Os stents são dispositivos intravasculares implantados com o objetivo de dilatar ou fixar a placa de colesterol contra a parede arterial. O objetivo avaliar dois tipos de stents de aço inoxidável, um recoberto com poliéster (dacron) e outro não recoberto, implantados na aorta infra-renal de suínos jovens, foram avaliados por morfometria digital para medir o espessamento intimal. Foi realizado um estudo experimental randomizado, separados em dois grupos(stents não revestidos e revestidos com dacron) e duas fases (I e II). Oito stents recobertos com dacron e oito stents de aço inoxidável (30mm de extensão e 8 mm de diâmetro), não revestidos, foram implantados através de abordagem retroperitoneal na aorta infrarenal normal de 16 suínos normolipêmicos. Para a passagem do sistema de implante, foi necessário uma pequena arteriotomia na aorta distal (fase I). Após quatro semanas, a aorta com os stents foram removidas em monoblocos (fase II). Os valores de hematimetria e do lipidograma foram coletados nas duas fases e não apresentaram alterações que pudessem influenciar o estudo. Amostras de tecido dos sítios de fixação (proximal e distal) dos stents foram retiradas, confeccionadas lâminas, que foram coradas pelas técnicas de hematoxilina e eosina de Verhoeff e enviadas para análise morfométrica digital. A camada intima distal não apresentou diferença estatística significativa. A camada média proximal das porções proximal e da porção distal não apresentaram diferença entre os grupos. Os dois tipos de stents apresentaram 100% de perviedade, boa biocompatibilidade e boa incorporação a parede aórtica de suínos normolipêmicos. A camada íntima proximal do grupo de stents revestidos com dacron apresentou espessura maior do que os stents não revestidos, mas com significância estatísitica limítrofe. / Stents are intravascular devices implanted with the objective of dilating or fixing the cholesterol plate against the arterial wall. To evaluate, by digital morphometry, the intimal thickening after the placement of two different kinds of stents: polyester covered stainless steel stents (Dacron) and non-covered stents implanted in young pigs’ infrarenal aortas. The stents were made at the Biotransformation Laboratory of Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul. The experiment was performed at the Biotério of University of Caxias do Sul, carried out on two separate groups of pigs. Eight polyester-covered stainless steel stents (Dacron) and eight stainless steel stents (30-mm long, 8-mm diameter) were deployed through extraperitoneal approach in the normal infrarenal aorta of 16 normolipemic pigs. To allow the passage of the delivery system, a small arteriotomy was performed (phase I). After four weeks, the aorta with the stent was removed en bloc. (phase II). The values of the hematimetric and lipid analysis did not show any changes that could influence the study. Tissue samples of the fixing sites (proximal and distal) of the stents were taken. Microscope slices were prepared and submitted to Verhoeff’s hematoxilin and eosin techniques and sent to morphometric analysis.The intima immediately proximal to the device was thicker in the group of covered stents with marginal significance. The distal intimal layer, proximal medial layer of the proximal portion and distal portion did not present statistical difference between the two groups. Patency was 100% in both groups of these normolipemic pigs. After four weeks the intimal layer immediately proximal to the covered stents was ticker when compared to uncovered stents, but this had a borderline significance. The intimal layer distal to covered stents and the media proximal or distal to the devices had similar morphometric features when covered and uncovered stents where compared.

