%0 Journal Article %J FUTURE INTERNET %D 2017 %T A Multimodal Perception Framework for Users Emotional State Assessment in Social Robotics %A Cominelli, L. %A N. Carbonaro %A D. Mazzei %A R. Garofalo %A A. Tognetti %A D. De Rossi %K human-robot interaction %K multimodality %K perception framework %K physiological signal acquisition %K social robotics %B FUTURE INTERNET %V 9 %G eng %R 10.3390/fi9030042 %0 Conference Paper %B Biomimetic and Biohybrid Systems 5th International Conference, Living Machines 2016, Edinburgh, UK, July 19-22, 2016. Proceedings %D 2016 %T A preliminary framework for a social robot ‚Äúsixth sense‚Äù %A Cominelli, L. %A D. Mazzei %A N. Carbonaro %A R. Garofalo %A A. Zaraki %A A. Tognetti %A D. De Rossi %K Affective computing %K Behaviour monitoring %K Computer Science (all) %K human-robot interaction %K social robotics %K Synthetic tutor %K Theoretical Computer Science %B Biomimetic and Biohybrid Systems 5th International Conference, Living Machines 2016, Edinburgh, UK, July 19-22, 2016. Proceedings %I Springer Verlag %C Dordrecht %V 9793 %P 58–70 %U http://springerlink.com/content/0302-9743/copyright/2005/ %R 10.1007/978-3-319-42417-0_6 %0 Conference Paper %B Living Machines - The 4th International Conference on Biomimetic and Biohybrid Systems %D 2015 %T Damasio's Somatic Marker for Social Robotics: Preliminary Implementation and Test %A Cominelli, L. %A D. Mazzei %A M. Pieroni %A A. Zaraki %A R. Garofalo %A D. De Rossi %K Bioengineering %B Living Machines - The 4th International Conference on Biomimetic and Biohybrid Systems %I Springer %C Barcelona, Spain, 28 - 31 July 2015 %P 316-328 %U http://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-319-22979-9_31#page-1 %0 Journal Article %J International Journal On Advances in Life Sciences %D 2015 %T Improving African Healthcare through Open Source Biomedical Engineering %A C. De Maria %A D. Mazzei %A A. Ahluwalia %K Bioengineering %B International Journal On Advances in Life Sciences %8 01/2015 %G eng %0 Conference Paper %B The 37th Annual International Conference of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society (EMBS) %D 2015 %T Open Biomedical Engineering Education in Africa %A A. Ahluwalia %A D. Atwine %A C. De Maria %A C. Ibingira %A E. Kipkorir %A F. Kiros %A J. Madete %A D. Mazzei %A E. Molyneux %A K. Moonga %A M. Moshi %A M. Nzomo %A V. Oduol %A J. Okuonzi %K Bioengineering %B The 37th Annual International Conference of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society (EMBS) %I IEEE %C Milan, Italy, 25-29 August 2015 %0 Journal Article %J IEEE Transactions on Human-Machine Systems %D 2014 %T Designing and Evaluating a Social Gaze-Control System for a Humanoid Robot %A A. Zaraki %A D. Mazzei %A Giuliani, M. %A D. De Rossi %K Robotics %B IEEE Transactions on Human-Machine Systems %V 44 %P 157-168 %G eng %N 2 %0 Journal Article %J Journal of Human robot Interaction %D 2014 %T Development and Testing of a Multimodal Acquisition Platform for Human-Robot Interaction Affective Studies %A Lazzeri, N. %A D. Mazzei %A D. De Rossi %K Robotics %B Journal of Human robot Interaction %V 3 %P 1-24 %G eng %U http://humanrobotinteraction.org/journal/index.php/HRI/article/view/142/pdf_3 %N 2 %R http://dx.doi.org/10.5898/JHRI.3.2.Lazzeri %0 Conference Paper %B Living Machines 2014 %D 2014 %T An Experimental Eye-Tracking Study for the Design of a Context-Dependent Social Robot Blinking Model %A A. Zaraki %A Dehkordi, M. B. %A D. Mazzei %A D. De Rossi %K Robotics %X

uman gaze and blinking behaviours have been recently considered, to empower humanlike robots to convey a realistic behaviour in a social human-robot interaction. This paper reports the findings of our investigation on human eye-blinking behaviour in relation to human gaze behaviour, in a human-human interaction. These findings then can be used to design a humanlike eye-blinking model for a social humanlike robot. In an experimental eye-tracking study, we showed to 11 participants, a 7-minute video of social interactions of two people, and collected their eye-blinking and gaze behaviours with an eye-tracker. Analysing the collected data, we measured information such as participants’ blinking rate, maximum and minimum blinking duration, number of frequent (multiple) blinking, as well as the participants’ gaze directions on environment. The results revealed that participants’ blinking rate in a social interaction are qualitatively correlated to the gaze behaviour, as higher number of gaze shift increased the blinking rate. Based on the findings of this study, we can propose a context-dependent blinking model as an important component of the robot’s gaze control system that can empower our robot to mimic human blinking behaviour in a multiparty social interaction.

