Non-chemical signatures of biological materials: Radio signals from Covid19?

All therapeutic methods dealing with coronavirus (past and present) are based on chemicals. We test for it (positive or negative) chemically and hope to cure it with a future vaccine (some complicated chemical preparation). If and when the virus mutates, another set of chemical protocols for its testing and a hunt for new chemicals as a vaccine shall begin again and again. But the history of modern (western) medicine tells us that our biotechnology is not so limited. Copious scientific evidence for sonic and low energy electromagnetic signals produced by all biological elements (DNA, cells, bacteria, parasites, virus) exists; in turn, the biological elements are affected by these non-chemical signals as well. A careful analysis and a catalogue of the spectrum of these non-chemical signals are proposed here as a unique biophysical signature.

Image quality evaluation of ultrasound imaging systems: advanced B-modes

The Quality assurance of ultrasound clinical imaging systems is essential for maintaining their performance to the highest level and for complying with the requirements by various regulatory and accrediting agencies. Although there is no standardization yet, most of the quality assessment procedures available in literature are proposed for B-mode and Doppler imaging. However, ultrasound imaging systems offer a variety of advanced imaging modes, besides B-mode and Doppler, which are primarily aimed at improving image quality. This study presents computer-based methods for evaluating image quality for the advanced imaging modes of ultrasound imaging systems: harmonic imaging, spatial compounding imaging, adaptive speckle reduction, and tissue aberration correction. The functions and parameters proposed for evaluating image quality are: grayscale mapping function, image contrast, contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR), and high-contrast spatial resolution. We present our computer-based methods for evaluating image quality of these modes with a number of probe and scanner combinations, which were employed to image targets in ultrasound phantoms. The functions and parameters here proposed in image quality performance evaluation are: grayscale mapping function, image contrast, CNR, and high-contrast spatial resolution. We show that these quantities could be useful in developing standardized methods for evaluating the advanced ultrasound imaging modes, especially when the advanced mode resulted in subtle visual differences.

Breast Ultrasound Technology and Performance Evaluation of Ultrasound Equipment: B-Mode

Ultrasound (US) has become increasingly important in imaging and image-guided interventional procedures. In order to ensure that the imaging equipment performs to the highest level achievable and thus provides reliable clinical results, a number of quality control (QC) methods have been developed. Such QC is increasingly required by accrediting agencies and professional organizations; however, these requirements typically do not include detailed procedures for how the tests should be performed. In this paper, a detailed overview of QC methods for general and breast US imaging using computer-based objective methods is described. The application of QC is then discussed within the context of a common clinical application (US-guided needle biopsy) as well as for research applications, where QC may not be mandated, and thus is rarely discussed. The implementation of these methods will help in finding early stage equipment faults and in optimizing image quality, which could lead to better detection and classification of suspicious findings in clinical applications, as well as improving the robustness of research studies.

Acoustic neuromodulation from a basic science prospective

We present here biophysical models to gain deeper insights into how an acoustic stimulus might influence or modulate neuronal activity. There is clear evidence that neural activity is not only associated with electrical and chemical changes but that an electro-mechanical coupling is also involved. Currently, there is no theory that unifies the electrical, chemical, and mechanical aspects of neuronal activity. Here, we discuss biophysical models and hypotheses that can explain some of the mechanical aspects associated with neuronal activity: the soliton model, the neuronal intramembrane cavitation excitation model, and the flexoelectricity hypothesis. We analyze these models and discuss their implications on stimulation and modulation of neuronal activity by ultrasound.

