Respiratory motion causes an important uncertainty in radiotherapy planning of the thorax and upper abdomen. The main objective of radiation therapy is to eradicate or shrink tumor cells without damaging the surrounding tissue by delivering a high radiation dose to the tumor region and a dose as low as possible to healthy organ tissues. Meeting this demand remains a challenge especially in case of lung tumors due to breathing-induced tumor and organ motion where motion amplitudes can measure up to several centimeters. Therefore, modeling of respiratory motion has become increasingly important in radiation therapy. With 4D imaging techniques spatiotemporal image sequences can be acquired to investigate dynamic processes in the patient's body. Furthermore, image registration enables the estimation of the breathing-induced motion and the description of the temporal change in position and shape of the structures of interest by establishing the correspondence between images acquired at different phases of the breathing cycle. In radiation therapy these motion estimations are used to define accurate treatment margins, e.g. to calculate dose distributions and to develop prediction models for gated or robotic radiotherapy. In this book, the increasing role of image registration and motion estimation algorithms for the interpretation of complex 4D medical image sequences is illustrated. Different 4D CT image acquisition techniques and conceptually different motion estimation algorithms are presented. The clinical relevance is demonstrated by means of example applications which are related to the radiation therapy of thoracic and abdominal tumors. The state of the art and perspectives are shown by an insight into the current field of research. The book is addressed to biomedical engineers, medical physicists, researchers and physicians working in the fields of medical image analysis, radiology and radiation therapy.

Up to 40 volumes are planned for this concise monograph series, which focuses on the implementation of various engineering principles in the conception, design, development, analysis and operation of biomedical, biotechnological and nanotechnology systems and applications. In this monograph, the authors discuss the current progress in the medical application of impedimetric biosensors, along with the key challenges in the field. First, a general overview of biosensor development, structure and function is presented, followed by a detailed discussion of impedimetric biosensors and the principles of electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. Next, the current state-of-the art in terms of the science and technology underpinning impedance-based biosensors is reviewed in detail. The layer-by-layer construction of impedimetric sensors is described, including the design of electrodes, their nano-modification, transducer surface functionalisation and the attachment of different bioreceptors. The current challenges of translating lab-based biosensor platforms into commercially-available devices that function with real patient samples at the POC are presented; this includes a consideration of systems integration, microfluidics and biosensor regeneration. The final section of this monograph describes case studies of successful impedance-based biosensors for the detection of a range of analytes from small molecules up to whole microorganisms. Finally, the authors put forward future perspectives for the clinical applications of impedimetric biosensors.

This book reviews fundamental advances in the use of metallic biomaterials to reconstruct hard tissues and blood vessels. It also covers the latest advances in representative metallic biomaterials, such as stainless steels, Co-Cr alloys, titanium and its alloys, zirconium, tantalum and niobium based alloys. In addition, the latest findings on corrosion, cytotoxic and allergic problems caused by metallic biomaterials are introduced. The book offers a valuable reference source for researchers, graduate students and clinicians working in the fields of materials, surgery, dentistry, and mechanics. Mitsuo Niinomi, PhD, D.D.Sc., is a Professor at the Institute for Materials Research, Tohoku University, Japan. Takayuki Narushima, PhD, is a Professor at the Department of Materials Processing, Tohoku University, Japan. Masaaki Nakai, PhD, is an Associate Professor at the Institute for Materials Research, Tohoku University, Japan.

Nanoscale structures and materials have been explored in many biological applications because of their novel and impressive physical and chemical properties. Such properties allow remarkable opportunities to study and interact with complex biological processes. This book analyses the state of the art of piezoelectric nanomaterials and introduces their applications in the biomedical field. Despite their impressive potentials, piezoelectric materials have not yet received significant attention for bio-applications. This book shows that the exploitation of piezoelectric nanoparticles in nanomedicine is possible and realistic, and their impressive physical properties can be useful for several applications, ranging from sensors and transducers for the detection of biomolecules to sensible substrates for tissue engineering or cell stimulation. The book also focuses on the preparation, characterization and bio-applications of piezoelectric nanoparticles.