%B Living Machines 2014 %I Springer-Verlag %C Milan, Italy, July 30 – August 1 %P 356-366 %U http://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-319-09435-9_31 %R 10.1007/978-3-319-09435-9_31 %0 Conference Paper %B Living Machines 2014 %D 2014 %T I-CLIPS Brain: A Hybrid Cognitive System for Social Robots %A D. Mazzei %A Cominelli, L. %A Lazzeri, N. %A A. Zaraki %A D. De Rossi %K Robotics %X

Sensing and interpreting the interlocutor’s social behaviours is a core challenge in the development of social robots. Social robots require both an innovative sensory apparatus able to perceive the “social and emotional world” in which they act and a cognitive system able to manage this incoming sensory information and plan an organized and pondered response. In order to allow scientists to design cognitive models for this new generation of social machines, it is necessary to develop control architectures that can be easily used also by researchers without technical skills of programming such as psychologists and neuroscientists. In this work an innovative hybrid deliberative/reactive cognitive architecture for controlling a social humanoid robot is presented. Design and implementation of the overall architecture take inspiration from the human nervous system. In particular, the cognitive system is based on the Damasio’s thesis. The architecture has been preliminary tested with the FACE robot. A social behaviour has been modeled to make FACE able to properly follow a human subject during a basic social interaction task and perform facial expressions as a reaction to the social context.

%B Living Machines 2014 %I Springer-Verlag %C Milan, Italy, July 30 – August 1 %P 213-224 %@ 978-3-319-09434-2 %U http://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-319-09435-9_19 %R 10.1007/978-3-319-09435-9_19 %0 Journal Article %J FRONTIERS IN NEUROSCIENCE %D 2014 %T Inference of Human Affective States from Psychophysiological Measurements Extracted under Ecologically Valid Conditions %A A. Betella %A R. Zucca %A Cetnarski, A %A A. Greco %A A Lanata %A D. Mazzei %A A. Tognetti %A X. D. Arsiwalla %A P Omedas %A D. De Rossi %A Verschure, P %X

Compared to standard laboratory protocols, the measurement of psychophysiological signals in real world experiments poses technical and methodological challenges due to external factors that cannot be directly controlled. To address this problem, we propose a hybrid approach based on an immersive and human accessible space called the eXperience Induction Machine (XIM), that incorporates the advantages of a laboratory within a life-like setting. The XIM integrates unobtrusive wearable sensors for the acquisition of psychophysiological signals suitable for ambulatory emotion research. In this paper, we present results from two different studies conducted to validate the XIM as a general-purpose sensing infrastructure for the study of human affective states under ecologically valid conditions. In the first investigation, we recorded and classified signals from subjects exposed to pictorial stimuli corresponding to a range of arousal levels, while they were free to walk and gesticulate. In the second study, we designed an experiment that follows the classical conditioning paradigm, a well-known procedure in the behavioral sciences, with the additional feature that participants were free to move in the physical space, as opposed to similar studies measuring physiological signals in constrained laboratory settings. Our results indicate that, by using our sensing infrastructure, it is indeed possible to infer human event-elicited affective states through measurements of psychophysiological signals under ecological conditions.

%B FRONTIERS IN NEUROSCIENCE %V 8 %G eng %R 10.3389/fnins.2014.00286 %0 Conference Paper %B Proc. of The Seventh International Conference on Advances in Computer-Human Interactions %D 2014 %T Interpreting Psychophysiological States Using Unobtrusive Wearable Sensors in Virtual Reality %A A. Betella %A Pacheco, D. %A R. Zucca %A X. D. Arsiwalla %A P Omedas %A A Lanata %A D. Mazzei %A A. Tognetti %A A. Greco %A N. Carbonaro %A Wagner, J. %A Lingenfelser, F. %A Andrè, E. %A D. De Rossi %A Verschure, P. %X

One of the main challenges in the study of human be- havior is to quantitatively assess the participants? affective states by measuring their psychophysiological signals in ecologically valid conditions. The quality of the acquired data, in fact, is often poor due to artifacts generated by natural interactions such as full body movements and gestures. We created a technology to address this problem. We enhanced the eXperience Induction Machine (XIM), an immersive space we built to conduct experiments on human behavior, with unobtrusive wearable sensors that measure electrocardiogram, breathing rate and electrodermal response. We conducted an empirical validation where participants wearing these sensors were free to move in the XIM space while exposed to a series of visual stimuli taken from the International Affective Picture System (IAPS). Our main result consists in the quan- titative estimation of the arousal range of the affective stimuli through the analysis of participants? psychophysiological states. Taken together, our findings show that the XIM constitutes a novel tool to study human behavior in life-like conditions.

