TY - JOUR A1 - Angelova, Liliya A1 - Daskalova, Albena A1 - Filipov, Emil A1 - Monforte Vila, Xavier A1 - Tomasch, Janine A1 - Avdeev, Georgi A1 - Teuschl-Woller, Andreas Herbert A1 - Buchvarov, Ivan T1 - Optimizing the Surface Structural and Morphological Properties of Silk Thin Films via Ultra-Short Laser Texturing for Creation of Muscle Cell Matrix Model JF - Polymers N2 - Temporary scaffolds that mimic the extracellular matrix's structure and provide a stable substratum for the natural growth of cells are an innovative trend in the field of tissue engineering. The aim of this study is to obtain and design porous 2D fibroin-based cell matrices by femtosecond laser-induced microstructuring for future applications in muscle tissue engineering. Ultra-fast laser treatment is a non-contact method, which generates controlled porosity-the creation of micro/nanostructures on the surface of the biopolymer that can strongly affect cell behavior, while the control over its surface characteristics has the potential of directing the growth of future muscle tissue in the desired direction. The laser structured 2D thin film matrices from silk were characterized by means of SEM, EDX, AFM, FTIR, Micro-Raman, XRD, and 3D-roughness analyses. A WCA evaluation and initial experiments with murine C2C12 myoblasts cells were also performed. The results show that by varying the laser parameters, a different structuring degree can be achieved through the initial lifting and ejection of the material around the area of laser interaction to generate porous channels with varying widths and depths. The proper optimization of the applied laser parameters can significantly improve the bioactive properties of the investigated 2D model of a muscle cell matrix. Keywords: biopolymers; femtosecond laser processing; muscle cell matrix 2D model; muscle tissue engineering; silk fibroin. KW - Tissue Engineering KW - Muscle Cell matrix Model KW - Silk Scaffold KW - Surface Structure Y1 - VL - 2022 IS - 14(13), 2584 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Zupkovitz, Gordin A1 - Kabiljo, Julijan A1 - Kothmayer, Michael A1 - Schlick, Katharina A1 - Schöfer, Christian A1 - Lagger, Sabine A1 - Pusch, Oliver T1 - Analysis of Methylation Dynamics Reveals a Tissue-Specific, Age-Dependent Decline in 5-Methylcytosine Within the Genome of the Vertebrate Aging Model Nothobranchius furzeri. JF - Frontiers in Molecular Biosciences N2 - Erosion of the epigenetic DNA methylation landscape is a widely recognized hallmark of aging. Emerging advances in high throughput sequencing techniques, in particular DNA methylation data analysis, have resulted in the establishment of precise human and murine age prediction tools. In vertebrates, methylation of cytosine at the C5 position of CpG dinucleotides is executed by DNA methyltransferases (DNMTs) whereas the process of enzymatic demethylation is highly dependent on the activity of the ten-eleven translocation methylcytosine dioxygenase (TET) family of enzymes. Here, we report the identification of the key players constituting the DNA methylation machinery in the short-lived teleost aging model Nothobranchius furzeri. We present a comprehensive spatio-temporal expression profile of the methylation-associated enzymes from embryogenesis into late adulthood, thereby covering the complete killifish life cycle. Data mining of the N. furzeri genome produced five dnmt gene family orthologues corresponding to the mammalian DNMTs (DNMT1, 2, 3A, and 3B). Comparable to other teleost species, N. furzeri harbors multiple genomic copies of the de novo DNA methylation subfamily. A related search for the DNMT1 recruitment factor UHRF1 and TET family members resulted in the identification of N. furzeri uhrf1, tet1, tet2, and tet3. Phylogenetic analysis revealed high cross-species similarity on the amino acid level of all individual dnmts, tets, and uhrf1, emphasizing a high degree of functional conservation. During early killifish development all analyzed dnmts and tets showed a similar expression profile characterized by a strong increase in transcript levels after fertilization, peaking either at embryonic day 6 or at the black eye stage of embryonic development. In adult N. furzeri, DNA methylation regulating enzymes showed a ubiquitous tissue distribution. Specifically, we observed an age-dependent downregulation of dnmts, and to some extent uhrf1, which correlated with a significant decrease in global DNA methylation levels in the aging killifish liver and muscle. The age-dependent DNA methylation profile and spatio-temporal expression characteristics of its enzymatic machinery reported here may serve as an essential platform for the identification of an epigenetic aging clock in the new vertebrate model system N. furzeri. KW - Tissue Engineering KW - Killifish KW - Aging Model Y1 - VL - 8 IS - 627143 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Veigl, Christoph A1 - Klaus, Benjamin A1 - Aigner, Benjamin A1 - Wagner, Manuel T1 - Universal Access Panel: A Novel Approach for Accessible Smart Homes and IoT JF - Computers Helping People with Special Needs. ICCHP-AAATE 2022. Lecture Notes in Computer Science KW - Home appliances KW - Disability KW - Accessibility KW - Multimodal User Interface KW - Smart Home Y1 - VL - 2022 IS - Vol. 13342 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Pasteka, Richard A1 - Schöllbauer, Lara Alina A1 - Santos da Costa, Joao Pedro A1 - Kolar, Radim A1 - Forjan, Mathias T1 - Experimental Evaluation of Dry Powder Inhalers During In- and Exhalation Using a Model of the Human Respiratory System (xPULM™) JF - Pharmaceutics N2 - Dry powder inhalers are used by a large number of patients worldwide to treat respiratory diseases. The objective of this work is to experimentally investigate changes in aerosol particle diameter and particle number concentration of pharmaceutical aerosols generated by four dry powder inhalers under realistic inhalation and exhalation conditions. To simulate patients undergoing inhalation therapy, the active respiratory system model (xPULM™) was used. A mechanical upper airway model was developed, manufactured, and introduced as a part of the xPULM™ to represent the human