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- ItemDisturbing-free determination of yeast concentration in DI water and in glucose using impedance biochips(Basel : MDPI AG, 2020) Kiani, M.; Du, N.; Vogel, M.; Raff, J.; Hübner, U.; Skorupa, I.; Bürger, D.; Schulz, S.E.; Schmidt, O.G.; Blaschke, D.; Schmidt, H.Deionized water and glucose without yeast and with yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) of optical density OD600 that ranges from 4 to 16 has been put in the ring electrode region of six different types of impedance biochips and impedance has been measured in dependence on the added volume (20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25 µL). The measured impedance of two out of the six types of biochips is strongly sensitive to the addition of both liquid without yeast and liquid with yeast and modelled impedance reveals a linear relationship between the impedance model parameters and yeast concentration. The presented biochips allow for continuous impedance measurements without interrupting the cultivation of the yeast. A multiparameter fit of the impedance model parameters allows for determining the concentration of yeast (cy) in the range from cy = 3.3 × 107 to cy = 17 × 107 cells/mL. This work shows that independent on the liquid, i.e., DI water or glucose, the impedance model parameters of the two most sensitive types of biochips with liquid without yeast and with liquid with yeast are clearly distinguishable for the two most sensitive types of biochips.
- ItemStaphylococcus aureus and methicillin resistant S. Aureus in nepalese primates: Resistance to antimicrobials, virulence, and genetic lineages(Basel : MDPI AG, 2020) Roberts, Marilyn C.; Joshi, Prabhu Raj; Monecke, Stefan; Ehricht, Ralf; Müller, Elke; Gawlik, Darius; Diezel, Celia; Braun, Sascha D.; Paudel, Saroj; Acharya, Mahesh; Khanal, Laxman; Koju, Narayan P.; Chalise, Mukesh; Kyes, Randall C.Staphylococcus aureus is a ubiquitous pathogen and colonizer in humans and animals. There are few studies on the molecular epidemiology of S. aureus in wild monkeys and apes. S. aureus carriage in rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) and Assam macaques (Macaca assamensis) is a species that has not previously been sampled and lives in remote environments with limited human contact. Forty Staphylococcus aureus isolates including 33 methicillin-susceptible S. aureus (MSSA) and seven methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) were characterized. Thirty-four isolates were from rhesus macaques and six isolates (five MSSA, one MRSA) were from Assam macaques. Isolates were characterized using StaphyType DNA microarrays. Five of the MRSA including one from Assam macaque were CC22 MRSA-IV (PVL+/tst+), which is a strain previously identified in Nepalese rhesus. One MRSA each were CC6 MRSA-IV and CC772 MRSA-V (PVL+). One MSSA each belonged to CC15, CC96, and CC2990. Six MRSA isolates carried the blaZ, while ten known CC isolates (seven MRSA, three MSSA) carried a variety of genes including aacA-aphD, aphA3, erm(C), mph(C), dfrA, msrA, and/or sat genes. The other 30 MSSA isolates belonged to 17 novel clonal complexes, carried no antibiotic resistance genes, lacked Panton–Valentine Leukocidin (PVL), and most examined exotoxin genes. Four clonal complexes carried egc enterotoxin genes, and four harbored edinB, which is an exfoliative toxin homologue. © 2020 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
- ItemUltra-high sensitive strain sensor based on post-processed optical fiber Bragg grating(Basel : MDPI AG, 2014) Ferreira, M.S.; Bierlich, J.; Becker, M.; Schuster, K.; Santos, J.L.; Frazão, O.An ultra-high sensitive strain sensor is proposed. The sensing head, based on the post-processing of a fiber Bragg grating, is used to perform passive and active strain measurements. Both wavelength and full width half maximum dependences with the applied strain are studied for the passive sensor, where maximum sensitivities of 104.1 pm/με and 61.6 pm/με are respectively obtained. When combining the high performance of this sensor with a ring laser cavity configuration, the Bragg grating will act as a filter and high resolution measurements can be performed. With the proposed sensor, a resolution of 700 nε is achieved.
