mRNA Therapy Prevents COVID Virus Entering Cells
Scientists at Oregon State University have developed a new treatment for COVID-19. The technology is based on mRNA, which has also been put to good use in COVID-19 vaccines. However, in this instance, the delivered mRNA encodes for human angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (hACE2), which is the binding site for SARS-CoV-2 on airway cells.
The lipid nanoparticle-encapsulated mRNA therapeutic is delivered to cells in the body, and then the cells begin to produce and release a free-floating form of hACE2 that acts as a decoy to soak up viral particles. Once the viral particles are bound to the decoys, they are no longer avail...
Source: Medgadget - October 25, 2022 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Conn Hastings Tags: Genetics Medicine Public Health covid COVID-19 OregonState SARS-CoV-2 Source Type: blogs
Wearable EEG Patch Measures Brain Activity
Researchers at Osaka University in Japan engineered a wearable electroencephalography (EEG) device that can measure brain activity, potentially letting clinicians monitor conditions such as depression or dementia. At present, assessing brain activity requires a trip to a facility with bulky and expensive equipment, making long-term monitoring difficult. This latest technology aims to allow for at-home measurements of brain activity.
The device consists of a near-transparent patch that is flexible and stretchy. The adhesive patch can be worn on the forehead and provides brain activity readings that are comparable in acc...
Source: Medgadget - October 25, 2022 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Conn Hastings Tags: Neurology Source Type: blogs
Low Temperature Graphene Coating for Enhanced Wearables
Researchers at Caltech came up with a technique to coat flexible electronic circuits with graphene to enhance their durability on folding, as well as to improve their resistance to sweat (in the case of graphene-coated gold) and their conductivity. The method could enhance the flexible electronics that are employed in many medical wearables. The approach avoids the need for high temperatures and harsh chemicals that are typically used to grow graphene sheets, making it suitable for use with delicate electronic components and polymer materials. This technique can lay down a graphene coating onto a surface in as little as 15...
Source: Medgadget - October 20, 2022 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Conn Hastings Tags: Cardiology Diagnostics Materials Caltech graphene Source Type: blogs
Scientists Teach Neurons to Play Pong
Scientists at Cortical Labs in Melbourne, Australia, along with international collaborators, have developed “DishBrain”, which is essentially a collection of neurons in a dish that have demonstrated learning and, incredibly, can play the classic computer game Pong.
The findings could create exciting new opportunities to understand the human brain, model neurological diseases, and test the effects of medications on the brain more easily. More profoundly, it also opens questions on the nature of sentience and intelligence (as we are not a philosophical publication, we will leave those questions for your own curiosity...
Source: Medgadget - October 20, 2022 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Conn Hastings Tags: Genetics Neurology CorticalLabs Source Type: blogs
Alzheimer ’s Diagnostic Test Spots Amyloid β Exosomes in Blood
Researchers at Hokkaido University in Japan have developed a biomarker test for Alzheimer’s disease that detects amyloid β binding exosomes in a blood sample. While amyloid β plaques in the brain are characteristic of Alzheimer’s, these researchers have previously reported that amyloid β build-up in the brain is associated with an increase in amyloid β binding exosomes. Now, they have gone one step further and developed a test for such exosomes in blood samples, potentially paving the way for an inexpensive blood test that could provide an early diagnosis for Alzheimer’s disease. The researchers used a Digital In...
Source: Medgadget - October 19, 2022 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Conn Hastings Tags: Diagnostics Geriatrics Medicine Neurology Hokkaidouni Source Type: blogs
FDA-Approved At-Home Spirometer: Interview with Charvi Shetty, Co-Founder and CEO at Aluna
The COVID-19 pandemic has put lung health firmly in our minds. For those with chronic lung diseases, such as asthma and COPD, an important way to keep track of lung health is to use a spirometer to measure how well air can move in and out of the lungs during forced breathing. However, patients would typically attend with a lung specialist to perform this test. This is inconvenient and precludes regular monitoring to keep a close eye on lung health and spot any upcoming disease exacerbation.
This is the motivation behind this latest technology, an at-home digital spirometer, created by a medical startup called Aluna. The...