abstract: Group III-nitride semiconductors have been commercially used in the fabrication of light-emitting diodes and laser diodes, covering the ultraviolet-visible-infrared spectral range and exhibit unique properties suitable for modern optoelectronic applications. InGaN ternary alloys have energy band gaps ranging from 0.7 to 3.4 eV. It has a great potential in the application for high efficient solar cells. AlGaN ternary alloys have energy band gaps ranging from 3.4 to 6.2 eV. These alloys have a great potential in the application of deep ultra violet laser diodes. However, there are still many issues with these materials that remain to be solved. In this dissertation, several issues concerning structural, electronic, and optical properties of III-nitrides have been investigated using transmission electron microscopy. First, the microstructure of In_xGa_1-xN (<italic>x</italic> = 0.22, 0.46, 0.60, and 0.67) films grown by metal-modulated epitaxy on GaN buffer /sapphire substrates is studied. The effect of indium composition on the structure of InGaN films and strain relaxation is carefully analyzed. High luminescence intensity, low defect density, and uniform full misfit strain relaxation are observed for <italic>x</italic> = 0.67. Second, the properties of high-indium-content InGaN thin films using a new molecular beam epitaxy method have been studied for applications in solar cell technologies. This method uses a high quality AlN buffer with large lattice mismatch that results in a critical thickness below one lattice parameter. Finally, the effect of different substrates and number of gallium sources on the microstructure of AlGaN-based deep ultraviolet laser has been studied. It is found that defects in epitaxial layer are greatly reduced when the structure is deposited on a single crystal AlN substrate. Two gallium sources in the growth of multiple quantum wells active region are found to cause a significant improvement in the quality of quantum well structures. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Physics 2014

abstract: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of mortality yet largely preventable, but the key to prevention is to identify at-risk individuals before adverse events. For predicting individual CVD risk, carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT), a noninvasive ultrasound method, has proven to be valuable, offering several advantages over CT coronary artery calcium score. However, each CIMT examination includes several ultrasound videos, and interpreting each of these CIMT videos involves three operations: (1) select three enddiastolic ultrasound frames (EUF) in the video, (2) localize a region of interest (ROI) in each selected frame, and (3) trace the lumen-intima interface and the media-adventitia interface in each ROI to measure CIMT. These operations are tedious, laborious, and time consuming, a serious limitation that hinders the widespread utilization of CIMT in clinical practice. To overcome this limitation, this paper presents a new system to automate CIMT video interpretation. Our extensive experiments demonstrate that the suggested system significantly outperforms the state-of-the-art methods. The superior performance is attributable to our unified framework based on convolutional neural networks (CNNs) coupled with our informative image representation and effective post-processing of the CNN outputs, which are uniquely designed for each of the above three operations. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Computer Science 2016

Heavy atomic nuclei are thought to have proton and neutron radial distributions which have different extents. This difference is usually quantified in terms of a neutron skin (rnp), defined as the difference between the root mean square radii of the neutron and proton radial distributions (rnp = rn - rp). The nature, or even existence, of the neutron skin is currently not well established for many nuclei. Different nuclear theories give different predictions for the neutron skin thickness ranging for a typical heavy nucleus from 0.05 to 0.35 fm. Accurate measurement of the properties of the neutron skin would be a powerful constraint to differentiate between models of nuclear structure, improving our knowledge of the basic Equation Of State (EOS) for neutron rich matter. Particularly, the rate at which the neutron skin thickness changes across an isotopic chain of nuclei gives a tight constraint on the EOS and is also amenable to experimental determination with small systematic error. Improving our knowledge of the EOS for neutron rich matter is a crucial step towards gaining a deeper understanding of nuclear structure and nuclear matter in general. These results will also impact our knowledge of compact astrophysical objects such as neutron stars. This thesis describes the first measurement of neutron skin thicknesses along an isotopic chain using an electromagnetic probe. The neutron skin is measured through the study of the coherent photoproduction of neutral π mesons emitted from nuclei. This experiment was carried