Abstract: A delivery device for a collapsible heart valve includes an operating handle and a catheter assembly. The operating handle includes a frame defining a movement space therein, a carriage assembly moveable in a longitudinal direction within the movement space, and a coupler having locked and unlocked conditions, the coupler being operatively connected to the carriage assembly for movement therewith. The catheter assembly includes a shaft around which a valve-receiving compartment is defined, the shaft being operatively connected to one of the frame or the carriage assembly, and a distal sheath operatively connected to the carriage assembly for movement therewith between a closed condition adapted to maintain the valve in the compartment and an open condition adapted to fully deploy the valve.

Abstract: A device, comprising a flow controller. The flow controller includes a body having walls that define a channel within the body, and a passive flow control valve. The passive control valve has a moveable member that includes a thermal shape memory material, the moveable member configured to change an aperture size in the channel in response to a reversible temperature-induced shape transformation of the thermal shape memory material.

Abstract: A device for holding an implantable medical device includes a jar for receiving the implantable medical device, and a ring coupleable to the jar. The ring has a plurality of channels adapted to receive retaining features of the implantable medical device to stabilize the medical device within the jar.

Abstract: Augmented reality apparatus (10) for use during intervention procedures on a trackable intervention site (32) are disclosed herein. The apparatus (10) comprises a data processor (28), a trackable projector (14) and a medium (30) including machine-readable instructions executable by the processor (28). The projector (14) is configured to project an image overlaying the intervention site (32) based on instructions from the data processor (28). The machine readable instructions are configured to cause the processor (28) to determine a spatial relationship between the projector (14) and the intervention site (32) based on a tracked position and orientation of the projector (14) and on a tracked position and orientation of the intervention site (32). The machine readable instructions are also configured to cause the processor to generate data representative of the image projected by the projector based on the determined spatial relationship between the projector and the intervention site.

Abstract: A delivery device (10) for an implantable medical device includes an inner shaft (26) extending in a longitudinal direction and defining a compartment (23) adapted to receive the medical device in an assembled condition, an outer shaft (22) surrounding a longitudinal portion of the inner shaft, and a distal sheath (24) operatively attached to the outer shaft (22). The distal sheath (24) is slidable between a first position enclosing the compartment (23) and a second position exposing the compartment (23) for deployment of the medical device. A sleeve 30 surrounds at least a longitudinal portion of the outer shaft (22) and provides a substantially blood tight bearing surface that facilitates sliding movement of the delivery device (10) in an introducer (2).

Abstract: A prosthetic heart valve includes a collapsible and expandable stent and a plurality of commissure features disposed on the stent. A collapsible and expandable valve assembly includes a plurality of leaflets connected to the plurality of commissure features, each commissure feature including a body having a proximal end and a distal end. A plurality of eyelets is arranged in rows and columns on the body for distributing load from the plurality of leaflets.

Abstract: A delivery device 10 for a collapsible prosthetic heart valve includes a catheter assembly 16 including a shaft 26 around which a compartment 23 is defined, the compartment 23 being adapted to receive the valve in an assembled condition, and a retainer 30 including a pusher 32 and a holder 34 adapted to retain a stent portion 106 of the valve. The catheter assembly 16 also includes a distal sheath 24 adapted to selectively cover and uncover the compartment 23 and the valve, the distal sheath 24 extending around the shaft 26 at least when the distal sheath 24 covers the compartment 23. The pusher 32 includes one or more recesses 40 in a retention edge 33 thereof, each recess 40 being adapted to receive a junction 107 at an end of the stent portion 106 of the valve. The holder 34 includes one or more elongated ribs 50, each rib 50 being adapted to fit into a cell opening 108 of the stent portion 106 of the valve.

Abstract: Disclosed are luciferase polypeptides with improved light-emitting activity and their encoding nucleic acids. These molecules are useful in a range of assays including luciferase-based gene reporter assays, bioluminescence resonance energy transfer assays, protein complementation assays and other applications in which luciferase enzymes are utilized as detectable and/or quantifiable labels. Also disclosed are methods and compositions for increasing the sensitivity and/or improving the kinetics of luciferase-catalyzed reactions as well as decreasing the impact of undesirable variables.

Abstract: A photonics assembly (8-16) is housed within an hermetically sealed container (24) mounted within an outer container (20), and is cooled by a fluidic arrangement comprising a liquid flow path (28) defined between the outer container and the sealed container, the outer container having a liquid inlet and a liquid outlet (30, 32), whereby cooling liquid can flow around the hermetically sealed container to remove heat. The photonics assembly including photonics devices, has a composite thermally conductive substrate (17, 19) contacting a thermally conductive wall (22) of the sealed container, whereby the cooling liquid cools said photonics devices. Liquid flow passageways (48-66) are provided in wall (22) and substrate (17, 19) for improving fluidic cooling.