- ItemRaman-spectroscopy based cell identification on a microhole array chip(Basel : MDPI AG, 2014) Neugebauer, U.; Kurz, C.; Bocklitz, T.; Berger, T.; Velten, T.; Clement, J.H.; Krafft, C.; Popp, J.Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) from blood of cancer patients are valuable prognostic markers and enable monitoring responses to therapy. The extremely low number of CTCs makes their isolation and characterization a major technological challenge. For label-free cell identification a novel combination of Raman spectroscopy with a microhole array platform is described that is expected to support high-throughput and multiplex analyses. Raman spectra were registered from regularly arranged cells on the chip with low background noise from the silicon nitride chip membrane. A classification model was trained to distinguish leukocytes from myeloblasts (OCI-AML3) and breast cancer cells (MCF-7 and BT-20). The model was validated by Raman spectra of a mixed cell population. The high spectral quality, low destructivity and high classification accuracy suggests that this approach is promising for Raman activated cell sorting.
- ItemModified powder-in-tube technique based on the consolidation processing of powder materials for fabricating specialty optical fibers(Basel : MDPI AG, 2014) Auguste, J.-L.; Humbert, G.; Leparmentier, S.; Kudinova, M.; Martin, P.-O.; Delaizir, G.; Schuster, K.; Litzkendorf, D.The objective of this paper is to demonstrate the interest of a consolidation process associated with the powder-in-tube technique in order to fabricate a long length of specialty optical fibers. This so-called Modified Powder-in-Tube (MPIT) process is very flexible and paves the way to multimaterial optical fiber fabrications with different core and cladding glassy materials. Another feature of this technique lies in the sintering of the preform under reducing or oxidizing atmosphere. The fabrication of such optical fibers implies different constraints that we have to deal with, namely chemical species diffusion or mechanical stress due to the mismatches between thermal expansion coefficients and working temperatures of the fiber materials. This paper focuses on preliminary results obtained with a lanthano-aluminosilicate glass used as the core material for the fabrication of all-glass fibers or specialty Photonic Crystal Fibers (PCFs). To complete the panel of original microstructures now available by the MPIT technique, we also present several optical fibers in which metallic particles or microwires are included into a silica-based matrix.
- ItemDiffusion and interface effects during preparation of all-solid microstructured fibers(Basel : MDPI AG, 2014) Kobelke, J.; Bierlich, J.; Wondraczek, K.; Aichele, C.; Pan, Z.; Unger, S.; Schuster, K.; Bartelt, H.All-solid microstructured optical fibers (MOF) allow the realization of very flexible optical waveguide designs. They are prepared by stacking of doped silica rods or canes in complex arrangements. Typical dopants in silica matrices are germanium and phosphorus to increase the refractive index (RI), or boron and fluorine to decrease the RI. However, the direct interface contact of stacking elements often causes interrelated chemical reactions or evaporation during thermal processing. The obtained fiber structures after the final drawing step thus tend to deviate from the targeted structure risking degrading their favored optical functionality. Dopant profiles and design parameters(e.g., the RI homogeneity of the cladding) are controlled by the combination of diffusion and equilibrium conditions of evaporation reactions. We show simulation results of diffusion and thermal dissociation in germanium and fluorine doped silica rod arrangements according to the monitored geometrical disturbances in stretched canes or drawn fibers. The paper indicates geometrical limits of dopant structures in sub-μm-level depending on the dopant concentration and the thermal conditions during the drawing process. The presented results thus enable an optimized planning of the preform parameters avoiding unwanted alterations in dopant concentration profiles or in design parameters encountered during the drawing process.
- ItemRaman imaging with a fiber-coupled multichannel spectrograph(Basel : MDPI AG, 2014) Schmälzlin, E.; Moralejo, B.; Rutowska, M.; Monreal-Ibero, A.; Sandin, C.; Tarcea, N.; Popp, J.; Roth, M.M.Until now, spatially resolved Raman Spectroscopy has required to scan a sample under investigation in a time-consuming step-by-step procedure. Here, we present a technique that allows the capture of an entire Raman image with only one single exposure. The Raman scattering arising from the sample was collected with a fiber-coupled high-performance astronomy spectrograph. The probe head consisting of an array of 20 × 20 multimode fibers was linked to the camera port of a microscope. To demonstrate the high potential of this new concept, Raman images of reference samples were recorded. Entire chemical maps were received without the need for a scanning procedure.