%B Proc. of The Seventh International Conference on Advances in Computer-Human Interactions %0 Conference Paper %B ICDS 2014, The Eighth International Conference on Digital Society %D 2014 %T Open Source Biomedical Engineering for Sustainability in African Healthcare: Combining Academic Excellence with Innovation %A C. De Maria %A D. Mazzei %A A. Ahluwalia %K Bioengineering %B ICDS 2014, The Eighth International Conference on Digital Society %P 48–53 %0 Conference Paper %B IEEE-RAS International Conference on Humanoid Robots (HUMANOIDS 2014) %D 2014 %T Recognition and Expression of Emotions by a Symbiotic Android Head %A D. Mazzei %A A. Zaraki %A Lazzeri, N. %A D. De Rossi %K Bioengineering %K Robotics %B IEEE-RAS International Conference on Humanoid Robots (HUMANOIDS 2014) %I IEEE %C Madrid, Spain, November 18 - 20 %P 134 - 139 %R 10.1109/HUMANOIDS.2014.7041349 %0 Conference Paper %B IEEE-RSI International Conference on Robotics and Mechatronics 2014 %D 2014 %T An RGB-D Based Social Behavior Interpretation System for a Humanoid Social Robot %A A. Zaraki %A Giuliani, M. %A Dehkordi, M. B. %A D. Mazzei %A D’Ursi, A. %A D. De Rossi %K Bioengineering %K Robotics %B IEEE-RSI International Conference on Robotics and Mechatronics 2014 %I IEEE %C Tehran, Iran, October 15-17 %P 185 - 190 %R 10.1109/ICRoM.2014.6990898 %0 Conference Paper %B Journal of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine %D 2014 %T Sensorized Squeeze Pressure Bioreactor For mechanical modulation of cardiomyocyte phenotype %A S. Giusti %A Vozzi, F. %A F. Pagliari %A Tirella, A %A D. Mazzei %A Cabiati, M %A S. del Ry %A A. Ahluwalia %K Bioengineering %B Journal of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine %V 8 Suppl 1 %P 67–8 %U http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24912686 %R 10.1002/term.1943 %0 Journal Article %J Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology %D 2014 %T Wearable Wireless Tactile Display for Virtual Interactions with Soft Bodies %A G. Frediani %A D. Mazzei %A D. De Rossi %A F. Carpi %K Bioengineering %X

We describe here a wearable, wireless, compact, and lightweight tactile display, able to mechanically stimulate the fingertip of users, so as to simulate contact with soft bodies in virtual environments. The device was based on dielectric elastomer actuators, as high-performance electromechanically active polymers. The actuator was arranged at the user’s fingertip, integrated within a plastic case, which also hosted a compact high-voltage circuitry. A custom-made wireless control unit was arranged on the forearm and connected to the display via low-voltage leads. We present the structure of the device and a characterization of it, in terms of electromechanical response and stress relaxation. Furthermore, we present results of a psychophysical test aimed at assessing the ability of the system to generate different levels of force that can be perceived by users.

%B Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology %V 2 %G eng %U http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4150388/ %N 31 %R 10.3389/fbioe.2014.00031 %0 Conference Paper %B VIRTUAL REALITY INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE %D 2014 %T XIM-Engine: a software framework to support the development of interactive applications that uses conscious and unconscious reactions in immersive mixed reality %A P. Omedas %A A. Betella %A Zucca, R. %A X. D. Arsiwalla %A Pacheco, D. %A J. Wagner %A F. Lingenfelser %A D. Mazzei %A A Lanata %A A. Tognetti %A Goldhoorn, A. %A Guerra, E. %A Alquìzar, R. %A Grau, A. %A Sanfeliu, A. %A D. De Rossi %A E. André %A P. F. M. J. Verschure %X

The development of systems that allow multimodal interpretation of human-machine interaction is crucial to advance our understanding and validation of theoretical models of user behavior. In particular, a system capable of collecting, perceiving and interpreting unconscious behavior can provide rich contextual information for an interactive system. One possible application for such a system is in the exploration of complex data through immersion, where massive amounts of data are generated every day both by humans and computer processes that digitize information at different scales and resolutions thus exceeding our processing capacity. We need tools that accelerate our understanding and generation of hypotheses over the datasets, guide our searches and prevent data overload. We describe XIM- engine, a bio-inspired software framework designed to capture and analyze multi-modal human behavior in an immersive environment. The framework allows performing studies that can advance our understanding on the use of conscious and unconscious reactions in interactive systems.