upper respiratory tract with high fidelity. Integration of optical aerosol spectrometry technique into the setup allowed for evaluation of pharmaceutical aerosols. The results show that there is a significant difference (p < 0.05) in mean particle diameter between inhaled and exhaled particles with the majority of the particles depositing in the lung, while particles with the size of (>0.5 μm) are least influenced by deposition mechanisms. The fraction of exhaled particles ranges from 2.13% (HandiHaler®) over 2.94% (BreezHaler®), and 6.22% (Turbohaler®) to 10.24% (Ellipta®). These values are comparable to previously published studies. Furthermore, the mechanical upper airway model increases the resistance of the overall system and acts as a filter for larger particles (>3 μm). In conclusion, the xPULM™ active respiratory system model is a viable option for studying interactions of pharmaceutical aerosols and the respiratory tract regarding applicable deposition mechanisms. The model strives to support the reduction of animal experimentation in aerosol research and provides an alternative to experiments with human subjects. KW - Biomedical Engineering KW - Dry powder inhaler resistance KW - optical aerosol spectrometry KW - mechanical upper airway model KW - inspiratory flow rate Y1 - 2022 VL - 2022 IS - 14/3 ER - TY - CHAP A1 - Urbauer, Philipp A1 - Forjan, Mathias T1 - Integration of Health and Public Transport Data to Enable Decision Support for Seniors to Reduce Risk of Infection with Communicable Diseases. T2 - 9th International Conference on Software Development and Technologies for Enhancing Accessibility and Fighting Info-exclusion DSAI (2020) KW - eHealth KW - Interoperability KW - Open Data KW - Public Transport KW - Evidence based Decision Support Y1 - ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Johannes, Hackethal A1 - Weihs, Anna A1 - Karner, Lisa A1 - Metzger, Magdalena A1 - Dungel, Peter A1 - Hennerbichler, Simone A1 - Redl, Heinz A1 - Teuschl-Woller, Andreas Herbert T1 - Novel Human Placenta-Based Extract for Vascularization Strategies in Tissue Engineering JF - Tissue Eng Part C Methods N2 - There is critical unmet need for new vascularized tissues to support or replace injured tissues and organs. Various synthetic and natural materials were already established for use of two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) in vitro neovascularization assays, however, they still cannot mimic the complex functions of the sum of the extracellular matrix (ECM) in native intact tissue. Currently, this issue is only addressed by artificial products such as Matrigel™, which comprises a complex mixture of ECM proteins, extracted from animal tumor tissue. Despite its outstanding bioactivity, the isolation from tumor tissue hinders its translation into clinical applications. Since nonhuman ECM proteins may cause immune reactions, as are frequently observed in clinical trials, human ECM proteins represent the best option when aiming for clinical applications. Here, we describe an effective method of isolating a human placenta substrate (hpS) that induces the spontaneous formation of an interconnected network of green fluorescence-labeled human umbilical vein endothelial cells (gfpHUVECs) in vitro. The substrate was biochemically characterized by using a combination of bicinchoninic acid (BCA) assay, DNA, and glycosaminoglycan (GAG) content assays, sodium dodecyl sulfate/polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) analysis and Western blot, angiogenesis arrays, chromatographic thrombin detection, high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)-based amino acid quantification analysis, and assessment of antimicrobial properties. 2D in vitro cell culture experiments have been performed to determine the vasculogenic potential of hpS, which demonstrated that cell networks developed on hpS show a significantly higher degree of complexity (number of tubules/junctions; total/mean tube length) when compared with Matrigel. As 3D cell culture techniques represent a more accurate representation of the in vivo condition, the substrate was 3D solidified using various natural polymers. 3D in vitro vasculogenesis assays have been performed by seeding gfpHUVECs in an hpS-fibrinogen clot. In conclusion, hpS provides a potent human/material-based alternative to xenogenic-material-based biomaterials for vascularization strategies in tissue engineering. KW - Tissue Engineering KW - Biomaterials KW - HUVEC KW - Acellular biological matrices KW - Angiogenesis and vasculogenesis Y1 - VL - 27 IS - 11 SP - 616 EP - 632 ER - TY - CHAP A1 - Veigl, Christoph A1 - Klaus, Benjamin A1 - Aigner, Benjamin A1 - Wagner, Manuel T1 - Universal Access Panel: A Novel Approach for Accessible Smart Homes and IoT T2 - Computers Helping People with Special Needs / Proceedings of the 18th International Conference ICCHP-AAATE 2022, July 11-15, 2022, Lecco, Italy N2 - Although various standards and guidelines for accessible design exist, many modern digital devices lack even basic accessibility features. In particular, touchscreens without haptic feedback and a highly complex menu navigation impose serious hurdles for many people – especially for people with disabilities and elderly persons. In this work, we present the Universal Access Panel (UAP) for enabling barrier-free access to home appliances and IoT devices. The system offers a novel, radically simple, multimodal user interface consisting of just a few interaction elements for accessing dedicated functions of the connected home. Using established APIs and communication protocols such as HomeConnect or OpenHab, various domestic appliances, consumer products and smart home devices can be controlled from a single, multimodal interaction console. The system has been designed in cooperation with visually impaired accessibility experts and a user study was conducted with people from the target group. The results show a high overall usability of the prototype. KW - Home Appliances KW - Accessibility KW - Multimodal User Interface KW - Smart Homes KW - Internet-of-Things Y1 - U6 - http://dx.doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-08645-8_18 SP - 148 EP - 158 ER -