- ItemMicrostructured optical fiber sensors embedded in a laminate composite for smart material applications(Basel : MDPI AG, 2011) Sonnenfeld, C.; Sulejmani, S.; Geernaert, T.; Eve, S.; Lammens, N.; Luyckx, G.; Voet, E.; Degrieck, J.; Urbanczyk, W.; Mergo, P.; Becker, M.; Bartelt, H.; Berghmans, F.; Thienpont, H.Fiber Bragg gratings written in highly birefringent microstructured optical fiber with a dedicated design are embedded in a composite fiber-reinforced polymer. The Bragg peak wavelength shifts are measured under controlled axial and transversal strain and during thermal cycling of the composite sample. We obtain a sensitivity to transversal strain that exceeds values reported earlier in literature by one order of magnitude. Our results evidence the relevance of using microstructured optical fibers for structural integrity monitoring of composite material structures.
- ItemAn electron beam profile instrument based on FBGs(Basel : MDPI AG, 2014) Sporea, D.; Stǎncǎlie, A.; Becherescu, N.; Becker, M.; Rothhardt, M.Along with the dose rate and the total irradiation dose measurements, the knowledge of the beam localization and the beam profile/energy distribution in the beam are parameters of interest for charged particle accelerator installations when they are used in scientific investigations, industrial applications or medical treatments. The transverse profile of the beam, its position, its centroid location, and its focus or flatness depend on the instrument operating conditions or on the beam exit setup. Proof-of-concept of a new type of charged particle beam diagnostics based on fiber Bragg gratings (FBGs) was demonstrated. Its operating principle relies on the measurement of the peak wavelength changes for an array of FBG sensors as function of the temperature following the exposure to an electron beam. Periodically, the sensor irradiation is stopped and the FBG are force cooled to a reference temperature with which the temperature influencing each sensor during beam exposure is compared. Commercially available FBGs, and FBGs written in radiation resistant optical fibers, were tested under electron beam irradiation in order to study their possible use in this application.
- ItemCharacterization of antibiotic and biocide resistance genes and virulence factors of staphylococcus species associated with bovine mastitis in Rwanda(Basel : MDPI AG, 2020) Antók, Fruzsina Irén; Mayrhofer, Rosa; Marbach, Helene; Masengesho, Jean Claude; Keinprecht, Helga; Nyirimbuga, Vedaste; Fischer, Otto; Lepuschitz, Sarah; Ruppitsch, Werner; Ehling-Schulz, Monika; Feßler, Andrea T.; Schwarz, Stefan; Monecke, Stefan; Ehricht, Ralf; Grunert, Tom; Spergser, Joachim; Loncaric, IgorThe present study was conducted from July to August 2018 on milk samples taken at dairy farms in the Northern Province and Kigali District of Rwanda in order to identify Staphylococcus spp. associated with bovine intramammary infection. A total of 161 staphylococcal isolates originating from quarter milk samples of 112 crossbred dairy cattle were included in the study. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing was performed and isolates were examined for the presence of various resistance genes. Staphylococcus aureus isolates were also analyzed for the presence of virulence factors, genotyped by spa typing and further phenotypically subtyped for capsule expression using Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. Selected S. aureus were characterized using DNA microarray technology, multi-locus sequence typing (MLST) and whole-genome sequencing. All mecA-positive staphylococci were further genotyped using dru typing. In total, 14 different staphylococcal species were detected, with S. aureus being most prevalent (26.7%), followed by S. xylosus (22.4%) and S. haemolyticus (14.9%). A high number of isolates was resistant to penicillin and tetracycline. Various antimicrobial and biocide resistance genes were detected. Among S. aureus, the Panton–Valentine leukocidin (PVL) genes, as well as bovine leukocidin (LukM/LukF-P83) genes, were detected in two and three isolates, respectively, of which two also carried the toxic shock syndrome toxin gene tsst-1 bovine variant. t1236 was the predominant spa type. FTIR-based capsule serotyping revealed a high prevalence of non-encapsulated S. aureus isolates (89.5%). The majority of the selected S. aureus isolates belonged to clonal complex (CC) 97 which was determined using DNA microarray based assignment. Three new MLST sequence types were detected. © 2019 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.