SubscribeWPI’s coordinated system of hardware and software allows life science researchers to record and analyze a range of data types with ease and simplicity.
Low profile, low cost, high flexibility and utility make Lab-Trax devices the perfect choice for applications involving tissue and organ bath recordings, epithelial voltage clamp studies, and a host of cardiovascular applications, including cardiac hemodynamics detailed below.
Cardiac hemodynamics is the study of the dynamic behavior of blood as it flows around the heart, the lungs and the body. Pressure is generated in various parts of the heart as a result of this movement. These pressures can be measured and monitored through catheters whose tips are placed in the atria, pulmonary artery, or systemic arteries.
Hemodynamic studies require the measurement of pressure, flow, and electrical signals from the heart, and electrical signals from nerves, such as the vagus. WPI has everything you need for research studies in hemodynamics, and associated studies in cardiac electrophysiology and cardiopulmonary function.
Hardware
The Lab-Trax 4/24T is the perfect recorder for cardiovascular applications. The T Series has built-in transducer amplifiers so blood pressure transducers or other transducers plug directly in. Each channel has its own independent stimulator output so complex waveforms can be generated as well as simple things like vagal stimulation or extra stimulus pacing of cardiac preparations.
In addition, 8 programmable digital I/O lines can control pumps or drug delivery in the laboratory environment. The Lab-Trax series connects to your computer via the USB port so installation is truly plug and play.
Software
Online Analysis
Data-Trax can calculate rate, systolic, diastolic and mean pressures, as well as dp/dt and integral from any raw data input in real time. All of the same functions can be applied offline, too.
A powerful baseline-tracking algorithm ensures that even if your signal moves or changes shape, the calculated rate or systolic/diastolic/-mean pressure is faithfully reported.
Offline Analysis
All of the online functions can be applied offline. In addition, a series of functions applied from the Analysis window can be used to reduce raw data. Functions operate on a selection of data and return a single value, which can be written to the Data-Trax Journal.
Currently supported functions include: mean, integral, area, dp/dt, mean dp/dt, mean systolic, mean diastolic, and mean rate. Analysis window functions used in conjunction with the Data-Trax Find command, can automatically analyze the entire record.
Input/Output
The built-in stimulator allows delivery of a single, continuous, or train of pulses. Pulse durations, frequencies and amplitudes can be changed as the protocol is being delivered. The software also offers full control of digital I/O lines that can be used to count events, or control devices in the lab environment.
Display
Data-Trax allows you to easily convert voltage to real units, such as mmHg or percent for pressure or flow measurements, respectively. The display allows you to toggle between a preferred Y-axis scaling (between 40 and 140 mmHg, for example) and the "best view" as determined by the AutoScale feature. Alternately, you can zoom-in or zoom-out by factors of two with a single mouse click. In a similar fashion, X-axis scaling can be expanded or compressed by factors of two with a single click.
Real Time Annotations
While recording, you can mark your data with text messages. These marks are searchable and appear in the field of data to which they apply. Marks are time locked to the record and can be used to "Go To" any marked region of the data.
Data Reduction
Data can be analyzed and reduced in the Analysis window. Here, selections of data can be averaged and written to a report. For example, the software can be instructed to break the record up into five-minute pieces, determine the average systolic or average heart rate for the data in each segment, and write those values to a report.
XY Window
Any channel can be displayed in XY format. Data-Trax supports area measurements and segment slopes from such plots. And, of course, you can save the plots as pictures or text.
Export
All recorded data can be exported to a MatLab, DADiSP, Excel or text file or as a picture (.png), making reports or posters much easier to create. Of course, you can always print your data from any window at any scale.
The available Lab-Trax hardware together with WPI's range of signal conditioners and the Data-Trax software make it the perfect choice for research systems addressing cardiovascular studies, blood pressure, cardiac electrophysiology, hemodynamic studies of the pulmonary and coronary systems, and studies of isolated tissues in organ or tissue baths. Equipment from WPI can also be used to tailor systems for epithelial studies, and many applications in neurophysiology.