%B VIRTUAL REALITY INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE %G eng %0 Conference Paper %B ACM SIGGRAPH 2013 %D 2013 %T Advanced Interfaces to Stem the Data Deluge in Mixed Reality: Placing Human (un)consciuosness in the Loop %A A. Betella %A E. Martìnez %A R. Zucca %A X. D. Arsiwalla %A P Omedas %A S. Wierenga %A A. Mura %A J. Wagner %A F. Lingenfelser %A E. André %A D. Mazzei %A A. Tognetti %A A Lanata %A D. De Rossi %A P. F. M. J. Verschure %K Bioengineering %B ACM SIGGRAPH 2013 %C New York, NY, USA %U 10.1145/2503385.2503460 %0 Book Section %B Biomimetic and Biohybrid Systems (Proc. Second International Conference, Living Machines 2013) %D 2013 %T Preliminary Implementation of Context-Aware Attention System for Humanoid Robots %A A. Zaraki %A D. Mazzei %A Lazzeri, N. %A M. Pieroni %A D. De Rossi %K Bioengineering %X

A context-aware attention system is fundamental for regulating the robot behaviour in a social interaction since it enables social robots to actively select the right environmental stimuli at the right time during a multiparty social interaction. This contribution presents a modular context-aware attention system which drives the robot gaze. It is composed by two modules: the scene analyzer module manages incoming data flow and provides a human-like understanding of the information coming from the surrounding environment; the attention module allows the robot to select the most important target in the perceived scene on the base of a computational model. After describing the motivation, we report the proposed system and the preliminary test.

%B Biomimetic and Biohybrid Systems (Proc. Second International Conference, Living Machines 2013) %I Springer-Verlag %V 8064 %P 457-459 %G eng %R 10.1007/978-3-642-39802-5_65 %0 Conference Paper %B ACM International Conference Proceeding Series %D 2013 %T A Sensing Architecture for Empathetic Data Systems %A J. Wagner %A F. Lingenfelser %A E. André %A D. Mazzei %A A. Tognetti %A D. De Rossi %A A. Betella %A R. Zucca %A P Omedas %A P. F. M. J. Verschure %B ACM International Conference Proceeding Series %I ACM Digital Library %P – %8 7-8 March %U http://dx.medra.org/10.1145/2459236.2459253 %R 10.1145/2459236.2459253 %0 Journal Article %J Procedia Engineering %D 2013 %T SQPR 3.0: A Sensorized Bioreactor for Modulating Cardiac Phenotype %A S. Giusti %A F. Pagliari %A Vozzi, F. %A Tirella, A %A D. Mazzei %A Cabiati, M %A S. del Ry %A A. Ahluwalia %K Bioengineering %X

In cardiac tissue engineering, the use of bioreactors is fundamental for applying controlled mechanical stimuli on cells and recreate a physiological environment for cardiomyocyte cultures. This work is focused on the design of a sensorized Squeeze Pressure bioreactor (SQPR 3.0) able to apply a periodic contactless hydrodynamic pressure on tissue constructs. This system was then tested with H2c9, a murine cardiomyoblast cell line, to investigate the effect of different stimulation times (2h, 24h, 30h) on cell shape and cardiotypic marker expression.

%B Procedia Engineering %V 59 %P 219–225 %G eng %U http://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S187770581301028X %R 10.1016/j.proeng.2013.05.114 %0 Book Section %B Biomimetic and Biohybrid Systems (Proc. Second International Conference, Living Machines 2013) %D 2013 %T Towards a Believable Social Robot %A Lazzeri, N. %A D. Mazzei %A A. Zaraki %A D. De Rossi %K Bioengineering %X

Two perspectives define a human being in his social sphere: appearance and behaviour. The aesthetic aspect is the first significant element that impacts a communication while the behavioural aspect is a crucial factor in evaluating the ongoing interaction. In particular, we have more expectations when interacting with anthropomorphic robots and we tend to define them believable if they respect human social conventions. Therefore researchers are focused both on increasingly anthropomorphizing the embodiment of the robots and on giving the robots a realistic behaviour.This paper describes our research on making a humanoid robot socially interacting with human beings in a believable way.

 

%B Biomimetic and Biohybrid Systems (Proc. Second International Conference, Living Machines 2013) %I Springer-Verlag %P 393-395 %G eng %R 10.1007/978-3-642-39802-5_45 %0 Conference Paper %B BIOROB2012 %D 2012 %T HEFES: an Hybrid Engine for Facial Expressions Synthesis to control human-like androids and avatars %A D. Mazzei %A Lazzeri, N. %A Hanson, D. %A D. De Rossi %K Bioengineering %B BIOROB2012 %C Rome, Italy %P 195 - 200 %G eng %0 Conference Paper %B Journal of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine %D 2012 %T Real Time and In-Situ control of environmental parameters in a modular bioreactor %A S. Giusti %A D. Mazzei %A A. Ahluwalia %K Bioengineering %X

Many researchers now recognize the importance of the external environment in which cells are cultured for cell function and differentiation. Most of the systems able to apply physiological-like stimuli also need a classical incubator or a specifically designed system to control the environmental parameters at some distance from the cells. Here, a standalone platform for cell, tissue and organ culture is described. The SUITE (Supervising Unit for In-vitro Testing) system can control local environmental variables like pH, temperature and hydrostatic pressure over long periods, to provide the optimal environment for cells outside the classical incubator and also to apply mechanical and chemical stimuli to simulate the physiological milieu. The SUITE platform is used with Multi-Compartmental modular Bioreactors (MCmB) to perform dynamic cultures of hepatocytes as in-vitro liver model. Preliminary tests demonstrated the capability of the system to maintain the target parameters for more than 72 h generating different hydrostatic pressures (20–30–40–50 mmHg). Then, two bioreactors were connected in series and cultured for 24 h in the SUITE platform with hydrostatic pressures of 20–30–40 mmHg. Static and dynamic controls were placed in the classical humidified incubator at 37°C, 5% CO2. The results show that cell function is enhanced in SUITE at up to 30 mmHg of hydrostatic pressure, as confirmed by viability, metabolic function and morphological analysis.

