Erythrocyte morphological symmetry analysis to detect sublethal trauma in shear flow

The viscoelastic properties of red blood cells (RBC) facilitate flexible shape change in response to extrinsic forces. Their viscoelasticity is intrinsically linked to physical properties of the cytosol, cytoskeleton, and membrane—all of which are highly sensitive to supraphysiological shear exposure. Given the need to minimise blood trauma within artificial organs, we observed RBC in supraphysiological shear through direct visualisation to gain understanding of processes leading to blood damage. Using a custom-built counter-rotating shear generator fit to a microscope, healthy red blood cells (RBC) were directly visualised during exposure to different levels of shear (10–60 Pa). To investigate RBC morphology in shear flow, we developed an image analysis method to quantify (a)symmetry of deforming ellipsoidal cells—following RBC identification and centroid detection, cell radius was determined for each angle around the circumference of the cell, and the resultant bimodal distribution (and thus RBC) was symmetrically compared. While traditional indices of RBC deformability (elongation index) remained unaltered in all shear conditions, following ~100 s of exposure to 60 Pa, the frequency of asymmetrical ellipses and RBC fragments/extracellular vesicles significantly increased. These findings indicate RBC structure is sensitive to shear history, where asymmetrical morphology may indicate sublethal blood damage in real-time shear flow.

Tissue Engineering in Stomatology: A Review of Potential Approaches for Oral Disease Treatments

Tissue engineering is an emerging discipline that combines engineering and life sciences. It can construct functional biological structures in vivo or in vitro to replace native tissues or organs and minimize serious shortages of donor organs during tissue and organ reconstruction or transplantation. Organ transplantation has achieved success by using the tissue-engineered heart, liver, kidney, and other artificial organs, and the emergence of tissue-engineered bone also provides a new approach for the healing of human bone defects. In recent years, tissue engineering technology has gradually become an important technical method for dentistry research, and its application in stomatology-related research has also obtained impressive achievements. The purpose of this review is to summarize the research advances of tissue engineering and its application in stomatology. These aspects include tooth, periodontal, dental implant, cleft palate, oral and maxillofacial skin or mucosa, and oral and maxillofacial bone tissue engineering. In addition, this article also summarizes the commonly used cells, scaffolds, and growth factors in stomatology and discusses the limitations of tissue engineering in stomatology from the perspective of cells, scaffolds, and clinical applications.

Evaluation of the effectiveness of prophylactic strategies for cytomegalovirus infection in pediatric kidney recipients

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection is the most severe viral infection in renal transplant recipients, which can occur in the post-transplant period in both adult and pediatric recipients. Developing and applying an effective prevention and treatment strategy for pediatric renal graft recipients is a priority. Objective: to compare the effectiveness of the protocols used for the prevention of CMV infection in pediatric kidney transplant recipients.Materials and methods. The study enrolled 118 patients who underwent primary kidney transplantation at Shumakov National Medical Research Center of Transplantology and Artificial Organs. Based on retrospective analysis, all recipients were divided into two groups, depending on the prophylactic strategy after kidney transplantation. The followup period for pediatric kidney recipients ranged from 108 to 1803 (623.5 ± 379.5) days. CMV infection activity was monitored by polymerase chain reaction.Results. The frequency of CMV infection activation episodes at 3 and 6 months was independent of the prophylaxis strategy used. The recurrence rate of CMV infection one year after surgery was significantly lower (p = 0.037) with Strategy 2. No cases of CMV syndrome or CMV disease, graft dysfunction, or chronic rejection associated with CMV infection were reported. Increasing the dose of antiviral drugs in Strategy 1 did not increase the risk of cytotoxicity and nephrotoxicity, which are reversible (creatinine levels were not significantly different in the study groups at 3, 6, 12 months, p = 0.542, p = 0.287, p = 0.535, respectively). The incidence of kidney graft rejection did not increase in patients with lower doses of immunosuppressants in Strategy 2.Conclusion. Both prophylactic strategies are effective in pediatric kidney recipients. However, the choice of a strategy depends on the individual characteristics of the patient and requires a personalized approach.

Consideration of breakthrough technologies in the field of genomic research and artificial intelligence in healthcare

The article is devoted to the analysis of technologies in the field of genomic research and artificial intelligence and their reflection in the accounting of healthcare institutions. Less than a quarter of the 21st century has passed, and during this time humanity has made a huge number of technological breakthroughs, both in the field of genomic research and in the field of artificial intelligence. Artificial organs and prosthetics that allow a person to live longer and more comfortably; the creation of mobile Internet, social networks and messengers that have accelerated and simplified the transfer of information between people; electric cars that are eco-friendly, maneuverable and do not require fossil resources, which sooner or later may end; self-driving cars that free up time that a person can devote to important things than driving a car; virtual and augmented reality, in which a person can safely and with pleasure move for a certain time, have become our everyday reality. The level of development of healthcare and education, the rationality of public administration and business efficiency, the speed of making space breakthroughs in other areas of human life depend on genomic research and achievements in the field of artificial intelligence.

Interdisciplinary Approach of Biomedical Engineering in the Development of Technical Devices for Medical Research

The article discusses the development and application of technical devices for medical research. Biomedical engineering is one of the scientific and technical fields that explores and develops the application of engineering principles and concepts in medicine and biology to create artificial organs that can compensate for the lack of physiological functions. Medical engineering combines engineering and design skills with problem solubilities in the field of medicine and life sciences, and can also improve therapies based on the fundamental principles of molecular and cell biology, including diagnosis, monitoring and treatment.

Cognitive neural prosthetics – the way from experiment to clinical application

Accepted: September 3, 2021. Objective of this review is to highlight some aspects of the development and use of cognitive neuroprostheses, such as the technological background for their developing and key modern projects in this field. The literature sources were analyzed and the place of neuroprostheses among other artificial organs and tissues, which are under development or already used in clinical practice, was defined. The main principles of their implementation, structural elements and operating conditions were described. Also, this review presents some examples of diseases which can be corrected by cognitive neuroprostheses. The mechanisms of compensation for the functions of the damaged brain structures when using neuroprostheses are described on the basis of the principles of their interaction with biological neural networks. Descriptions of advanced developments that are currently relevant are given. Moreover, information is provided on the protocols and results of tests on animals and humans of the artificial hippocampus, as well as the results of testing a prosthesis that allows restoring the functions of the prefrontal cortex in animals. The examples considered in the review allow us to conclude that cognitive neuroprostheses are not just a hypothetic concept. They are implemented as specialized experimental solutions for practical clinical issues. Currently, the greatest success has been achieved in restoring the hippocampus functions.