Modulation of the interstitial fluid pressure by high intensity focused ultrasound as a way to alter local fluid and solute movement: insights from a mathematical model

High intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) operated in thermal mode has been reported to reduce interstitial fluid pressure and improve the penetration of large macromolecules and nanoparticles in tumor and normal tissue. Little is understood about how the interstitial fluid pressure and velocity as well as the interstitial macromolecule transport are affected by HIFU exposure. A mathematical model is presented here which sheds light on the initial biophysical changes brought about HIFU. Our continuum model treats tissue as an effective poro-elastic material that reacts to elevated temperatures with a rapid drop in interstitial elastic modulus. Using parameters from the literature, the model is extrapolated to derive information on the effect in tumors, and to predict its impact on the convective and diffusive transport of macromolecular drugs. The model is first solved using an analytical approximation with step-wise changes at each boundary, and then solved numerically starting from a Gaussian beam approximation of the ultrasound treatment. Our results indicate that HIFU causes a rapid drop in interstitial fluid pressure that may be exploited to facilitate convection of macromolecules from vasculature to the exposed region. However, following a short recovery period in which the interstitial fluid pressure is normalized, transport returns to normal and the advantages disappear over time. The results indicate that this effect is strongest for the delivery of large molecules and nanoparticles that are in the circulation at the time of treatment. The model may be easily applied to more complex situations involving effects on vascular permeability and diffusion.

Age estimation by pulp/tooth ratio in lateral and central incisors by peri-apical X-ray

Since 2004, several papers on the analysis of the apposition of secondary dentine have been published. The aim of this paper was to study a sample of peri-apical X-ray images of upper and lower incisors, both lateral and medial, to examine the application of pulp/tooth area ratio as an indicator of age. A sample of 116 individuals, 62 men and 54 women, aged between 18 and 74 years, was studied. Data were fitted with age as a linear function of the pulp/tooth ratio of incisors. The total variance explained by the regression equation ranged from 51.3% of age, when lower lateral incisors were used as explanatory variable, to 81.6% when upper lateral incisors were used. The accuracy of the corresponding regression model yielded ME = 8.44 and 5.34 years, respectively. These results show that, although incisors are less reliable than canines or lower premolars, they can be used to estimate age-at-death when the latter are absent.

Modeling focused ultrasound exposure for the optimal control of thermal dose distribution

Preclinical studies indicate that focused ultrasound at exposure conditions close to the threshold for thermal damage can increase drug delivery at the focal region. Although these results are promising, the optimal control of temperature still remains a challenge. To address this issue, computer-simulated ultrasound treatments have been performed. When the treatments are delivered without taking into account the cooling effect exerted by the blood flow, the resulting thermal dose is highly variable with regions of thermal damage, regions of underdosage close to the vessels, and areas in between these two extremes. When the power deposition is adjusted so that the peak thermal dose remains close to the threshold for thermal damage, the thermal dose is more uniformly distributed but under-dosage is still visible around the thermally significant vessels. The results of these simulations suggest that, for focused ultrasound, as for other delivery methods, the only way to control temperature is to adjust the average energy deposition to compensate for the presence of thermally significant vessels in the target area. By doing this, we have shown that it is possible to reduce the temperature heterogeneity observed in focused ultrasound thermal treatments.

Transient photothermal spectra of plasmonic nanobubbles

The photothermal efficacy of near-infrared gold nanoparticles (NP), nanoshells, and nanorods was studied under pulsed high-energy optical excitation in plasmonic nanobubble (PNB) mode as a function of the wavelength and duration of the excitation laser pulse. PNBs, transient vapor nanobubbles, were generated around individual and clustered overheated NPs in water and living cells. Transient PNBs showed two photothermal features not previously observed for NPs: the narrowing of the spectral peaks to 1 nm and the strong dependence of the photothermal efficacy upon the duration of the laser pulse. Narrow red-shifted (relative to those of NPs) near-infrared spectral peaks were observed for 70 ps excitation laser pulses, while longer sub- and nanosecond pulses completely suppressed near-infrared peaks and blue shifted the PNB generation to the visual range. Thus, PNBs can provide superior spectral selectivity over gold NPs under specific optical excitation conditions.

