A microrheological examination of insulin-secreting ß-cells in healthy and diabetic-like conditions.

Pancreatic ß-cells regulate glucose homeostasis through glucose-stimulated insulin secretion, which is hindered in type-2 diabetes. Transport of the insulin vesicles is expected to be affected by changes in the viscoelastic and transport properties of the cytoplasm. These are evaluated in situ through particle-tracking measurements using a rat insulinoma ß-cell line. The use of inert probes assists in decoupling the material properties of the cytoplasm from the active transport through cellular processes. The effect of glucose-stimulated insulin secretion is examined, and the subsequent remodeling of the cytoskeleton, at constant effects of cell activity, is shown to result in reduced mobility of the tracer particles. Induction of diabetic-like conditions is identified to alter the mean-squared displacement of the passive particles in the cytoplasm and diminish its reaction to glucose stimulation.

Frequency-Amplitude Cross Interaction during Pulsatile Taste Delivery Using Gustometers.

In this article, we numerically resolve the flow profiles of tastant concentration in the pipe of a gustometer used to deliver alternative pulses in concentration, which is a typical case of Taylor dispersion. Using this model, we can define the cases where the experimenter will deliver to the assessors a concentration profile which is significantly different from that intended. This can be simply assessed a priori using a scaling argument which involves calculating a dimensionless frequency. This is a function of the pulses frequency, the dimensions of the pipe and the flow rate used. We show that unless this parameter is taken into account, modifying the pulse frequency will modify the pulse amplitude. This design criterion is absent from the literature but we suggest this is important for designing such experiments.

Stray-field NMR diffusion q-space diffraction imaging of monodisperse coarsening foams.

The technique of stray field diffusion NMR is adapted to study the diffusion properties of water in monodisperse wet foams. We show for the first time, that the technique is capable of observing q-space diffusion diffraction peaks in monodisperse aqueous foams with initial bubble sizes in the range of 50-85µm. The position of the peak maximum can be correlated simply to the bubble size in the foam leading to a technique that can investigate the stability of the foam over time. The diffusion technique, together with supplementary spin-spin relaxation analysis of the diffusion data is used to follow the stability and coarsening behaviour of monodisperse foams with a water fraction range between 0.24 and 0.33. The monodisperse foams remain stable for a period of hours in terms of the initial bubble size. The duration of this stable period correlates to the initial size of the bubbles. Eventually the bubbles begin to coarsen and this is observed in changes in the position of the diffusion diffraction maxima.

"A Day in the Life of the Fluid Bolus": An Introduction to Fluid Mechanics of the Oropharyngeal Phase of Swallowing with Particular Focus on Dysphagia.

By following the path of a liquid bolus, from the oral preparatory phase to the esophagus, we show that a few fundamental concepts of fluid mechanics can be used to better understand and assess the importance of bolus viscosity during human swallowing, especially when considering dysfunctional swallowing (dysphagia) and how it can be mitigated. In particular, we highlight the important distinction between different flow regimes (i.e. viscosity controlled versus. inertia controlled flow). We also illustrate the difference between understanding bolus movements controlled by a constant force (or pressure) and those controlled by a constant displacement (or velocity). We limit our discussion to simple, Newtonian liquids where the viscosity does not depend on the speed of flow. Consideration of non-Newtonian effects (such as shear thinning or viscoelasticity), which we believe play an important part in human swallowing, requires a sound grasp of the fundamentals discussed here and warrants further consideration in its own right.

Microfluidic preparation and self diffusion PFG-NMR analysis of monodisperse water-in-oil-in-water double emulsions.

Monodisperse water-in-oil-in-water (WOW) double emulsions have been prepared using microfluidic glass devices designed and built primarily from off the shelf components. The systems were easy to assemble and use. They were capable of producing double emulsions with an outer droplet size from 100 to 40 µm. Depending on how the devices were operated, double emulsions containing either single or multiple water droplets could be produced. Pulsed-field gradient self-diffusion NMR experiments have been performed on the monodisperse water-in-oil-in-water double emulsions to obtain information on the inner water droplet diameter and the distribution of the water in the different phases of the double emulsion. This has been achieved by applying regularization methods to the self-diffusion data. Using these methods the stability of the double emulsions to osmotic pressure imbalance has been followed by observing the change in the size of the inner water droplets over time.

Fluid mechanics of eating, swallowing and digestion - overview and perspectives.