out in the A2 hall of the MAMI facility in Mainz, Germany in October 2012. The incident photon beam comprised of energy tagged photons in the range of Eγ=150-800 MeV with an intensity of 10⁸ photons per second. Experimental data was obtained for three different tin targets, 116Sn, 120Sn and 124Sn. The products from the resulting photoreactions were measured in the Crystal Ball detector and in the TAPS calorimeter systems, with track and particle identification information for charged particles provided by a multi wire proportional chamber (MWPC) and a particle identification detector (PID). The experiment provides the first information on the evolution of the neutron skin thickness along an isotopic chain using an electromagnetic probe. The results are compared with a range of theoretical models and previous data from strongly interacting probes. The new data will provide an important new experimental constraint on the basic properties of the EOS in atomic nuclei.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-11T19:28:27Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2009-06-10Bitstream added on 2014-06-13T20:18:12Z : No. of bitstreams: 1 augusto_rmn_me_botfmvz.pdf: 475859 bytes, checksum: c7eb29be32951647006a8bc33ef784a0 (MD5) / Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq) / Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP) / Foram realizados dois experimentos: no primeiro utilizaram-se 96 leitões desmamados com idade média de 21 dias, num delineamento em blocos com arranjo fatorial dos tratamentos 2 x 2 ( duas fontes de carboidratos e duas classes de peso ao desmame). No segundo foram utilizados 48 leitões, num delineamento em blocos com arranjo fatorial 2 x 2 x 2 x 3 (duas classes de pesos ao desmame x duas fontes de carboidratos x duas porções do intestino delgado x três épocas de abate). Portanto, no modelo estatístico foram usados os efeitos fixos de peso, fontes de carboidratos, porções do intestino delgado, épocas de abate e suas respectivas interações; e o efeito aleatório de blocos. O objetivo deste estudo foi avaliar os efeitos da substituição da lactose pela maltodextrina nas rações de leitões desmamados, com diferentes pesos, sobre o consumo diário de ração, ganho diário de peso, conversão alimentar, incidência de diarreia, altura das vilosidades, profundidade das criptas e espessura de mucosa. No primeiro experimento, nos períodos de 0 a 17 e 0 a 29 dias após o desmame constatou-se efeito da classe de peso, no ganho diário de peso e no consumo diário de ração dos leitões, ou seja, os animais mais pesados ao desmame apresentaram maiores consumo diário de ração e ganho diário de peso em relação aos animais mais leves. No segundo experimento, verificou-se que a maltodextrina determinou aumentos na espessura média da mucosa intestinal dos leitões, independente do peso, e na profundidade média das criptas apenas nos animais leves. A maltodextrina pode ser usada como uma alternativa para substituir a lactose nas rações de leitões desmamados, pois não afeta negativamente o desempenho e a maioria dos parâmetros morfométricos do intestino. / Two trials were conducted: in the first trial, were used, 96 weaning pigs at the age of about 21 days, in a 2 × 2 factorial arrangement (two sources of carbohydrate: lactose and maltodextrin and two weaning weight classes: light, from 4,50 to 5,20 kg, and heavy, from 5,90 to 6,60 kg). In the second trial, 48 pigs, in a 2 x 2 x 2 x 3 factorial arrangement (two weaning weight classes x two sources of carbohydrate x two portions of the small intestine x three slaughter times). Therefore, in the statistical model the fixed effect of weight, sources of carbohydrate, portions of the small intestine, times of slaughter and its respective interactions; and the random effect of blocks. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of maltodextrin diets in weaning pigs of different weights on feed intake, feed:gain ratio, weight gain, diarrhea incidence, villus height, crypt depth and mucous membrane height. In the first trial, from 0-17 days and from 0-29 days after the weaning effects of weight classes, were detected on daily weight gain, and daily feed intake. The heaviest animals at weaning showed the best results. In the second trial, we verified that maltodextrin determined an increase in the average thickness of the intestinal mucosa, regardless of weight classes, and the increase in the average depth of the crypt, only in the highter animals. Maltodextrin can be used as an alternative to lactose in diets of weaning pigs, as it doesn’t affect negatively the performance neither the morfometric parameters of the intestine.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-10-09T12:45:59Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 / Made available in DSpace on 2014-10-09T14:04:50Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 07314.pdf: 4739953 bytes, checksum: a48b44f01cecc873bb2fc11c29573811 (MD5) / Dissertacao (Mestrado) / IPEN/D / Instituto de Pesquisas Energeticas e Nucleares - IPEN/CNEN-SP