Estimation of thermal dose from MR thermometry during application of nonablative pulsed high intensity focused ultrasound

PURPOSE

To evaluate whether MR thermometry is sufficiently fast, accurate, and spatially resolved for monitoring the thermal safety of nonablative pulsed high intensity ultrasound (pHIFU) treatments.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A combination of real MR thermometry data and modeling was used to analyze the effects of temporal and spatial averaging as well as noise on the peak temperatures and thermal doses that would be measured by MR thermometry.

RESULTS

MR thermometry systematically underestimates the temperature and thermal doses during pHIFU treatment. Small underestimates of peak temperature can lead to large underestimates of thermal dose. Spatial averaging errors are small for ratios of pixel dimension to heating zone radius less than 0.25, which may be achieved by reducing the voxel size or steering the acoustic beam. Thermal dose might also be underestimated for very short, high power pulses due to temporal averaging. A simple correction factor based on the applied power and duty cycle may be applied to determine the upper bound of this effect.

CONCLUSION

The temperature and thermal dose measured using MR thermometry during pulsed HIFU treatment is probably sufficient in most instances. Simple corrections may be used to calculate an upper bound where this is a critical factor.

Linear behavior of a preformed microbubble containing light absorbing nanoparticles: insight from a mathematical model

Microbubbles are used as ultrasonic contrast agents in medical imaging because of their highly efficient scattering properties. Gold nanoparticles absorb specific wavelengths of optical radiation very effectively with the subsequent generation of thermo-acoustic waves in the surrounding medium. A theoretical and numerical analysis of the possibility of inducing radial oscillations in a pre-existing spherical microbubble, through the laser excitation of gold nanoparticles contained within, is presented. A description of such a system can be obtained in terms of a confined two-phase model, with the nanoparticles suspended in a confined region of gas, surrounded by a liquid. The Rayleigh-Plesset equation is assumed to be valid at the boundary between the gas and the liquid. The confined two-phase model is solved in linear approximation. The system is diagonalized and the general solution is obtained. This solution is in the form of exponentially decaying oscillatory functions for the temperature and pressure inside the bubble, and radial oscillations of the bubble boundary. It was found that, for the right size of bubbles, the oscillatory behavior takes place in the low megahertz range, which is ideal for medical applications. This study suggests the possibility of new applications of microbubbles in photoacoustic imaging.

Age estimation by pulp/tooth area ratio in canines: study of a Portuguese sample to test Cameriere's method

Age estimation in adults is an important problem in both anthropological and forensic fields, and apposition of secondary dentine is often used as an indicator of age. In recent papers, Cameriere et al. studied the pulp/tooth area ratio of canines for this purpose. The present study examines the application of the pulp/tooth area ratio by peri-apical X-ray images as an age indicator in a Portuguese identified sample. The statistical model was then compared with results from an Italian identified sample, to establish whether a common regression model for both samples could be developed. The Portuguese sample consisted of 126 canines of male and 132 of female from subjects 20 to 84 years old, from the osteological collection of the Museum of Anthropology at Coimbra University. The Italian sample consisted of 114 canines of male and 86 of female from subjects 20 to 79 years old, analyzed in Cameriere et al. (2007), and came from the Frassetto osteological collection of Sassari (Sardinia), now housed in the Museum of Anthropology, Department of Experimental and Evolutionistic Biology, University of Bologna. Statistical analysis was performed in order to obtain multiple regression formulas for dental age calculation, with chronological age as dependent variable, and gender and pulp/tooth area ratio on upper (RA(u)) and lower canines (RA(l)) as independent variables. ANCOVA analysis showed that gender was not significant but that variables RA(u) and RA(l) were. The regression model for the Portuguese sample yielded the following equations: Age=101.3-556.68 RA(u) (upper canines) and Age=92.37-492.05 RA(l) (lower canines). Both models explained about 97% of total variance, and mean prediction errors were ME=2.37 years and 2.55 years, respectively. Comparisons between the equation referring to the Portuguese sample and the equivalent linear equations proposed by Cameriere et al. for the Italian sample did not reveal significant differences between the linear models, suggesting that a common regression model could be applied for both samples. The common regression model, describing age as a linear function of RA(u) and RA(l), yielded the following linear regression formulas: Age=100.598-544.433 RA(u); Age=91.362-480.901 RA(l), and explained 86% and 93% of total variance, respectively. Mean prediction errors were ME=2.68 years and 2.73 years, respectively.