From a very simplistic viewpoint, the human digestive system can be regarded as a long tube (with dramatic variations in diameter, cross-section, wall properties, pumping mechanisms, regulating valves and in-line sensors). We single out a few fluid mechanical phenomena along the trajectory of a food bolus from the mouth to the small intestine and discuss how they influence sensorial perception, safe transport, and nutrient absorption from a bolus. The focus is on lubrication flows between the tongue and palate, the oropharyngeal stage of swallowing and effects of flow on absorption in the small intestine. Specific challenges and opportunities in this research area are highlighted.

Avalanches of coalescence events and local extensional flows--stabilisation or destabilisation due to surfactant.

From two-drop collision experiments, it is known that local extensional flow favors coalescence. Recently, Bremond et al. used microfluidic methods to evidence this point. Similarly, we used specific microfluidic geometries to impose sudden extensional flow, following drop collision under controlled conditions, and coalescence events were recorded with a high-speed camera. In this study we focus on the effect of surfactant on the coalescence, or stabilisation against it, between drops flowing apart due to either imposed external flow or capillary forces related to drop shape relaxation. Coalescence can be induced even when drops are initially separated by an intersticial lubricating film by far thicker than the critical thickness for rupturing under the action of Van der Waals forces. This is particularly relevant to avalanches of coalescence events, in flowing or even quiescent emulsions or foams. When non-ionic surfactant was used, it was observed that small concentrations apparently enhance coalescence in extension. But at higher concentrations it provides stabilisation through a specific mechanism of thread formation and rupture; the stabilisation mechanism can be complex.

Food structure and functionality: a soft matter perspective.

The structure and functionality of foods are described from the perspective of recent advances in soft condensed matter physics. An overview is given of the structure and properties of food materials in terms of the physically relevant length scales. Recent developments in the understanding of the physics of gels, micelles, liquid crystals, biopolymer complexes and amorphous carbohydrates are presented.

Geometrical resolution limits and detection mechanisms in the oral cavity.

The objective of this work is to gain more insight into the processes of oral perception of food texture. Particularly, the limits for detectable thickness differences of objects, which are evaluated in the human mouth, are investigated. In a sensory study small, flexible circular disks (diameter in mm range) of varying thickness (in microm range) and material properties are evaluated between tongue and palate in human subjects. The thicker sample is identified in pair comparison tests. Experimental evidence suggests the existence of one detection process (attempt to align tongue and palate and the disk between them) to which the tongue-palate system reacts in two different ways: (1) by bending the disk (thickness below 125 microm, Young's modulus of 480 MPa) and (2) by impressing the disk into the tongue (thickness above approximately 200 microm, Young's modulus of 480 MPa), whereas the first reaction is necessarily followed by the second if the first one fails. For both ranges, differences in thickness of 25 microm can be detected. The two reaction processes cover isolated ranges and leave an insecure detection range in between them, for which neither one of the processes applies. Since deformation and load distribution on the disk are supposed to play a major role in the first detection process (the loads exerted on the disk in order to bend it are compared), we formulate a mathematical model to quantify these mechanical effects. The model is employed to identify parameter constellations (thickness, material properties) for which the insecure range is omitted or the range is enlarged. Theoretical findings are confirmed by further experiments. Their results are consistent with the characteristics and functioning of the mechanoreceptors in-mouth.

Understanding foods as soft materials.

Foods make up some of the most complex examples of soft condensed matter (SCM) with which we interact daily. Their complexity arises from several factors: the intricacy of components, the different aggregation states in which foods are encountered, and the multitude of relevant characteristic time and length scales. Because foodstuffs are governed by the rules of SCM physics but with all the complications related to real systems, the experimental and theoretical approaches of SCM physics have deepened our comprehension of their nature and behaviour, but many questions remain. In this review we discuss the current understanding of food science, by considering established SCM methods as well as emerging techniques and theoretical approaches. With their complexity, heterogeneity and multitude of states, foods provide SCM physics with a challenge of remarkable importance.

Dynamic oscillatory behavior of a linear viscoelastic fluid bounded by an ideal linear viscoelastic membrane in torsional flow.

In rotational oscillatory rheological measurement techniques involving the plate-plate and cone-plate geometries, the interface between the measured liquid and the ambient atmosphere is sheared to the same extent as the liquid sample. In this paper, we look at the influence of a rheologically distinct lateral surface on the measured properties of the liquid and surface system when the surface is dynamically coupled to the bulk fluid. Inertia is taken into account, thus allowing for nonquasi-static velocity profiles in the massless surface film itself.