and practices among households at Ga-Mokgwathi Village regarding the disposal of mercury coated bulbs. Cross-sectional design with quantitative approach was used in this study. The study objectives were to determine the knowledge about the disposal methods of mercury coated bulbs and also to determine the practices of handling broken mercury coated bulbs among the villagers of Ga-Mokgwathi. Data collection was done using self-administered questionnaires. Cluster random sampling was used in the study where a total number of 338 households were randomly selected to participate in the study. The results indicated that 36.7 % of the households at Ga-Mokgwathi Village had knowledge of safe disposal methods of mercury coated bulbs, 7.7% were not sure and 55.6% did not have such knowledge. Furthermore, the results indicated that 51.5% of the households had improper practices regarding the handling of broken mercury coated bulbs, 6.2% were not sure and 42.3% had proper practices regarding the handling of broken mercury coated bulb. The results of the study concluded that the majority of people were lacking knowledge of proper disposal methods and the handling of mercury coated bulbs. These results necessitate education of people about the disposal methods and handling of mercury coated bulbs.

The ill-posed problem of aerosol size distribution determination from a small number of backscatter and extinction measurements was solved successfully with a mollifier method which is advantageous since the ill-posed part is performed on exactly given quantities, the points r where n(r) is evaluated may be freely selected. A new twodimensional model for the troposphere is proposed.

The mechanical behaviour of coated papers during folding has been investigated. This problem has been studied with experimental techniques and numerical analyses in order to give a better understanding of the folding properties of coated papers pertinent to the mechanical behaviour in general, and particularly cracking along the fold. A microscopy investigation has been performed. The surface of the folded paper has been carefully examined to study the event of fracture and related issues. The influence of the grammage on the cracking event has been studied and it was shown that the coating material would not fail if the paper sample was sufficiently thin. It was found that a stress or strain based criterion is sufficient to describe the cracking of the coating layers and that the anisotropy of paper should be taken into account when studying the folding process. The finite element method has been used for the numerical analyses remembering that the geometry of the problem is rather complicated, excluding a solution in analytical form. Using different constitutive models for the base stock, it has been shown that the deformation of the coated paper during folding is much governed by the paper substrate. The numerical results also suggested that particular forms of plastic anisotropy can substantially reduce the maximum strain levels in the coating. Furthermore, it has also been shown that delamination buckling, in the present circumstances, has a very small influence on the strain levels in the coating layer subjected to high tensile loading. Dynamic effects have also been studied and it has been shown that a quasi-static analysis of the problem is sufficient in order to describe many of the important features related to cracking. An attempt to model strong anisotropy of paper has been presented and the results indicate that the large anisotropy in the thickness direction of coated papers needs to be taken into account in order to fully understand the mechanics of folding. Finally, an experimental investigation has been presented in order to study if important mechanical properties of the coating material could be determined by microindentation techniques. The results presented indicate that microindentation can be a powerful tool for characterization of these materials, but only if careful efforts are made in order to account for the influence from plasticity as well as from boundary effects. KEYWORDS: folding, coated papers, finite element method, cracking, indentation, anisotropy, plasticity.

The goal of the thesis is to incorporate materials with either fluorescent or conductive properties in silk fibers, by feeding silkworms with a diet containing these materials. To achieve this, one would have to breed (rear) silkworm from eggs into larvaes, then to feed the silkworms with this special diet containing fluorescent or conductive materials. Samples of silk were then collected either from spun cocoons or via removing the silk producing organs (silk glands) from the silkworms via dissection. The samples were then analyzed with absorbance spectrometer, spectrofluorometer or via photoluminesecent measurement to determine if any materials had been incorporated into the silk fibers.   Silkworms were successfully reared from eggs up to moths, once the silkworm larvae had grown enough in size their diet were switches from their regular food (silkworm chow) to food containing conjugated molecules or polymers with fluorescent or conductive properties. A total of 14 materials were tested. One material gave a clear positive result and that was from the fluorescent compound Rhodamine B. Other fluorescent materials, Nile red and POWT yielded some results indicating their presence in the silk but the results were not conclusive. The rest of the materials all failed with being incorporated within the silk fibers; this was due to their lethality, size, lack of zwitterionic properties and such.  The properties of the materials are of great importance for the uptake process, where a small zwitterionic molecule has a great change of being taken up and incorporated in the silk fibers. Whereas a big materials such as a polymer without any zwitterionic will in most cases just follow through the food in the digestive track without any uptake.

The nervous and cardiovascular system plays the most complex and vital role in all organisms. Any damage or injury to these essential organs in our body results in long term irreversible impairment or death. The main goal of the regenerative medicine is to repair or recreate tissues using stem cells to restore the vital function of the targeted organ. Along with organ specific stem/progenitor cells, non-toxic, biodegradable synthetic polymers are also needed for an effective reparative therapy. The effect of PCL materials and surface modified (PEDOT coated) PCL materials of different topology with neural progenitor cells as test platforms are evaluated for cytotoxicity and neuron differentiation. The stem cells from heart are isolated and characterized as cardiac stem cells by Fluorescence activated cell sorting through specific antigen expression. The cardiac stem cells are used to establish effective proliferation and differentiation system. Hence, developing cardiac and neural progenitor cell cultures as an efficacy test platforms for biomaterials of different diameter and orientation benefits respective tissue engineering with proper restoration of function. Further, the nerve and cardiac tissue rejuvenation would serve as a regenerative therapy for numerous neurodegenerative disorders and cardiovascular disorders like myocardial infarction respectively.

Polymer electrochromism on PEDOT coated fibres was successfully achieved. The electrochromic property of the PEDOT polymer is an excellent property. This feature gives way to many more research works at present and in the future also. The electrochromic property of the PEDOT polymer is utilized in this thesis work to design an electrochromic display pixel. The polymer coating over the fibres were obtained by using In-situ polymerization technique. The coated-fibres were used to design a display-pixel. Electrochemistry is performed successfully on the designed pixel to study electrochromism over the pixels. An electrochemical fibre transistor is designed successfully using the polymer coated fibres. / Polymer Electrochromism on PEDOT coated fibres

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