Cavitation threshold of microbubbles in gel tunnels by focused ultrasound

The investigation of inertial cavitation in micro-tunnels has significant implications for the development of therapeutic applications of ultrasound such as ultrasound-mediated drug and gene delivery. The threshold for inertial cavitation was investigated using a passive cavitation detector with a center frequency of 1 MHz. Micro-tunnels of various diameters (90 to 800 microm) embedded in gel were fabricated and injected with a solution of Optison(trade mark) contrast agent of concentrations 1.2% and 0.2% diluted in water. An ultrasound pulse of duration 500 ms and center frequency 1.736 MHz was used to insonate the microbubbles. The acoustic pressure was increased at 1-s intervals until broadband noise emission was detected. The pressure threshold at which broadband noise emission was observed was found to be dependent on the diameter of the micro-tunnels, with an average increase of 1.2 to 1.5 between the smallest and the largest tunnels, depending on the microbubble concentration. The evaluation of inertial cavitation in gel tunnels rather than tubes provides a novel opportunity to investigate microbubble collapse in a situation that simulates in vivo blood vessels better than tubes with solid walls do.

Resonance frequency of microbubbles in small blood vessels: a numerical study

Microbubbles are currently used as ultrasound contrast agents. Their potential therapeutic applications are also under investigation. This work is designed to provide some insight into the mechanisms of energy absorption and deposition by a preformed gas bubble in the microvasculature to optimize its efficacy. In the linear regime, the most favourable condition for the transfer of energy from an ultrasonic field to a gas bubble occurs when the centre frequency of the ultrasonic field equals the resonance frequency of the bubble. The resonance frequency of gas microbubbles has been investigated up to now mainly in unbounded liquids; however when bubbles are confined in small regions, their resonance frequency is strongly affected by the surrounding boundaries. A parametric study on how the resonance frequency of microbubbles in blood vessels is affected by the bubble radius, vessel radius and the bubble position in the vessel is presented. The resonance frequency decreases below its free value with decreasing vessel radius for vessels smaller than 200-300 microm depending on the bubble size. This model suggests the possibility of using ultrasound in a range of frequencies that are, in general, lower than the ones used now for therapeutic and diagnostic applications of ultrasound (a few MHz). When microbubbles oscillate at their resonance frequency they absorb and therefore emit more energy. This energy may allow specific blood vessels to be targeted for both diagnostic and therapeutic applications of ultrasound.

Forced linear oscillations of microbubbles in blood capillaries

A theoretical investigation of the forced linear oscillations of a gas microbubble in a blood capillary, whose radius is comparable in size to the bubble radius is presented. The natural frequency of oscillation, the thermal and viscous damping coefficients, the amplitude resonance, the energy resonance, as well as the average energy absorbed by the system, bubble plus vessel, have been computed for different kinds of gas microbubbles, containing air, octafluropropane, and perflurobutane as a function of the bubble radius and applied frequency. It has been found that the bubble behavior is isothermal at low frequencies and for small bubbles and between isothermal and adiabatic for larger bubbles and higher frequencies, with the viscous damping dominating over the thermal damping. Furthermore, the width of the energy resonance is strongly dependent on the bubble size and the natural frequency of oscillation is affected by the presence of the vessel wall and position of the bubble in the vessel. Therefore, the presence of the blood vessel affects the way in which the bubble absorbs energy from the ultrasonic field. The motivation of this study lies in the possibility of using gas microbubbles as an aid to therapeutic focused ultrasound treatments.