This text is an introduction to electrophysiology, following a quantitative approach. The first chapter summarizes much of the mathematics required in the following chapters. The second chapter presents a very concise overview of the general principles of electrical fields and current flow, mostly es tablished in physical science and engineering, but also applicable to biolog ical environments. The following five chapters are the core material of this text. They include descriptions of how voltages come to exist across membranes and how these are described using the Nernst and Goldman equations (Chapter 3), an examination of the time course of changes in membrane voltages that produce action potentials (Chapter 4), propagation of action potentials down fibers (Chapter 5), the response of fibers to artificial stimuli such as those used in pacemakers (Chapter 6), and the voltages and currents produced by these active processes in the surrounding extracellular space (Chapter 7). The subsequent chapters present more detailed material about the application of these principles to the study of cardiac and neural electrophysiology, and include a chapter on recent developments in mem brane biophysics. The study of electrophysiology has progressed rapidly because of the precise, delicate, and ingenious experimental studies of many investigators. The field has also made great strides by unifying the numerous experimental observations through the development of increasingly accurate theoretical concepts and mathematical descriptions. The application of these funda mental principles has in turn formed a basis for the solution of many different electrophysiological problems."

This two-volume set focuses on the interface between physiologic mechanisms and diagnostic human engineering. Today numerous biomedical sensors are commonplace in clinical practice. The registered biosignals reflect mostly vital physiologic phenomena. In order to adequately apply biomedical sensors and reasonably interpret the corresponding biosignals, a proper understanding of the involved physiologic phenomena, their influence on the registered biosignals, and the technology behind the sensors is necessary. The first volume is devoted to the interface between physiologic mechanisms and arising biosignals, whereas the second volume is focussed on the interface between biosignals and biomedical sensors. The physiologic mechanisms behind the biosignals are described from the basic cellular level up to their advanced mutual coordination level during sleep. The arising biosignals are discussed within the scope of vital physiologic phenomena to foster their understanding and comprehensive analysis.

This book reports on multidisciplinary research focusing on the analysis, synthesis and design of bionanomaterials. It merges the biophysicists', the biochemists' and bioengineers' perspectives, covering the study of the basic properties of materials and their interaction with biological systems, the development of new devices for medical purposes such as implantable systems, and new algorithms and methods for modeling the mechanical, physical or biological properties of biomaterials. The different chapters, which are based on selected contributions presented at the second edition of BIONAM, held on October 4-7, 2016, in Salerno, Italy, cover both basic and applied research. This includes novel synthetic strategies for nanomaterials, as well as the implementation of bio- and smart materials for pharmacological and medical purposes (e.g. drug delivery, implantable systems), environmental applications, and many others. The book provides a broad audience of academic and professionals with a comprehensive, timely snapshot of the field of biomaterials. Besides offering a set of innovative theories together with the necessary practical tools for their implementation, it also highlights current challenges in the field, thus fostering new discussions and possible future collaborations between groups with different backgrounds.

This volume describes the state-of-knowledge in the study of the relationships between mechanical loading states in tissues and common pathophysiologies related to increase in mass of adipose tissues and/or hyperglycemia which eventually lead to obesity, diabetes, insulin resistance, hyperlipidemia, metabolic inflammations, certain types of cancer and other related diseases. There appears to be an interaction between the loading states in tissues and cells and these chronic conditions, as well as with factors such as age, gender and genetics of the individual. Bioengineering has made key contributions to this research field in providing technologies for cell biomechanics experimentation, microscopy and image processing, tissue engineering and multi-scale, multi-physics computational modeling. Topics at the frontier of this field of study include: the continuous monitoring of cell growth, proliferation and differentiation in response to mechanical factors such as stiffness of the extracellular matrix (ECM) and mechanical loads transferred through the ECM; mechanically-activated signaling pathways and molecular mechanisms; effects of different loading regimes and mechanical environments on differentiation fates of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) into myogenic and osteogenic versus adipogenic lineages; the interactions between nutrition and mechanotransduction; cell morphology, focal adhesion patterns and cytoskeletal remodeling changes in adipogenesis; activation of receptors related to diabetes by mechanical forces; brown and white adipose plasticity and its regulation by mechanical factors.