Made available in DSpace on 2014-10-09T12:45:50Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 / Made available in DSpace on 2014-10-09T14:07:49Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 07313.pdf: 4614224 bytes, checksum: b35f3b3a0d88e2ee74e856c2c7883aaf (MD5) / Dissertacao (Mestrado) / IPEN/D / Instituto de Pesquisas Energeticas e Nucleares - IPEN/CNEN-SP

Made available in DSpace on 2015-05-08T14:59:52Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 parte1.pdf: 1996084 bytes, checksum: 09744470d202aa00bc1822961cfea571 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2009-10-02 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / Estimating corporeal density and fat in human bodies can be realized by using several laboratory methods: directly, indirectly or double indirect. The direct method is the only one which allows estimating the corporeal fat with such a better precision by means of dissecting the cadaver. In order to get this estimative, one of the most precise indirect method is the one of hydrostatic weight, which is considered the reference one in this study. For estimating the corporeal fat the double indirect method has been used by predicting measure models, which have been developed for populations of different ethnic groups. Many times these models have been employed with no criterion, occasioning errors. In this thesis the corporeal density measuring and fat percentage of 199 undergraduate students were estimated, with 62 female students in the age between 18 and 27 and 137 male students in the age between 18 and 35. Measuring skinfold thickness, height and body mass have been done in the group of undergraduate students. Models for estimating the body density were developed and validated. Thirteen of the models were made for the females and eleven of them were developed for the males. It has been conducted a cross validation of the eleven male measuring models which have been developed in this thesis, as well as of six measuring models which have been developed by other authors. A comparison has been made between the body densities measured by using the standard method and the densities which were estimated by the models.Three models used for the females attended the Heyward & Stolarczyk criterion, as well as the morphology one and the practical one. Through validation they presented a correlation coefficient (R) between 0.802 and 0.835, and an estimating standard error (EPE) between 0.0070 g/cm3 and 0.0075 g/cm3. Four measuring models which have been developed in this study for the male sex, within the cross validation procedure, presented strong correlations between 0.774 and 0.805, and EPE between 0.0065 g/cm3 and 0.0070 g/cm3. These values were classified by Lohman as very good. They attended the Heyward & Stolarczyk criteria, the morphology one and the practical one. No one of the six measuring models which have been developed by other authors was recommended for being used in this sample once they did not attend the validation criteria. / A estimativa da densidade e da gordura corporais pode ser realizada por vários métodos laboratoriais, de forma direta, indireta ou duplamente indireta. O método direto é o único que pode estimar a gordura corporal com maior exatidão, utilizando a dissecação cadavérica. Para essa estimativa, um dos métodos indiretos mais precisos é o da pesagem hidrostática, considerado como padrão nesse estudo. Utiliza-se o método duplamente indireto para essa estimativa, por meio de modelos de medição preditivos, desenvolvidos para populações de etnias diferentes, e empregados, muitas vezes sem os devidos critérios, gerando erros. Neste trabalho, estimaram-se as medidas de densidade corporal e do percentual de gordura de 199 universitários, dos quais 62 são do sexo feminino com idade entre 18 e 27 anos e 137 do sexo masculino com idade entre 18 e 35 anos. Realizaram-se medidas de dobras cutâneas, estatura e massa corporal dos universitários. Foram desenvolvidos e validados modelos de medição da densidade corporal, sendo treze para o sexo feminino e onze para o sexo masculino. Realizou-se a validação cruzada dos onze modelos de medição do sexo masculino desenvolvidos nesse estudo bem como de seis modelos de medição desenvolvidos por outros autores, comparando as densidades medidas pelo método padrão com as densidades estimadas pelos modelos. Três modelos, para o sexo feminino, atenderam ao critério de Heyward & Stolarczyk, bem como, ao de morfologia e ao de praticidade e apresentaram, na validação, coeficiente de correlação (R) entre 0,802 e 0,835 e erro padrão de estimativa (EPE) entre 0,0070 g/cm3 e 0,0075 g/cm3. Quatro modelos de medição, desenvolvidos nesse estudo para o sexo masculino, no procedimento de validação cruzada, apresentaram fortes correlações entre 0,774 e 0,805 e EPE entre 0,0065 g/cm3 e 0,0070 g/cm3, classificados segundo Lohman, como muito bom, atenderam aos critérios de Heyward & Stolarczyk, ao de morfologia e ao de praticidade. Nenhum dos seis modelos de medição desenvolvidos por outros autores foram recomendados para serem utilizados nessa amostra, pois não atenderam aos critérios de validação.

