A team at Columbia University created a 3D microscope that can be used to image living tissues. The technology can help clinicians identify features in tissues without the need for histology or biopsies, and could be invaluable during surgical procedures. One application involves a surgeon using the scope to identify the boundaries of a tumor […]
Author: Medgadged
Acoustic Tweezers Help Characterize Cell Interactions
Researchers at Duke University created an acoustic tweezer system that can precisely manipulate cells and particles. The device can be used to study the interactions between cells, for instance by precisely selecting two cells in a sample and bringing them together gently to study the adhesion force between them. This could be useful in discovering […]
Gastrointestinal Pressure Sensor Inspired by Incan Communication Technology
Researchers at MIT have designed a gastrointestinal pressure sensor that is inspired by the ancient Incan practice of quipu, which involves adding knots to a length of string to record information. The knotted string approach has been put to good use by these MIT researchers, who discovered that introducing knots into an inexpensive gastrointestinal pressure […]
Implantable Biomaterial for CAR-T Cell Creation and Release
Researchers at North Carolina State University developed an implantable biomaterial scaffold that enables the creation and release of CAR-T cells, which are immune cells that have been engineered and primed to seek and destroy cancer within the body. The technique could prove to be much less expensive than conventional CAR-T cell therapy, and it may […]
Zoom POD for Sterile Field Clot Capture: Interview with Daniel Davis of Imperative Care
Imperative Care, a medtech company based in California, created the Zoom Stroke Solution, a complete system for the mechanical removal of clots in patients with ischemic stroke. The system includes an access catheter, aspiration catheters, a powerful pump, and the latest addition, the Zoom Pod, a clot filter that is positioned within the sterile field. […]
Cryomesh System for Long Term Pancreatic Islet Storage
Researchers at the University of Minnesota developed a cryopreservation system that allows for long-term pancreatic islet cold storage. Islets can be implanted in patients with diabetes, and can even be curative in this context, but the technique has been hampered by a lack of techniques to store donor islets beyond 24-72 hours. This latest technique, […]
Device Makes Diffuse Ultrasound Waves for Intracranial Applications
Researchers at the University of California San Diego created an ultrasound transducer that is intended to provide safer ultrasound treatment when working inside the brain. Ultrasound has significant therapeutic potential for various ailments that originate in the brain, including epilepsy, and next-level sonogenetics involves targeting various cell types in the brain to make them responsive […]
Magnetic Tentacle Robot Travels Deep into Lungs
Researchers at the University of Leeds in the UK have created a magnetic “tentacle robot” that is just 2 mm in diameter, which they hope will be able to navigate through some of the smallest airways in our lungs. At present, a bronchoscope is used to investigate the lungs, but this cannot pass into very […]
Smartphone App Calculates Genetic Risk of Coronary Artery Disease
Researchers at the Scripps Research Institute in California have developed a smartphone app that can calculate a user’s genetic risk of coronary artery disease. The app can import genetic information from a commonly used genetic testing service, 23andMe, and provide a personalized risk assessment of coronary artery disease. In tests so far, users receiving a […]
Genetically Engineered Bacteria Evade Immune System to Kill Cancer
Researchers at the Columbia University created a genetically modified bacterium that expresses a molecular cloak to help the bacterial cells to stay hidden from the immune system. They have shown the potential of this bacteria as an anti-cancer therapeutic by engineering the same bacteria to also express an anti-tumor toxin, allowing them to accumulate in […]
Acoustic Fabric Listens to Heart and Breathing, Works as Hearing Aid
Researchers at MIT have created an “acoustic fabric” that can listen to its surroundings and convert the vibrations made by sound into electrical signals, much like the human ear or a microphone. The technology consists of piezoelectric fibers that are woven into the fabric, and the resulting machine-washable material could prove useful for a variety […]
3D Printed Testicular Cells Offer Hope for Male Infertility
Researchers at the University of British Columbia have developed a technique that lets them 3D print human testicular cells into a hollow tubular structure that mimics the seminiferous tubules found in the testicles. The printed structures are showing encouraging signs that they may be able to produce viable sperm, and the researchers are still working […]
Lymphoid Follicle Chip Models Complex Immune Responses
Researchers at the Harvard Wyss Institute have created a microfluidic chip that contains lymphoid follicle-like structures, allowing them to model complex immune responses to various pathogens and vaccines. The breakthrough could let scientists to more comprehensively probe the complex workings of the immune system. Lymphoid follicles are found in lymph nodes, and are the site […]
Flexible Brain-Computer Interface Array for Better Contact
Researchers at the University of California San Diego have created a brain-computer interface array featuring microneedles affixed to a flexible backing. The design allows the array to better conform to the undulating surface of the brain, permitting better contact and improved signal recording across a wide area. The technology represents an upgrade from the rigid […]
Cell-Loaded Beads Release Cytokines to Eradicate Tumors
Researchers at Rice University have created a cytokine delivery system that can produce localized immunotherapy at a tumor site for 15-30 days. The technology consists of cytokine-producing ARPE-19 cells that the researchers have encapsulated in small polymer beads. The beads can be delivered into the body using minimally invasive techniques and then reside near a […]
Modified Red Blood Cells for COVID-19 Vaccination
Researchers at McMaster University in Ontario, Canada created engineered red blood cells to act as a new COVID-19 vaccine technology. The cell membranes have been studded with the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein, and in experiments the researchers have conducted in mice the cells can trigger an immune response with minimal side-effects. The team reports that the […]
Optical Probe Measures Dental Plaque Acidity
A team at the University of Washington have developed an optical probe that can detect the acidity of dental plaque. The acidity created by bacteria within plaque causes cavities, and knowing which areas of the teeth are particularly acidic could help dentists to predict where cavities are likely to arise. The knowledge could help someone […]
Ultrathin Conductive Films for Wearables are Flexible and Durable
Researchers at UCLA created ultrathin films that are just 10 nanometers thick, but which can maintain electrical conductivity, flexibility, and strength. The molecules within the films are held together by non-bonding van der Waals forces, making them highly pliable, and the numerous sheets within the films are able to slide over each other without breaking […]
New Vascular Contrast for Clearer Blood Vessel Imaging
Researchers at Johns Hopkins developed a new imaging technique that allows them to view the vasculature of experimental animals in great detail. Research into a variety of conditions, from vascular disease to cancer, relies on acquiring images of the vasculature in animals, with a variety of imaging techniques available. These researchers have created a unique […]
Increasing Representation of People of Color in Medtech: Interview with Kwame Ulmer, Co-Founder of MedTech Color
Medtech Color is a non-profit organization that aims to increase the representation of people of color within the medtech industry. The organization sets out to achieve this by creating networking opportunities, highlighting the barriers faced by black and brown people within the medtech industry, and increasing access to venture capital funding. The organization reports […]