This book highlights recent advances in the field of biomaterials design and the state of the art in biomaterials applications for biomedicine. Addressing key aspects of biomaterials, the book explores technological advances at multi-scale levels (macro, micro, and nano), which are used in applications related to cell and tissue regeneration. The book also discusses the future scope of bio-integrated systems. The contents are supplemented by illustrated examples, and schematics of molecular and cellular interactions with biomaterials/scaffolds are included to promote a better understanding of the complex biological mechanisms involved in material-to-biomolecule interactions. The book also covers factors that govern cell growth, differentiation, and regeneration in connection with the treatment and recovery of native biological systems. Tissue engineering, drug screening and delivery, and electrolyte complexes for biomedical applications are also covered in detail. This book offers a comprehensive reference guide for multi-disciplinary communities working in the area of biomaterials, and will benefit researchers and graduate students alike.

This book describes the use of modern micro- and nanofabrication technologies to develop improved tools for stimulating and recording electrical activity in neuronal networks. It provides an overview of the different ways in which the "nano-world" can be beneficial for neuroscientists, including improvement of mechanical adhesion of cells on electrodes, tight-sealed extracellular recordings or intracellular approaches with strongly reduced invasiveness and tools for localized electrical or optical stimulation in optogenetics experiments. Specific discussion of fabrication strategies is included, to provide a comprehensive guide to develop micro and nanostructured tools for biological applications. A perspective on integrating these devices with state-of-the-art technologies for large-scale in vitro and in vivo experiments completes the picture of neuronal interfacing with micro- and nanostructures.

This book focuses on important interfacial phenomena, such as interfacial potential and interfacial multi-functionality, responsible for determining the fate of nanoparticles inside the biological milieu. Additionally, this book explores the role of surface defects in photocatalytic nanoparticles in defining the nanoparticle interaction to biological membrane and cytotoxic propensity.The authors describe the interfacial assembly of peptide/protein on conformational/functional dynamics of the peptide/protein, which may be adopted as an approach to moderate the protein misfolding diseases.

"Smart Hydrogel Functional Materials" comprehensively and systematically describes our current understanding of smart or intelligent hydrogel functional materials with environmental stimuli-responsive functions. The contents range from hydrogels (including hydrogel-functionalized membranes) to microgels (including hydrogel-functionalized microcapsules) with various response properties, such as thermo-response, pH-response, pH-/thermo-dual-response, glucose-response, ethanol-response, ion-recognition, molecular-recognition, and so on. Most of the contents in this book represent the fresh achievements of the authors' group on smart hydrogel functional materials. While all chapters can be read as stand-alone papers, together they clearly describe the design concepts, fabrication strategies and methods, microstructures and performances of smart hydrogel functional materials. Vivid schematics and illustrations throughout the book enhance the accessibility of the theory and technologies involved.

This is an ideal reference book for a broad general readership including chemists, materials researchers, chemical engineers, pharmaceutical scientists and biomedical researchers, who are interested in designing and fabricating smart hydrogel functional materials for various application purposes.

Dr. Liang-Yin Chu is a professor at the School of Chemical Engineering, Sichuan University, China. He is a Distinguished Young Scholar of the National Natural Science Foundation of China and a Distinguished Professor of the "Chang Jiang Scholars Program" of the Ministry of Education of China.

This book presents advances in biomedical imaging analysis and processing techniques using time dependent medical image datasets for computer aided diagnosis. The analysis of time-series images is one of the most widely appearing problems in science, engineering, and business. In recent years this problem has gained importance due to the increasing availability of more sensitive sensors in science and engineering and due to the wide-spread use of computers in corporations which have increased the amount of time-series data collected by many magnitudes. An important feature of this book is the exploration of different approaches to handle and identify time dependent biomedical images. Biomedical imaging analysis and processing techniques deal with the interaction between all forms of radiation and biological molecules, cells or tissues, to visualize small particles and opaque objects, and to achieve the recognition of biomedical patterns. These are topics of great importance to biomedical science, biology, and medicine. Biomedical imaging analysis techniques can be applied in many different areas to solve existing problems. The various requirements arising from the process of resolving practical problems motivate and expedite the development of biomedical imaging analysis. This is a major reason for the fast growth of the discipline.