%B Journal of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine %C Vien, Austria %V 6 Suppl 1 %P 331 %U http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22941753 %R 10.1002/term.1586 %0 Conference Paper %B Realistic Humanlike Robots for Treatment of Autism, PETRA 2012 %D 2012 %T Realistic Humanlike Robots for Treatment of ASD, Social Training, and Research; Shown to Appeal to Youths with ASD, Cause Physiological Arousal, and Increase Human-to-Human Social Engagement %A Hanson, D. %A D. Mazzei %A Garver, C. %A D. De Rossi %A Stevenson, M. %K Bioengineering %B Realistic Humanlike Robots for Treatment of Autism, PETRA 2012 %P 1-7 %G eng %0 Conference Paper %B Proc. Annual Int Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society,EMBC Conf. of the IEEE %D 2011 %T Development and evaluation of a social robot platform for therapy in autism %A D. Mazzei %A Lazzeri, N. %A Billeci, L. %A Igliozzi, R. %A A Mancini %A A. Ahluwalia %A Muratori, F. %A D. De Rossi %K Bioengineering %B Proc. Annual Int Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society,EMBC Conf. of the IEEE %P 4515–4518 %G eng %R 10.1109/IEMBS.2011.6091119 %0 Patent %D 2011 %T Dispositivo per tomografia ad impedenza elettrica %A Baldi, G. %A D. Mazzei %A Gervasi, V. %K Bioengineering %G eng %0 Journal Article %J Biotechnol Bioeng %D 2011 %T A flexible bioreactor system for constructing in vitro tissue and organ models. %A Vozzi, F. %A D. Mazzei %A Vinci, B. %A G. Vozzi %A Sbrana, T. %A Ricotti, L. %A Forgione, N. %A A. Ahluwalia %K Bioengineering %X

To develop in vitro models of cells, tissues and organs we have designed and realized a series of cell culture chambers. Each chamber is purpose designed to simulate a particular feature of the in vivo environment. The bioreactor system is user friendly, and the chambers are easy to produce, sterilize and assemble. In addition they can be connected together to simulate inter-organ or tissue cross-talk. Here we discuss the design philosophy of the bioreactor system and then describe its construction. Preliminary results of validation tests obtained with hepatocytes and endothelial cells are also reported. The results show that endothelial cells are extremely sensitive to small levels of shear stress and that the presence of heterotypic signals from endothelial cells enhances the endogenous metabolic function of hepatocytes.

%B Biotechnol Bioeng %V 108 %P 2129–2140 %8 Sep %G eng %R http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/bit.23164 %0 Patent %D 2011 %T High throughput sensorized bioreactor for applying hydrodynamic pressure and shear stress stiumli on cell cutlures %A A. Ahluwalia %A C. De Maria %A D. Mazzei %A G. Vozzi %K Bioengineering %8 10/2011 %G eng %0 Book Section %B Bioreactors: Design, Properties and Applications %D 2011 %T Multi-Compartmental Modular Bioreactor as Innovative System for Dynamic Cell Cultures and Co-Cultures %A D. Mazzei %A S. Giusti %A Sbrana, T. %A A. Ahluwalia %E Antolli, P. G. %E Zhiming Liu %K Bioengineering %X