Abstract: An assembly for collapsing a self-expanding prosthetic heart valve includes a compression member, a support member and a constricting member. The compression member has a tapered wall between its first open end and its second open end, the tapered wall defining an open space adapted to receive the valve. The support member has a base and a recess adapted to receive an end of the valve. The support member and the compression member are movable toward one another to compress the valve and push it through a relatively small aperture in the second open end of the compression member. The second end of the constricting member is sized to receive the compressed valve from the second open end of the compression member for loading into a delivery device.

Abstract: An apparatus comprising a rack having one or more shelves, a plurality of electronics circuit boards and heat conduits and a cooler. Each board is held by one of the one or more shelves, some of the boards having a localized heat source thereon. Each heat conduit forms a heat conducting path over and adjacent to a particular one of the boards from a region adjacent to the heat source thereon to a connection zone, the zone being remote from the heat source. The cooler is located on a side of the rack and coupled to the zones such that heat is transferable from the paths to the cooler. The cooler is configured to flow a cooling fluid therein to cool localized thermal interfaces at the cooler, each interface being adjacent to and at a corresponding one of the zones.

Abstract: A delivery device for a collapsible heart valve includes an operating handle and a catheter assembly. The operating handle includes a frame defining a movement space therein, a carriage assembly moveable in a longitudinal direction within the movement space, and a coupler having locked and unlocked conditions, the coupler being operatively connected to the carriage assembly for movement therewith. The catheter assembly includes a shaft around which a valve-receiving compartment is defined, the shaft being operatively connected to one of the frame or the carriage assembly, and a distal sheath operatively connected to the carriage assembly for movement therewith between a closed condition adapted to maintain the valve in the compartment and an open condition adapted to fully deploy the valve.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for measuring an apparent depth of a section of an animal body are disclosed. Light is focused concurrently to an extended focal region comprising a plurality or continuum of measurement locations. Light reflected by a refractive index interface coincident with one of the plurality of measurement locations is detected. Detected light signals are generated from light reflected from first and second interfaces respectively defining the section under investigation, so that the apparent positions of the interfaces may be derived. A confocal arrangement and an axicon element may be employed. Preferably, the section is the aqueous humor of an eye. From changes in its refractive index corresponding changes in glucose concentration in the aqueous humor and, in turn, in the bloodstream of a patient may be derived, offering a non-invasive monitoring means for diabetic patients. Other compounds and structures of the body may alternatively be investigated.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for measuring an apparent depth (1) of a section of an eye (30) are disclosed. Light is focused to a measurement location (15) proximate or within the eye. The measurement location is scanned through the section and upon passing through first and second refractive index interfaces defining the section, a respective reflected light signal is detected, from which apparent positions of the first and second interfaces may be derived. Preferably, a confocal scanning arrangement is employed. Preferably, the section is the aqueous humor (34) of the eye (30). From changes in its refractive index (n) corresponding changes in glucose concentration in the aqueous humor and, in turn, in the bloodstream of a patient may be derived, offering a non-invasive monitoring means for diabetic patients. The apparatus may be a hand-held device, employing microelectromechanical systems.

Abstract: An apparatus (1) is for DNA amplification with quantitative measurements. A biological sample is held in a cell (2) for the amplification, the cell (2) defining a single space within which the sample rotates. On one side a copper heater (3) is located to supply heat to the cell (2), and on the other side there is a cooling copper block (4) withdrawing heat from the cell. The locations of the heater (3) and the cooling block (4) generate a natural convection loop internally within the cell (2) without need for active cooling—the block (4) passively cooling by withdrawing heat from the direction of the heater (3). A detector (9, 27) captures readings in real time and a processor (10) generates an S-curve for change of sample emission with time. The S-curve (FIGS. 4 and 5) also includes a thermal cycle number corresponding to the time parameter, so that the S-curve is given in the traditional qPCR intensity vs. cycle number.

Abstract: An auxiliary light source has battery operated LEDs and uses embedded magnets to attach the light source to another object. The light beams from the LEDs shine along axes that are parallel to the central axes of the magnets. This makes the auxiliary light especially adapted for magnetic attachment to an inspection mirror because the projected light beams will shine on objects the user of the mirror intends to have illuminated.

Abstract: The present invention relates generally to constructs and their use in gene expression or gene regulation assays. More particularly, the present invention provides expression vectors and/or reporter vectors providing kinetics of protein expression with improved temporal correlation to promoter activity. Even more particularly, the invention provides expression vectors comprising a transcribable polynucleotide which comprises a sequence of nucleotides encoding a RNA element that modulates the stability of a transcript corresponding to the transcribable polynucleotide. The present invention provides, inter alia, novel vectors, useful for identifying and analysing cis- and trans-acting regulatory sequences/factors as well as vectors and genetically modified cell lines or organisms that are particularly useful for drug screening and drug discovery.

Abstract: Hot fill and retort stable containers can be made by blowmolding parisons made with polyalkylene terephthalate and a sufficient amount of nucleating agent under conditions that include heated molds, directional cooling air on container stress areas from vents formed into a push rod that is extended into the molded container while still in the heated mold, and an adequate residence time to grow the desired degree of crystallinity.