This handbook provides insights into becoming a better and more evolved athlete. It offers aspiring athletes, regardless of skill level, a better understanding of their bodies and how to unlock the unlimited potential of muscles without injury. It focuses on the "superhero" muscle: the iliopsoas, and also sheds light on Diamond-Corporation's new technology and elite athleticism, and how these can contribute to a healthier life. Lastly, the authors explore the mindset of success and provide exercises for remaining calm under pressure. This stand-alone book is the sequel to Paradigm Shift for Future Tennis and Enhancing Performance and Reducing Stress in Sport (2014, Springer). This book is written by scientists, whose expertise collectively spans the fields of biomechanics, clinical surgery, current and former elite athleticism, engineering and naturopath doctoral work. Together, they aim to inspire and educate athletes on how to improve their sports performance by using new technologies, world class biomechanics knowledge and ancient herbal medicines.

This book discusses the design of neural stimulator systems which are used for the treatment of a wide variety of brain disorders such as Parkinson's, depression and tinnitus. Whereas many existing books treating neural stimulation focus on one particular design aspect, such as the electrical design of the stimulator, this book uses a multidisciplinary approach: by combining the fields of neuroscience, electrophysiology and electrical engineering a thorough understanding of the complete neural stimulation chain is created (from the stimulation IC down to the neural cell). This multidisciplinary approach enables readers to gain new insights into stimulator design, while context is provided by presenting innovative design examples.

Encyclopedia of Biomedical Engineering, Three Volume Set is a unique source for rapidly evolving updates on topics that are at the interface of the biological sciences and engineering. Biomaterials, biomedical devices and techniques play a significant role in improving the quality of health care in the developed world. The book covers an extensive range of topics related to biomedical engineering, including biomaterials, sensors, medical devices, imaging modalities and imaging processing. In addition, applications of biomedical engineering, advances in cardiology, drug delivery, gene therapy, orthopedics, ophthalmology, sensing and tissue engineering are explored. This important reference work serves many groups working at the interface of the biological sciences and engineering, including engineering students, biological science students, clinicians, and industrial researchers.

This volume focuses on latest research in therapeutic devices for cardiovascular, i.e. vascular and valvular and cardiac diseases. In the area of vascular therapies, aspects covered relate to latest research in small-diameter tissue-regenerative vascular grafts, one of the greatest persisting challenges in cardiovascular therapies, stent grafts and endovascular stents for percutaneous arterial interventions. Contributions on valvular therapies focus on tissue engineered and tissue regenerative prosthetic heart valves and valvular prostheses for trans-apical implantation including the challenges posed on the prosthesis design. The section on cardiac diseases aims at covering therapeutic advances for myocardial infarction and prevention of heart failure and on in vivo biomechanics of implantable cardiac pacemaker devices. A further section complements these three areas by presenting constitutive modelling of soft biological tissues of the cardiovascular system, an area imperative for advanced numerical and computational modelling in the development and optimisation of cardiovascular devices and therapies.

This book describes 200 bio-polymers, including the most recent and advanced nanotechnology applications. The applications of various bio-medical and other future potential uses are covered and examined in depth. Systematic discussion of current leading natural polymers is also included.

The NATO Advanced Study Institute "Biomedical Optical Instrumentation and Laser Assisted Biotechnology" was held November 10-22, 1995 in Erice, Sicily. This was the 19 th conference organized by the International School of Quantum Electronics, under the auspices of the "Ettore Majorana" Center for Scientific Culture. The contributions presented at the Institute are written as extended, review-like papers to provide a broad and representative coverage of the fields of laser techniques, optoelectronics systems for medical diagnosis, and light and laser applications to Biology and Medicine. The aim of the Institute was to bring together some of the world's acknowledged scientists and clinicians that belong to different disciplines and consequently do not usually meet, but who have as a common link the use of optoelectronics instrumentation, techniques and procedures. Most of the lecturers attended all the lectures and devoted their spare hours to stimulating discussions. We would like to thank them all for their admirable contributions. The Institute also took advantage of a very active audience; most of the participants were active researchers in the field and contributed with discussions and seminars. Some of these seminars are also included in these Proceedings. The Institute was an important opportunity to discuss latest developments and emerging perspectives on the use of laser sources and optoelectronic techniques for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes."

