Medical Technology
Electric stimulation of brain releases opiate-like painkiller
January 2, 2013 11:00 am | News | CommentsResearchers used electricity on certain regions in the brain of a patient with chronic, severe facial pain to release an opiate-like substance that's considered one of the body's most powerful painkillers. The findings expand on previous work done at the University of Michigan, Harvard University, and the City University of New York where researchers delivered electricity through sensors on the skulls of chronic migraine patients, and found a decrease in the intensity and pain of their headache attacks.
A nanoscale window to the biological world
December 21, 2012 8:24 am | by Ken Kingery, Virginia Tech | News | CommentsInvestigators at the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute have invented a way to directly image biological structures at their most fundamental level and in their natural habitats. Their newly developed in situ molecular microscopy provides a gateway to imaging dynamic systems in structural biology
New approach destroys disease-associated RNAs in cells
December 20, 2012 8:01 pm | News | CommentsScientists from The Scripps Research Institute have developed a way to alter the function of RNA in living cells by designing molecules that recognize and disable RNA targets. As a proof of principle, the team designed a molecule that disabled the RNA causing myotonic dystrophy. This small molecule is cell-permeable, offering benefits over traditional methods of targeting RNAs for degradation.
Scientists construct first map of how the brain organizes everything we see
December 20, 2012 11:40 am | by Yasmin Anwar, UC Berkeley | News | CommentsOur eyes may be our window to the world, but how do we make sense of the thousands of images that flood our retinas each day? Scientists at the University of California, Berkeley, have found that the brain is wired to put in order all the categories of objects and actions that we see. They have created the first interactive map of how the brain organizes these groupings.
Super-fine sound beam could one day be an invisible scalpel
December 20, 2012 7:51 am | News | CommentsA carbon nanotube-coated lens that converts light to sound can focus high-pressure sound waves to finer points than ever before. The University of Michigan engineering researchers who developed the new therapeutic ultrasound approach say it could lead to an invisible knife for noninvasive surgery.
Industrial R&D—Life Science
December 18, 2012 7:32 am | by Martin Grueber, Research Leader, Battelle and Tim Studt, Editorial Director, Advantage Business Media | Articles | CommentsIncreasing healthcare costs, aging populations, and rising prevalence of chronic diseases are among the factors that will continue to shape the direction of industrial life science R&D in 2013. Technology deployment in healthcare information technology and analytics will also have an increasing impact on research while contributing to efficiency and quality.
Scientists develop a quick way to identify people exposed to ionizing radiation
December 17, 2012 7:40 am | News | CommentsResearch conducted by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory scientists could lead to a blood test that detects if a person has been exposed to radiation, measures their dose, and separates people suffering from inflammation injuries—all in a matter of hours. They identified eight DNA-repair genes in human blood whose expression responses change more than twofold soon after blood is exposed to radiation.
Mussel goo inspires blood vessel glue
December 12, 2012 8:08 am | News | CommentsA University of British Columbia researcher has helped create a gel—based on the mussel's knack for clinging to rocks, piers, and boat hulls-that can be painted onto the walls of blood vessels and stay put, forming a protective barrier with potentially life-saving implications.
Virtual reality system is key to medical discovery
December 11, 2012 12:31 pm | News | CommentsBecause of the limited image spatial-resolution of even today's best-quality laptop and desktop computers, researchers and physicians often can’t see phenomena that are too large, too small, too complex, or too distant. CAVE2, a next-generation, large-scale virtual environment, combines the benefits of scalable-resolution display walls with virtual-reality system to create a revealing and seamless 2D and 3D environment that is becoming increasingly important in scientific discovery.
Inspiration from a porcupine’s quills
December 10, 2012 5:46 pm | by Anne Trafton, MIT News Office | News | CommentsAnyone unfortunate enough to encounter a porcupine’s quills knows that once they go in, they are extremely difficult to remove. Researchers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Brigham and Women’s Hospital now hope to exploit the porcupine quill’s unique properties to develop new types of adhesives, needles and other medical devices.
Individual cells respond to electrical signal
December 6, 2012 1:09 pm | News | CommentsIn an effort to aid the administration of medication at the cellular level, researchers in The Netherlands have pioneer a way to control or speed up the process of binding ligands, or antibodies, to diseased cells. This ability relies on a new method that uses supramolecules to electrically switch the behavior of individual cells.
Hybrid scaffold holds promise for skin tissue engineering
December 6, 2012 9:06 am | News | CommentsResearchers in Japan have created a hybrid scaffold which promotes regeneration of skin in live animals while maintaining mechanical strength making it a promising material for future skin tissue engineering.
Multitasking plasmonic nanobubbles kill some cells, modify others
December 3, 2012 3:30 pm | by Mike Williams, Rice University | News | CommentsResearchers at Rice University have found a way to kill some diseased cells and treat others in the same sample at the same time. The process, which uses tunable plasmonic nanobubbles previously invented in the laboratory of Dmitri Lapotko, is activated by a pulse of laser light and leaves neighboring healthy cells untouched.