Thesis (MTech (Mechanical Engineering))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology. / For the last few decades, methods to improve the engine efficiency and reduce the fuel consumption of jet engines have received increased attention. One of the solutions is to increase the operating temperature in order to increase the exhaust gas temperature, resulting in an increased engine power. However, this approach can be degrading for some engine parts such as turbine blades, which are required to operate in a very hostile environment (at ≈ 90% of their melting point temperature). Thus, an additional treatment must be carried out to protect these parts from corrosion, oxidation and erosion, as well as to maintain the substrate’s mechanical properties which can be modified by the high temperatures to which these parts are exposed. Coating, as the most known protection method, has been used for the last few decades to protect aircraft engine parts. According to Wolfe and Co-workers [1], 75% of all engine components are now coated. The most promising studies show that the thermal barrier coating (TBC) is the best adapted coating system for these high temperature applications. TBC is defined as a fine layer of material (generally ceramic or metallic material or both) directly deposited on the surface of the part In order to create a separation between the substrate and the environment to reduce the effect of the temperature aggression. However, the application of TBCs on surfaces of components presents a challenge in terms of the consistency of the thickness of the layer. This is due to the nature of the processes used to apply these coatings. It has been found that variations in the coating thickness can affect the thermodynamic performance of turbine blades as well as lead to premature damage due to higher thermal gradients in certain sections of the blade. Thus, it is necessary to optimise the thickness distribution of the coating.

O exercício excêntrico tem sido utilizado na prevenção/reabilitação de lesões e em programas de treinamento de força para melhorar o condicionamento físico de indivíduos saudáveis. O entendimento das adaptações causadas pelo treinamento excêntrico nos músculos flexores plantares se justifica: 1) pela importância desta musculatura na manutenção de posturas e no ciclo da marcha; 2) pela alta incidência de lesões do tendão de Aquiles; e 3) pelo uso sistemático deste tipo de treinamento em programas de prevenção e reabilitação do tríceps sural. Assim, a presente tese de doutorado busca verificar os efeitos do treinamento excêntrico nas propriedades neuromecânicas e morfológicas dos músculos flexores plantares. No capítulo I foram compiladas informações acerca das adaptações neuromusculares dos flexores plantares e do tendão de Aquiles de indivíduos saudáveis submetidos à programas de treinamento excêntrico. Os estudos encontrados indicam que o treinamento excêntrico pode aumentar a produção de força e ativação muscular, especialmente em testes excêntricos. No entanto, resultados conflitantes e lacunas identificadas na literatura motivaram a realização de dois estudos originais. Os objetivos dos estudos originais foram: 1) determinar a temporalidade das adaptações na ativação e massa muscular de flexores plantares, bem como sua contribuição para os ganhos de força em contrações excêntricas, isométricas e concêntricas ao longo do programa de treinamento (Capítulo II); e 2) avaliar os efeitos de 12 semanas de treinamento excêntrico nas propriedades morfológicas, mecânicas e materiais do tendão de Aquiles de indivíduos saudáveis (Capítulo III). Vinte participantes do sexo masculino realizaram um programa de treinamento excêntrico isocinético (duas vezes por semana, 3-5 séries de 10 repetições máximas). As avaliações das propriedades neuromecânicas e morfológicas dos flexores plantares foram realizadas a cada quatro semanas. Ao final de 12 semanas, o programa de treinamento excêntrico aumentou a produção de torque máximo excêntrico, isométrico e concêntrico; aumentou a atividade eletromiográfica máxima excêntrica e isométrica; e aumentou a espessura muscular. Além disso, os ângulos do pico de torque excêntrico e concêntrico foram deslocados para posições em que os músculos estavam mais alongados. O torque máximo e a espessura muscular aumentaram progressivamente até a oitava semana de treinamento. A ativação neural durante contrações excêntricas e