Nanobiotechnology is the convergence of existing and new biotechnology with the 1 ability to manipulate matter at or near the molecular level. This ability to manipulate matter on a scale of 100 nanometers (nm) or less is what constitutes the nanotechnology revolution occurring today, the potentially vast economic and social implications of which are yet to be fully understood (Royal Society, 2004). The most immediate way to understand the implications of nanobiotechnology for ethics is to consider the real life concerns of communities that are mobilizing within civil society. The conflicts and ethical debates surrounding nanotechnology will, almost by definition, emerge on the fault lines between different civil society actors, researchers and financial interests associated with nanobiotechnology, as well as (potentially) government regulators. These fault lines are all reflected within the concerns (as expressed d- cursively) of the communities mobilizing. This chapter will explore converging d- courses regarding converging technologies. Converging Technologies (CT) are already a familiar theme in the next gene- tion of biotechnology, nanotechnology, pharmacogenomics and proteomics research 2 and development. Nanobiotechnology means that previously separate disciplines (IT, physics, chemistry, and biology) are merging and converging to create new applications and even new life forms through converged technological platforms. Schummer (2004), and Glimell and Fogelberg (2003, p. 43), note the predominance of interdisciplinarity as a core theme of nano-discourse.

Discusses the basic physical principles underlying Biomedical Photonics, spectroscopy and microscopy This volume discusses biomedical photonics, spectroscopy and microscopy, the basic physical principles underlying the technology and its applications. The topics discussed in this volume are: Biophotonics; Fluorescence and Phosphorescence; Medical Photonics; Microscopy; Nonlinear Optics; Ophthalmic Technology; Optical Tomography; Optofluidics; Photodynamic Therapy; Image Processing; Imaging Systems; Sensors; Single Molecule Detection; Futurology in Photonics. * Comprehensive and accessible coverage of the whole of modern photonics * Emphasizes processes and applications that specifically exploit photon attributes of light * Deals with the rapidly advancing area of modern optics * Chapters are written by top scientists in their field Written for the graduate level student in physical sciences; Industrial and academic researchers in photonics, graduate students in the area; College lecturers, educators, policymakers, consultants, Scientific and technical libraries, government laboratories, NIH.

This book highlights the latest advances and trends in advanced signal processing (such as wavelet theory, time-frequency analysis, empirical mode decomposition, compressive sensing and sparse representation, and stochastic resonance) for structural health monitoring (SHM). Its primary focus is on the utilization of advanced signal processing techniques to help monitor the health status of critical structures and machines encountered in our daily lives: wind turbines, gas turbines, machine tools, etc. As such, it offers a key reference guide for researchers, graduate students, and industry professionals who work in the field of SHM.

Current Biomedical Databases are independently administered in geographically distinct locations, lending them almost ideally to adoption of intelligent data management approaches. This book focuses on research issues, problems and opportunities in Biomedical Data Infrastructure identifying new issues and directions for future research in Biomedical Data and Information Retrieval, Semantics in Biomedicine, and Biomedical Data Modeling and Analysis. The book will be a useful guide for researchers, practitioners, and graduate-level students interested in learning state-of-the-art development in biomedical data management.

Non-Newtonian properties on bubble dynamics and cavitation are fundamentally different from those of Newtonian fluids. The most significant effect arises from the dramatic increase in viscosity of polymer solutions in an extensional flow, such as that generated about a spherical bubble during its growth or collapse phase. In addition, many biological fluids, such as blood, synovial fluid, and saliva, have non-Newtonian properties and can display significant viscoelastic behaviour. This monograph elucidates general aspects of bubble dynamics and cavitation in non-Newtonian fluids and applies them to the fields of biomedicine and bioengineering. In addition it presents many examples from the process industries. The field is strongly interdisciplinary and the numerous disciplines involve have and will continue to overlook and reinvent each others' work. This book helps researchers to think intuitively about the diverse physics of these systems, to attempt to bridge the various communities involved, and to convey the interest, elegance, and variety of physical phenomena that manifest themselves on the micrometer and microsecond scales.