World's smallest wrench puts twist on microscopic manipulation
December 3, 2012 11:28 am | News | CommentsHarnessing laser light's ability to gently push and pull microscopic particles, researchers have created the fiber-optic equivalent of the world's smallest wrench. This virtual tool can precisely twist and turn the tiniest of particles, from living cells and DNA to microscopic motors and dynamos used in biological and physical research.
Self-cleaning membrane for implantable glucose sensors
December 3, 2012 7:55 am | News | CommentsAn implantable sensor that allows diabetics to more effectively monitor their blood-sugar levels is a step closer to reality, thanks to a researcher at Texas A&M University who is developing technology aimed at enabling these sensors to remain functional in the body for an extended period of time. The technology is a "self-cleaning" membrane that envelopes an implanted glucose sensor, shielding it from the body's immune response that would otherwise render it nonfunctional.
Electrically spun fabric offers dual defense against pregnancy, HIV
November 30, 2012 1:52 pm | News | CommentsA new form of contraception could take an unexpected shape: electrically spun cloth with nanometer-sized fibers. These fibers, designed by a University of Washington team, can dissolve and release drugs, providing a cheap and discreet platform for protecting against unintended pregnancy, as well as HIV infection.
Implantable silk optics multi-task in the body
November 29, 2012 9:49 am | News | CommentsTufts University School of Engineering researchers have demonstrated silk-based implantable optics that offer significant improvement in tissue imaging while simultaneously enabling photothermal therapy, administering drugs, and monitoring drug delivery. The devices also lend themselves to a variety of other biomedical functions.
White smell: Scientists find odor has color
November 26, 2012 4:49 pm | News | CommentsYou can see the color white; you can hear white noise. Now, researchers have shown that you can also smell a white odor. To be perceived as white, a stimulus (like light or sound) must meet two conditions: The mix that produces them must span the range of our perception; and each component must be present at the exact same intensity. Neuroscientists have reproduced these conditions for scent.
BioMAP could streamline search for new antibiotics
November 26, 2012 12:57 pm | News | CommentsResearchers at the University of California, Santa Cruz have developed a new strategy for finding novel antibiotic compounds, using a diagnostic panel of bacterial strains for screening chemical extracts from natural sources. The screening procedure, called BioMAP (antibiotic mode of action profile), promises to streamline the discovery of new antibiotics from natural sources by providing a low-cost, high-throughput platform for identifying compounds with novel antibiotic properties.
A leap forward in brain-controlled computer cursors
November 19, 2012 9:00 am | News | CommentsStanford University researchers have designed the fastest, most accurate algorithm yet for brain-implantable prosthetic systems that can help disabled people maneuver computer cursors with their thoughts. The algorithm's speed, accuracy, and natural movement approach those of a real arm, doubling performance of existing algorithms.
Catheter performs triple-duty with stretchable electronics
November 15, 2012 4:20 pm | News | CommentsA research team has used stretchable electronics to create a multipurpose medical catheter that can both monitor heart functions and perform corrections on heart tissue during surgery. The device marks the first time stretchable electronics have been applied to a surgical process known as cardiac ablation, a milestone that could lead to simpler surgeries for arrhythmia and other heart conditions.
Wax-filled nanotech yarn behaves like super-strong muscle
November 15, 2012 2:54 pm | News | CommentsNew artificial muscles made from nanotech yarns and infused with paraffin wax can lift more than 100,000 times their own weight and generate 85 times more mechanical power than the same size natural muscle, according to scientists at the University of Texas at Dallas and their international team. The artificial muscles are yarns constructed from carbon nanotubes.
Postage stamp-sized vital sign monitoring
November 15, 2012 2:41 pm | News | CommentsElectrical engineers at Oregon State University have developed new technology to monitor medical vital signs, with sophisticated sensors so small and cheap they could fit onto a bandage, be manufactured in high volumes, and cost less than a quarter. A patent is being processed for the monitoring system and it's now ready for clinical trials, researchers say.
Mini-pig tale provides trove of genomic data for human health
November 15, 2012 12:39 pm | News | CommentsAccording to some researchers, the publication of the whole-genome sequencing and analysis of the Wuzhishan Pig, an extensively inbred, miniature pig, indicates the animal could serve as an excellent model for human medical research and therapeutic drug testing. Analyses showed that pig genome contained a very large number of similar drug target genes for several types of human disorders.
Gold nanoparticle catalyst that learns from enzyme in nature
November 15, 2012 12:25 pm | News | CommentsScientists in Japan have developed a high activity gold nanoparticle catalyst that simplifies the function of enzymes in capturing substances. This new type of catalyst mimics enzyme function on the surface of cell membranes, which capture molecules of designated lengths and shapes. The findings indicate that gold nanoparticles thus equipped could support biological activities as a catalyst in the reactions of the living body.