In this chapter, the design, fabrication process and preliminary tests of a Multi- Compartmental Modular Bioreactor used as a system for dynamic cell cultures and co-cultures is described. Although the microwell (MW) plate has become a standard in cell culture, the complexity of the physiological environment is not replicated in petri dishes or microplates. All cells are exquisitely sensitive to their micro-environment which is rich with cues from other cells and from mechanical stimuli due to flow, perfusion and movement. Microwells do not offer any form of dynamic chemical or physical stimulus to cells, such as concentration gradients, flow, pressure or mechanical stress. This is a major limitation in experiments investigating cellular responses in-vitro since the complex interplay of mechanical and biochemical factors is absent. Most researchers and industry have started to accept that classical in vitro experiments offer poor predictive value or mechanistic understanding and are shifting their interests to new technologies such as bioreactors. For this reason, a large number of bioreactor systems for cell culture have been recently designed and described. With the purpose of developing cell culture models to establish a physiological-like interaction between different cell types, a novel Multi-Compartmental Modular Bioreactor (MCmB)was realized. The modular chamber was designed with shape and dimensions similar to the 24-MultiWell allowing an easy transfer of microwell protocols. The MCmB consists of a cell culture chamber made of bio-compatible silicon polymer, with excellent self-sealing proprieties, transparency and flexibility. The modular chambers can be also connected together in series or in parallel as desired, in order to allow cell-cell cross-talk or replicate in vitro models of metabolism or diseases using allometric design principles. In this chapter we describe the bioreactor design process starting from a finite-element method (FEM) model, developed in order to study the shear stress and the oxygen concentration at the cell surface. A further version of the MCmB is also described, in which a semipermeable membrane is placed into the bioreactor allowing to create a double-chamber system (MCmB-dc) for biological barriers simulation like for example lung or intestine. Allometric methods for designing in-vitro organ models using combinations of different cell types or tissues cultured in different chambers are also presented. Allometric laws mathematically correlate non linear quantities such as organ mass, blood flow, blood retention time and metabolic rate. Using these laws the modules can be assembled in various configurations enabling organ and system physiology to be recapitulated in vitro. Preliminary experiments using the modules are also described.

%B Bioreactors: Design, Properties and Applications %I Nova Science Publishers, Inc %P 159 - 178 %G eng %& Multi-Compartimental Modular Bioreactor as Innovative System for Dynamic Cell Cultures and Co-Cultures %0 Journal Article %J Tissue engineering. Part C, Methods %D 2011 %T Squeeze pressure bioreactor: a hydrodynamic bioreactor for noncontact stimulation of cartilage constructs %A C. De Maria %A S. Giusti %A D. Mazzei %A A. Crawford %A A. Ahluwalia %K Bioengineering %X

A novel squeeze pressure bioreactor for noncontact hydrodynamic stimulation of cartilage is described. The bioreactor is based on a small piston that moves up and down, perpendicular to a tissue construct, in a fluid-filled chamber. Fluid displaced by the piston generates a pressure wave and shear stress as it moves across the sample, simulating the dynamic environment of a mobile joint. The fluid dynamics inside the squeeze pressure bioreactor was modeled using analytical and computational methods to simulate the mechanical stimuli imposed on a construct. In particular, the pressure, velocity field, and wall shear stress generated on the surface of the construct were analyzed using the theory of hydrodynamic lubrication, which describes the flow of an incompressible fluid between two surfaces in relative motion. Both the models and in-situ pressure measurements in the bioreactor demonstrate that controlled cyclic stresses of up to 10 kPa can be applied to tissue constructs. Initial tests on three-dimensional scaffolds seeded with chondrocytes show that glycosaminoglycan production is increased with regard to controls after 24 and 48 h of cyclic noncontact stimulation in the bioreactor.

%B Tissue engineering. Part C, Methods %V 17 %P 757–64 %G eng %U http://online.liebertpub.com/doi/abs/10.1089/ten.tec.2011.0002 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21410315 %R 10.1089/ten.TEC.2011.0002 %0 Patent %D 2011 %T Supporto per camere di coltura cellulare %A A. Ahluwalia %A Sbrana, T. %A D. Mazzei %K Bioengineering %8 11/2011 %G eng %0 Journal Article %J CYBER THERAPY AND REHABILITATION MAGAZINE %D 2011 %T Wearable Systems for Brain body Reading and Mind Healing %A A. Tognetti %A E. P. Scilingo %A G. Anania %A N. Carbonaro %A A Lanata %A F. Lorussi %A D. Mazzei %A G. Valenza %A D. De Rossi %B CYBER THERAPY AND REHABILITATION MAGAZINE %P 39–40 %G eng %0 Patent %D 2010 %T Contenitore per alimenti caldi e simili %A M. Bonini %A R. Casati %A M. Falorni %A G Fantoni %A M. Massei %A D. Mazzei %A M. Mazzuoli %A G. Renucci %K Bioengineering %G eng %0 Conference Paper %B Proc. IEEE RO-MAN %D 2010 %T The FACE of autism %A D. Mazzei %A Billeci, L. %A Armato, A. %A Lazzeri, N. %A Cisternino, A. %A G. Pioggia %A Igliozzi, R. %A Muratori, F. %A A. Ahluwalia %A D. De Rossi %K Bioengineering %B Proc. IEEE RO-MAN %P 791–796 %G eng %R 10.1109/ROMAN.2010.5598683 %0 Journal Article %J Toxicology in vitro %D 2010 %T Finite element modelling and design of a concentration gradient generating bioreactor: Application to biological pattern formation and toxicology %A G. Vozzi %A D. Mazzei %A Tirella, A %A Vozzi, F. %A A. Ahluwalia %K Bioengineering %X

