A good deal of orthopedic bone repair surgeries involve injecting powders or pastes, to serve as scaffoding, into fractures. Now a collaboration between scientists at Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU), University of Oregon, New York University, and Mahidol University in Thailand has led to the development of a Lego-like 3D printed scaff (Read more...)
Tag: Materials
Nanogenerators Harvest Energy from Body, Monitor Heart Health
Wearable medical devices such as continuous heart rate monitors, insulin pumps, and neural stimulators usually need access to an electric power source in order to function. While there’s a great deal of wasted energy that our body emits that can be harvested to power such devices, making it actually happen using biocompatible materials has pr (Read more...)
Mechanically Stimulating Neurons Using Magnetic Nanodiscs
Electrical stimulation and chemical pharmaceuticals are the two ways that doctors and scientists routinely use to manipulate neural cells. Chemicals have their side effects, are slow to take effect, and are usually systemically delivered, while electrical stimulation usually requires invasive wires, is limited in its resolution, and is nearly impos (Read more...)
Scientists 3D-Print Human Heart Pump
Scientists at the University of Minnesota have 3D printed a beating heart muscle ‘pump’ consisting of pluripotent stem cells and an extracellular matrix. The researchers grow the stem cells within the structure until they reach an appropriate cell density, and then differentiate them into cardiomyocytes. The 1.5 cm sized structure can p (Read more...)
Edwards’ KONECT RESILIA Aortic Valved Conduit Wins FDA Approval For Bio-Bentalls
Edwards Lifesciences won FDA approval for its KONECT RESILIA aortic valved conduit, a device designed specifically for performing bio-Bentall procedures. Typically, these complex surgeries require physicians to remove the aortic root, the aortic valve, and at least a part of the ascending aorta, and replace them with an artificial valve and an aort (Read more...)
Synthetic Melanin Protects from Radiation Damage
Researchers at Northwestern University have developed a new biomaterial, selenomelanin, that can help protect people from radiation. The new substance, chemically synthesized and produced by bacteria, helps protect cells from radiation more effectively than other forms of melanin. One day, it may be used in sunscreens, medical treatments, or for lo (Read more...)
Patients to Draw Their Own Biomedical Sensors Using Pencil and Paper
Wearable bioelectronic devices that stick to the skin and measure things such as temperature, heart rhythms, and other vitals are typically complex devices that use modern materials to do their job. They tend to be difficult to manufacture, expensive, and fragile, and so are still not widely available. Incredibly, researchers at the University of M (Read more...)
Micro-LEDs and Solar Panels Wirelessly Power Medical Implants
Researchers at the Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology in South Korea have developed a method to wirelessly power implanted devices using light. The technique involves a micro-LED patch to transmit light through the skin and a photovoltaic system on implanted devices that can turn this light into electricity. This technology could help rese (Read more...)
Air Filter Traps and Kills SARS-CoV-2 Virus
A group of researchers, including those at the University of Houston, has developed an air filter that can instantly kill SARS-CoV-2 viral particles that pass through it by heating them to 200 degrees C (392 F). The technology may help to destroy the particles within busy indoor spaces, such as hospitals, reducing the risk of […]
Revolutionizing IV Access With TournIQ: Interview With Jonathan Ilicki, Co-Founder of Ortrud Medical
IV access is one of the most common clinical procedures in healthcare, with over 300 million hospitalized patients in the United States receiving a peripheral venous catheter every year. However, as many have painfully experienced, catheter insertion isn’t always successful on the first attempt. Often times, we place the blame on dehydration, (Read more...)
Blood Vessel Networks Made by 3D Printing Powdered Sugar
To study the complex functionality of groups of cells, and to one day build replacement tissues, researchers have been trying to find a way to generate artificial vascular networks capable of supplying oxygen and nutrients to thousands of cells. Extrusion 3D printing, in which a liquefied material is layered down and allowed to harden, has [&hellip (Read more...)
Injectable Liquid Prosthesis to Treat Retinal Diseases Developed
Retinal prostheses promise the restoration of vision to people with age-related macular degeneration, retinitis pigmentosa, and other conditions that lead to the loss of functional photoreceptors. A number of technologies are already in existence that mimic the functionality of the retina by stimulating the inner retinal network, but most of these (Read more...)
Electric Anti-Viral Face Masks
As the wearing of face masks has become ubiquitous in public places, people end up reusing these devices as they go from place to place. Pathogens get deposited on the exterior of the masks and within the fabric. Considering that many pathogens, including that which causes COVID-19, can reside on surfaces for a long time, […]
Easily Removable Surgical Tape to Seal Internal Wounds
Researchers at MIT recently developed an adhesive tape that allows surgeons to seal internal wounds and that can readily stick to slippery internal surfaces, as a potential replacement for sutures. However, the adhesive worked a little too well, and was difficult to remove or adjust without causing irritation or tissue damage. Now, the research tea (Read more...)
Patch for Melanoma Treatment to Make Chemo Easier, Painless, More Effective
Scientists at Purdue University are reporting a skin patch that can deliver chemotherapy into melanoma tumors in an effective, convenient, and painless way. This may be an important development, as currently chemotherapy delivery options are limited and result in systemic exposure in the whole body and/or poor effectiveness. Previous attempts at ch (Read more...)
Sound Waves Move Individual Droplets Inside Microfluidic Devices
Microfluidic devices are analogous to circuit boards, and they can be programmed to perform all kinds of laboratory tasks on a small scale. They have the potential to perform all kinds of medical tests involving body fluids in a short time and using very small samples. While circuit boards pass electricity, which can be abstracted […]
Printed Soft Objects for Shape-Shifting Biomedical Implants
Researchers at Rice University have developed a method to 3D print soft structures that can reversibly change their shape in response to external stimuli, such as heat or an electric current. The researchers have dubbed their technique “reactive 4D printing” and it could have potential in creating adaptive biomedical implants that can r (Read more...)
Microneedle Patch for Delivering Stem Cells Into Tissue
Researchers at the Terasaki Institute in Los Angeles have developed a microneedle patch to deliver mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) into the skin. The biodegradable needles contain a gelatin matrix in which MSCs can survive. Once applied to the skin and removed, the needles detach from the patch and remain within the tissue. The hard outer […]
3D Printed Liquid Crystal Elastomers for Mimicking Complex Biological Tissues
Researchers at the University of Colorado Denver have developed a method to 3D print liquid crystal elastomers so that they form complex structures with physical properties that match those of complex biological tissues, such as cartilage. The researchers hope that the technique will help with creating patient-specific implants to replace tissues t (Read more...)
Battery-Free Neural Stimulator Powered by a Magnetic Field
Researchers at Rice University have developed an implantable neural stimulator that is both wireless and battery-free. The device is powered by an externally applied magnetic field and could be used as part of a system to treat a wide variety of diseases and conditions, including epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease, and chronic pain. At present, ba (Read more...)