isométricas aumentou após quatro semanas de treino e permaneceu constante até o final do treinamento, enquanto que a ativação neural durante contrações concêntricas permaneceu inalterada durante todo o período de treinamento. Além disso, houve aumento da área de secção transversa, da rigidez e do módulo de Young do tendão de Aquiles. Os incrementos na rigidez e no módulo de Young foram observados após quatro semanas de treinamento, enquanto que o aumento significativo da área de secção transversa tendínea ocorreu após oito semanas de treinamento. Quando tomados em conjunto, estes resultados nos possibilitam entender de que forma as adaptações neuromecânicas e morfológicas dos flexores plantares ocorrem. O aumento da força isométrica e excêntrica nas primeiras quatro semanas de treinamento parece ocorrer devido a adaptações neurais, musculares e tendíneas. No entanto, após maiores períodos de treinamento (i.e. acima de quatro semanas), o aumento da força ocorre devido a incrementos na massa muscular e na rigidez tendínea. Além disso, a ausência de adaptações neurais evidencia que os ganhos de força concêntrica podem estar relacionados apenas com adaptações musculares e tendíneas. / Eccentric exercises are commonly used in prevention, rehabilitation and conditioning training programs. Understanding the adaptations caused by eccentric training on the plantar flexor muscles is justified by: 1) the importance of these muscles in maintaining posture and during gait cycle; 2) the high incidence of Achilles tendon injuries; and 3) the systematic use of this type of training in triceps surae prevention and rehabilitation programs. Thus, the present PhD thesis aims to verify the effects of eccentric training in neuromechanical and morphological properties of the plantar flexor muscles. Chapter I compiled information about the neuromuscular adaptations of the plantar flexors and Achilles tendon of healthy subjects undergoing eccentric training programs. The studies found indicate that eccentric training can increase the production of muscle strength and muscle activation, especially in eccentric tests. The studies found indicate that eccentric training can increase muscle strength and muscle activation, especially in eccentric tests. The purposes of the original studies were: 1) to determine the adaptations time course in plantar flexors activation and muscle mass, as well as their contribution to the strength gains in eccentric, isometric and concentric contractions during the training program (Chapter II); and 2) to evaluate the effects of 12 weeks of eccentric training on Achilles tendon morphological, mechanical and material properties in healthy subjects (Chapter III). Twenty male subjects performed an eccentric isokinetic training program (twice a week, 3-5 sets of 10 maximal repetitions). Plantar flexor neuromechanical and morphological evaluations were performed every 4 weeks. The 12-week training program led to increases in maximum eccentric, isometric and concentric torques; maximum eccentric and isometric electromyographic activity; and muscle thickness. The angles of peak torque in eccentric and concentric tests were shifted towards longer muscle lengths. Maximum torque and muscle thickness increased progressively until the 8th training week. Eccentric and isometric activation increased up to the 4th training week and remained constant until the 12th training week, while no change was found in concentric activation. In addition, Achilles tendon cross-sectional area, stiffness and Young's modulus were increased. The increases in stiffness and Young's modulus were observed after four weeks of training, while the significant increase in tendon cross-sectional area occurred after eight weeks of training. Taken together, these results allow us to understand how the neuromechanical and morphologic adaptations occur in the plantar flexors muscles subjected to a 12-week eccentric training program. The increase in isometric and eccentric strength in the first four weeks of training seems to be related to neural, morphological and tendinous adaptations. However, after longer training periods (i.e. up to four weeks), the strength increase is due to increases in muscle mass and tendon stiffness. Moreover, the absence of evidence in terms of neural adaptations during concentric contractions suggest that the concentric strength gains seem to be related only with muscle and tendon adaptations.