Researchers at Ecole polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne in Switzerland have developed miniature soft robots that can mechanically stimulate tiny tissue samples when activated by near-infrared light. The tiny machines could act as medical implants with a role in on-demand drug delivery or to mechanically manipulate tissues. Other appli (Read more...)
Tag: Pathology
Soft Robotic Micromachines Mechanically Stimulate Small Tissue Samples
Researchers at Ecole polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne in Switzerland have developed miniature soft robots that can mechanically stimulate tiny tissue samples when activated by near-infrared light. The tiny machines could act as medical implants with a role in on-demand drug delivery or to mechanically manipulate tissues. Other appli (Read more...)
TestCard, a $4 Urine Test Read by Your Smartphone
Recently announced as one of the Digital Trends’ Top Tech of CES 2019, TestCard is a UK-based company that allows users to turn their smartphones into a clinical-grade urinalysis kit. The process starts with a postcard-like card mailed directly to the consumer. The card costs about $4 and contains three fold-out urine test strips, each [&hell (Read more...)
New Microscopy Technique for Nanoscale Imaging of Living Brain
Scientists collaborating on both coasts of the United States have developed a new technique for imaging the brain that provides an incredible new look at the detailed functionality of the organ. The technique combines expansion microscopy and lattice light-sheet microscopy, two techniques that on their own can provide impressive imaging of liv (Read more...)
Painless Microneedle Skin Patch Accurately Senses Glucose
Microneedle patches are a promising way to easily and painlessly deliver a variety of drugs into the body. Yet there’s also a lot of potential to use microneedle patches to sense important biochemicals, glucose being probably the most important target. Researchers at KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden have developed a (Read more...)
Diagnostic Blood Tests in Minutes: Interview with Brianna Wronko, Founder and CEO of Group K Diagnostics
We have all had to wait for test results after a doctor’s visit. In cases where a serious disease is suspected, a prolonged waiting period can be one filled with agonizing worry and anxiety. In certain scenarios, receiving medical test results earlier may even positively impact the treatment course – allowing patients to start therapy [ (Read more...)
Three-Photon Imaging Gives Unprecedented View Into Brain’s Visual Cortex
Three-photon microscopy is an emerging imaging technique that scientists have been perfecting over the last few years. At MIT, this has led to the first ever look into the neural activity of the entire visual cortex of an awake mouse. The researchers were even able to view the neural activity in the subplate below the […]
NOVEOS, a New Allergen Detection Technology, Now FDA Cleared
HYCOR, a company based in Garden Grove, California, won FDA clearance to introduce its NOVEOS allergy testing system in the United States. The NOVEOS uses microparticles and chemiluminescence, with help from liquid ready-to-go reagent, to provide accurate results using small sample sizes. HYCOR believes that its system is resistant to blood-based i (Read more...)
LetsGetChecked Provides Easy At-Home Lab Testing and Consultations
At-home lab tests are growing in popularity. While many companies focus on specific tests, such as genetic testing or specific screenings, LetsGetChecked, a company with offices in New York, Dublin, and Toronto, hopes to be a central hub that allows people to regularly and affordably check a variety of basic lab work. As with most at-home [&he (Read more...)
New Sensor Detects HER-2 Breast Cancer Biomarker in 15 Minutes
A few years ago researchers identified the Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor 2 (HER-2) protein as a biomarker for the presence of certain types of breast cancer. Tests for it, though, are expensive and take much time to produce results. Researchers at the University of Connecticut and University of Hartford have now developed a cheap (Read more...)
Fluorescent Molecular Sensor to Detect Metastatic Cancer Cells
Researchers at UC San Diego School of Medicine have developed a molecular sensor that can spot metastatic cancer cells and measure how likely they’re to spread through the body. “Although there are many ways to detect metastasis once it has occurred, there has been nothing available to ‘see’ or ‘measure’ the pote (Read more...)
Equashield Uses Robots and Image Recognition to Handle Hazardous Drugs
Although lifesaving, chemotherapy drugs are potentially hazardous to the pharmacists and other healthcare workers who routinely handle them. Closed System Transfer Devices (CSTDs) are used to move these drugs from one container to another, while preventing contamination and occupational exposure due to aerosolization or needle sticks. A reliable CS (Read more...)
Nanopore Sensor Exploits Artificial Intelligence for Specific Virus Detection
Researchers at Osaka University in Japan have developed a nanopore sensor to detect single influenza viral particles in a biological sample. The researchers used artificial intelligence to work out the “hallmarks” of the virus, which allowed them to identify it using the sensor. The technique has potential as a point-of-care diagnostic (Read more...)
Point-of-Care BRCA1 Mutation Testing in 20 Minutes
BReast CAncer gene one (BRCA1) is one of the best-known genes linked to breast cancer risk. Unfortunately, the technology to spot the gene requires a lab and expertise at interpretation. Researchers at Louisiana State University have now developed a smartphone-based system called FLuoroZen that can test for the cancer-related BRCA1 mutation at the (Read more...)
Molecular Electronic Devices to Detect E. Coli
Detecting the presence of E. coli and other pathogenic bacteria is time consuming and expensive, requiring biological cell cultures or DNA amplification. Researchers at the University of California, Davis, University of Washington, and TOBB University of Economics and Technology in Turkey have used a single-molecule break junction, a mole (Read more...)
Microchip for Growing and Studying 3D Brain Mimics
Over the past few years, neuroscientists have been able to grow ever larger and more complex spheroid cultures and organoids that replicate the structure and functionality of brain tissue. While these models are significantly better at mimicking parts of the brain compared to 2D cultures, they are much more challenging to study because it’s h (Read more...)
Interview with Deep Lens CoFounders and Pathologist User
Deep Lens Inc. is a digital pathology start-up from Ohio that exited stealth mode last week and announced $3.2 million in funding from Sierra Ventures, Rev1 Ventures, and Tamarind-Hill Fund. They’re focused on making pathology accessible by creating a platform and database of digital pathology slides that’s user friendly, informative, a (Read more...)
New Efficient Method for Sequencing Epigenetic Modifications
Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Medicine have developed a new method for sequencing chemical groups attached to the surface of DNA. These chemical groups are modifications of the DNA bases that convey important information relating to the patterns of gene expression. These modifications have been studied for the past (Read more...)
Applied BioCode’s MDx-3000 Cleared for GI Pathogen Detection
Applied BioCode, a company based in Santa Fe Springs, California, landed FDA clearance for its BioCode MDx-3000 molecular system for testing for 17 common gastrointestinal pathogens, including bacteria, viruses, and parasites. Clearance was based in part on a multi-center clinical study involving over 1,500 samples. The device is intended (Read more...)
Glow-In-The-Dark Paper Test Rapidly Detects Infectious Diseases
Researchers at Eindhoven University of Technology in The Netherlands and Keio University in Japan have developed a paper-based diagnostic test, which can be used to rapidly and inexpensively test for a variety of infectious diseases. A clinician can apply a drop of blood to the paper strip and detect the color of the emitted light […]