This paper describes the use of a microfluidic gradient maker for the toxicological analysis of some conventional biomolecules such as hydrogen peroxide and a local anaesthetic, lidocaine on different cell cultures, human endothelial cells and myoblasts, respectively. The microfluidic device was designed and simulated using COMSOL Multiphysics(R) and the concentration gradient in the microfluidic network was analysed through a fluid-dynamic and mass-transport study. Subsequently the device was fabricated with soft lithography, casting PDMS in a master to obtain channels about 250mum deep. Hydrogen peroxide was tested on human endothelial cells, while lidocaine was tested on C2C12 myoblasts and an analysis was performed using propidium iodide staining followed by an imaging processing routine to obtain quantitative dose-response profiles in the gradient maker. The results show that the Gradient Maker (GM) bioreactor is a more sensitive method for detection of cell toxicity, and compared with testing of drug toxicity using microwells with individual cell cultures, allows one shot testing with a single cell culture exposed to a large number of concentrations. Moreover, the Gradient Maker was also modelled in order to realise biological pattern formation using two morphogenes acting as activator and inhibitor with varying diffusion rates.

%B Toxicology in vitro %V 24 %P 1828–1837 %G eng %U http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20580814 %R 10.1016/j.tiv.2010.05.010 %0 Journal Article %J Biotechnol J %D 2010 %T In vitro liver model using microfabricated scaffolds in a modular bioreactor. %A Vinci, B. %A Cavallone, D. %A G. Vozzi %A D. Mazzei %A C. Domenici %A Brunetto, M. %A A. Ahluwalia %K Bioengineering %X

Hepatocyte function on 3-D microfabricated polymer scaffolds realised with the pressure-activated microsyringe was tested under static and dynamic conditions. The dynamic cell culture was obtained using the multicompartment modular bioreactor system. Hepatocyte cell density, glucose consumption, and albumin secretion rate were measured daily over a week. Cells seeded on scaffolds showed an increase in cell density compared with monolayer controls. Moreover, in dynamic culture, cell metabolic function increased three times in comparison with static monolayer cultures. These results suggest that cell density and cell-cell interactions are mediated by the architecture of the substrate, while the endogenous biochemical functions are regulated by a sustainable supply of nutrients and interstitial-like flow. Thus, a combination of 3-D scaffolds and dynamic flow conditions are both important for the development of a hepatic tissue model for applications in drug testing and regenerative medicine.

%B Biotechnol J %V 5 %P 232–241 %8 Feb %G eng %R http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/biot.200900074 %0 Journal Article %J Biotechnol Bioeng %D 2010 %T A low shear stress modular bioreactor for connected cell culture under high flow rates. %A D. Mazzei %A M. A. Guzzardi %A S. Giusti %A A. Ahluwalia %K Bioengineering %K Bioreactors %X

A generic "system on a plate" modular multicompartmental bioreactor array which enables microwell protocols to be transferred directly to the bioreactor modules, without redesign of cell culture experiments or protocols is described. The modular bioreactors are simple to assemble and use and can be easily compared with standard controls since cell numbers and medium volumes are quite similar. Starting from fluid dynamic and mass transport considerations, a modular bioreactor chamber was first modeled and then fabricated using "milli-molding," a technique adapted from soft lithography. After confirming that the shear stress was extremely low in the system in the range of useful flow rates, the bioreactor chambers were tested using hepatocytes. The results show that the bioreactor chambers can increase or maintain cell viability and function when the flow rates are below 500 microL/min, corresponding to wall shear stresses of 10(-5) Pa or less at the cell culture surface.

%B Biotechnol Bioeng %V 106 %P 127–137 %8 May %G eng %R http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/bit.22671 %0 Journal Article %J Microgravity Science and Technology %D 2010 %T Modification of Pointing Performance in Altered Gravitational Environments %A Ciofani, G. %A Migliore, A. %A D. Mazzei %A Carrozza, M. %A P. Dario %K Bioengineering %X

The Fitts’ law describes a correlation between the time needed to complete basic tasks such as pointing movements and the level of knowledge of the specific target to be reached. While it has been largely proved in normal gravity, very few experiments have been carried out in altered gravitational conditions. In our experiment, four subjects were positioned in front of a panel where round targets were placed along a circumference. They carried out pointing movements towards the targets when these were switched on. The task time was acquired and processed off-line. In all the cases, the performance of each subject have been significantly modified in the altered gravitational environment and, in particular, hypergravity seems to affect motor performance more considerably than microgravity. Even if experiments involving several subjects and more complex tasks have to be carried out in order to confirm our findings, these results show that ergonomics could be strongly affected by the modification of gravity, especially during the first phase of exposure to gravity alteration.

