A. James Clark School of Engineering
Permanent URI for this communityhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/1654
The collections in this community comprise faculty research works, as well as graduate theses and dissertations.
Browse
4 results
Search Results
Item Protein-based vehicles for biomimetic RNAi delivery(Springer Nature, 2019-02-26) Pottash, Alex Eli; Kuffner, Christopher; Noonan-Shueh, Madeleine; Jay, Steven M.Broad translational success of RNA interference (RNAi) technology depends on the development of effective delivery approaches. To that end, researchers have developed a variety of strategies, including chemical modification of RNA, viral and non-viral transfection approaches, and incorporation with delivery vehicles such as polymer- and lipid-based nanoparticles, engineered and native proteins, extracellular vesicles (EVs), and others. Among these, EVs and protein-based vehicles stand out as biomimetically-inspired approaches, as both proteins (e.g. Apolipoprotein A-1, Argonaute 2, and Arc) and EVs mediate intercellular RNA transfer physiologically. Proteins specifically offer significant therapeutic potential due to their biophysical and biochemical properties as well as their ability to facilitate and tolerate manipulation; these characteristics have made proteins highly successful translational therapeutic molecules in the last two decades. This review covers engineered protein vehicles for RNAi delivery along with what is currently known about naturally-occurring extracellular RNA carriers towards uncovering design rules that will inform future engineering of protein-based vehicles.Item Protein-based vehicles for biomimetic RNAi delivery(BioMed Central, 2019-02-26) Pottash, Alex Eli; Kuffner, Christopher; Noonan-Shueh, Madeleine; Jay, Steven M.Broad translational success of RNA interference (RNAi) technology depends on the development of effective delivery approaches. To that end, researchers have developed a variety of strategies, including chemical modification of RNA, viral and non-viral transfection approaches, and incorporation with delivery vehicles such as polymer- and lipid-based nanoparticles, engineered and native proteins, extracellular vesicles (EVs), and others. Among these, EVs and protein-based vehicles stand out as biomimetically-inspired approaches, as both proteins (e.g. Apolipoprotein A-1, Argonaute 2, and Arc) and EVs mediate intercellular RNA transfer physiologically. Proteins specifically offer significant therapeutic potential due to their biophysical and biochemical properties as well as their ability to facilitate and tolerate manipulation; these characteristics have made proteins highly successful translational therapeutic molecules in the last two decades. This review covers engineered protein vehicles for RNAi delivery along with what is currently known about naturally-occurring extracellular RNA carriers towards uncovering design rules that will inform future engineering of protein-based vehicles.Item An Analysis of Thermally Induced Arcing Failure of Electrical Cable(2013) Fisher, Ryan Patrick; Stoliarov, Stanislav I; Fire Protection Engineering; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Arc failure of Southwire Romex Simpull non-metallic sheathed 14/2 American wire gauge (AWG) with ground cable due to external heat was examined. This type of cable was selected due to its widespread use in residential building wiring. This research is motivated by the fact that currently there are no widely accepted methods or models used to predict electric arc failure in cables exposed to thermal conditions or to determine whether an arc failure event was the cause or result of a fire. A variety of tests were performed at various temperatures to learn more about the arc failure of these cables. The cables were exposed to precise temperatures with a steady heating rate in a convection oven in order to best attempt to eliminate heat transfer through the cable. In order to explore the effect current may have on the time to arc failure of the cable, experiments at different temperatures were performed in both loaded and unloaded scenarios. During many of these tests, voltage and current measurements were collected during an arcing event. As part of the process of exploring the events leading up to arc failure, electrical resistance tests of the cable's insulation components were examined. A model was developed to predict time to arc failure at a variety of temperatures based on thermal degradation of the PVC insulation. The purpose of the developed model is to be able to predict cable failure based on known thermal conditions. The proposed values of the model developed are in examining a prior thermally induced electrical arcing incident or in determining the suitability of a cable in an abnormal thermal environment. The results of this research will be useful in continuing the research and education of the arc failure of electrical cables.Item FORENSIC INVESTIGATION TECHNIQUES FOR INSPECTING ELECTRICAL CONDUCTORS INVOLVED IN FIRES FOR ARC AND MELT BEADS(2012) Hussain, Nasir; Sunderland, Peter B; Fire Protection Engineering; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)The objective of this research was to determine, experimentally, if distinguishing characteristics exist between the beads formed on energized and non-energized wires exposed to various thermal insults. Most of research published in the literature has not tested energized and non-energized wires under the same thermal conditions. The tests in this study were conducted using convective, radiative and combined convective/radiative thermal exposures. Wires were tested in both energized and non-energized states. Energized wires were tested under "load" and "no load" conditions. Beads formed on both the energized and non-energized wires as results of thermal exposure. Beads were analyzed externally and internally with stereo microscope, SEM/EDS, and a metallurgical microscope. No clear trends or distinguishing visual or microscopic characteristics between the beads formed on energized and non-energized wires were found. The bead analysis methods used during this research showed that it is not possible to distinguish between the beads formed on energized and non-energized wires exposed to various thermal insults.