%B Microgravity Science and Technology %V 22 %P 123-128 %G eng %R http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s12217-009-9163-3 %0 Journal Article %J IEEE T Ind Electron %D 2008 %T A High-Throughput Bioreactor System for Simulating Physiological Environments %A D. Mazzei %A Vozzi, F. %A Cisternino, A. %A G. Vozzi %A A. Ahluwalia %K Bioengineering %B IEEE T Ind Electron %V 55 %P 3273–3280 %G eng %R 10.1109/TIE.2008.928122 %0 Patent %D 2008 %T IMPROVED BIOREACTOR CHAMBER %A A. Ahluwalia %A D. Mazzei %A Vozzi, F. %K Bioengineering %G eng %0 Conference Paper %B TERMIS-EU %D 2008 %T Microfluidic Gradient Maker for Pattern Generation %A Tirella, A %A D. Mazzei %A G. Vozzi %A A. Ahluwalia %K Bioengineering %X

poster

%B TERMIS-EU %C Porto, Portugal %P 879 %0 Patent %D 2008 %T MULTI-CAVITY BIOREACTOR CHAMBER %A A. Ahluwalia %A D. Mazzei %A Vinci, B. %K Bioengineering %G eng %0 Conference Paper %B Proc. IEEE Int. Symp. Industrial Electronics ISIE 2007 %D 2007 %T Design and realisation of drop-free trocar for ophthalmic applications %A Guerrini, P. %A G. Vozzi %A A. Ahluwalia %A D. Mazzei %A Palla, M. %A Rizzo, S. %K Bioengineering %B Proc. IEEE Int. Symp. Industrial Electronics ISIE 2007 %P 2810–2814 %G eng %R 10.1109/ISIE.2007.4375056 %0 Conference Paper %B Proc. IEEE Int. Symp. Industrial Electronics ISIE 2007 %D 2007 %T Development of a high-throughput bioreactor system for biomedical applications %A D. Mazzei %A G. Vozzi %A A. Ahluwalia %A Cisternino, A. %K Bioengineering %B Proc. IEEE Int. Symp. Industrial Electronics ISIE 2007 %P 2788–2792 %G eng %R 10.1109/ISIE.2007.4375051 %0 Patent %D 2006 %T Sensore di flusso tattile e di parametri ambientali %A G. Vozzi %A Cisternino, A. %A Colombo, D. %A D. Mazzei %A Migliore, A. %K Bioengineering %G eng %0 Conference Paper %B Proceedings of: XIV Edizione del Congresso della Fisiologia Clinica-CNR %D 2005 %T Functional and Pharmacological testing of endothelial cells cultured in dynamic conditions %A Vozzi, F. %A Gentile, C. %A D. Mazzei %A G. Vozzi %A C. Domenici %A A. Ahluwalia %K Bioengineering %B Proceedings of: XIV Edizione del Congresso della Fisiologia Clinica-CNR %P 82-96 %G eng %0 Journal Article %J WIT Transactions on Biomedicine and Health %D 2005 %T Osmolality control by inhalation or micro-infusions? %A Ciofani, G. %A A. Landi %A D. Mazzei %A A. Mazzoldi %K Bioengineering %X

A model of osmolarity is proposed in this paper. This model represents a typical example of embedded physiological feedback control in physiology. Extensive simulation tests with a compartmental approach (using the specific software SAAM II) have been performed, showing that the model agrees with the findings published in the literature of endocrine physiology and with medical practice. As a relevant example of application of the models, the diabetes insipidus pathology was considered. In the case of central insipidus diabetes, it is possible to predict effects of a therapy, giving out synthetic ADH (where ADH is the antidiuretic hormone, the vasopressine) for restoring homeostatic conditions. Two kinds of therapy were considered: supply by inhalation or by microinfusion. In the first case, we evaluated the effect of inhalation using a two compartmental model to describe the effect of commercial drug (minirin, that means desmopressine acetate), and compared results with data existing in the literature. In the second case, the aim was to have a helping tool in the study and development of micro-infusors with sensors and controllers embedded so as to be able to release a controlled drug quantity, accorded to the patient and optimized for avoiding hyper- or ipo-concentrations of plasma ADH hormone. In this case, we used a mono-compartmental model, considering that the drug is infused directly in the plasma; results are again compared with data existing in the literature and with experimental data.

%B WIT Transactions on Biomedicine and Health %V 9 %P 559-570 %G eng %0 Conference Paper %B Proc. and 2005 European Control Conf. Decision and Control CDC-ECC '05. 44th IEEE Conf %D 2005 %T Physiological Cybernetics: Model of Osmolality and Volemia %A Ciofani, G. %A A. Landi %A D. Mazzei %A A. Mazzoldi %K Bioengineering %B Proc. and 2005 European Control Conf. Decision and Control CDC-ECC '05. 44th IEEE Conf %P 5552–5557 %G eng %R 10.1109/CDC.2005.1583046 %0 Conference Paper %B Proceedings of: 4Th Annual Meeting of the European Tissue Engineering Society (ETES) %D 2005 %T Realisation of a concentration gradients cell chamber to study their effect of biomolecules on the cell activity %A D. Mazzei %A Vozzi, F. %A G. Vozzi %A A. Ahluwalia %K Bioengineering %B Proceedings of: 4Th Annual Meeting of the European Tissue Engineering Society (ETES) %G eng