Source: Medgadget - October 17, 2022 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Conn Hastings Tags: Cardiac Surgery Cardiology Diagnostics Exclusive Medicine Pediatrics Rehab Thoracic Surgery Source Type: blogs
Fluorescence Imaging System Illuminates Tumor Depth
Medical researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have developed a fluorescence imaging technique that allows them to illuminate a tumor in situ and calculate its depth below the surface of the body. The technique could assist surgeons in accurately removing a tumor and successfully excising an appropriate margin of healthy tissue to reduce the chances of tumor recurrence. The system involves administering a fluorescent dye and then using light at two different wavelengths to excite the dye. As light at different wavelengths will travel through tissue to different depths, the emitted excitation f...
Source: Medgadget - October 17, 2022 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Conn Hastings Tags: Oncology Radiology WUSTLmed Source Type: blogs
Screening App to Diagnose Parkinson ’s, COVID-19 from Voice
Researchers at RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia, have developed an app that is intended to provide early diagnosis for Parkinson’s disease and severe COVID-19. The artificial intelligence-powered technology works by analyzing voice recordings, having previously been trained to recognize the vocal hallmarks of these diseases by listening to recordings of patients. The app takes just ten seconds to assess a voice sample and provide a recommendation that someone should seek further treatment. The technology could be useful in large community-wide screening programs given its convenience and speed.
What can our voi...
Source: Medgadget - October 17, 2022 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Conn Hastings Tags: Diagnostics Medicine Neurology Public Health RMIT Source Type: blogs
AI-Designed Custom Knee Implants
Scientists at the University of Birmingham in the UK have trialed Generative Design, a design approach that relies on machine learning and artificial intelligence, to create patient-specific knee implants. At present, knee implants are typically created in a limited range of sizes and shapes. While 3D printing has opened some scope for implants that are adapted to an individual’s orthopedic anatomy, few are created with other important variables in mind, such as the activity level of the patient, their weight, or surgical planning constraints. The Generative Design technique, which is already extensively used to design c...
Source: Medgadget - October 13, 2022 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Conn Hastings Tags: Materials Orthopedic Surgery unibirmingham Source Type: blogs
Nanoprinted Microelectrode Array for Brain Computer Interfaces
Researchers at Carnegie Mellon University have used a nanoscale 3D printing technique that allows them to customize the microelectrode arrays used for brain computer interfaces. The approach is called Aerosol Jet 3D printing, and the researchers used it to create three-dimensional microelectrode arrays that can be customized for particular patient needs. Earlier microelectrode arrays could only record brain signals in two dimensions, limiting their applications. The new arrays are also denser than earlier devices, meaning that they are more robust.
Brain computer interfaces offer enormous possibilities in treating those...
Source: Medgadget - October 13, 2022 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Conn Hastings Tags: Neurology Neurosurgery CMU Source Type: blogs
Video Games to Improve Cognition in Older Adults
Researchers at the University of California San Francisco have developed a suite of video games that have been designed to improve cognition in older adults who are otherwise healthy. The games aim to recreate common activities, such as banging a drum or driving a car. They also include a sophisticated algorithm that automatically adjusts the game difficulty depending on how well someone is playing, helping to stop less skilled players from becoming overwhelmed and more skilled players from becoming bored. In trials so far, the games have produced impressive efficacy with a variety of cognitive metrics, including long- and...
Source: Medgadget - October 11, 2022 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Conn Hastings Tags: Geriatrics Neurology Source Type: blogs
CRISPR-Cas13 System for Quick and Sensitive SARS-CoV-2 Detection
Scientists at Rice University created a rapid COVID-19 test that is based on the gene editing CRISPR-Cas system. The researchers modified the Cas-13 protein to increase its activity and to light up with fluorescence when it encounters RNA from the virus. The system does not require the expensive lab equipment and technical expertise of PCR, the current gold standard COVID-19 testing technique. The researchers even hope to adapt it to create a paper strip test, similar to the ubiquitous antigen tests, allowing people in remote or low-resource regions to obtain accurate COVID-19 testing without the need for a fully equipped ...
Source: Medgadget - October 11, 2022 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Conn Hastings Tags: Genetics Medicine Public Health covid riceuniversity Source Type: blogs
Novel Devices to Help Surgeons Sculpt a New Ear
At Johns Hopkins, clinical researchers have developed a set of surgical tools that allow them to more easily create a replacement ear for those born with malformed or missing ears. Currently, using cartilage harvested from the ribs, surgeons can create a new ear, but the process is difficult and requires some artistic talent to sculpt the cartilage into the right shape. These new devices make the procedure more streamlined and efficient.
One device lets the surgeon quickly and accurately slice the harvested cartilage into the required thickness, helping a little cartilage to go much further. Then, a “cookie cutte...
Source: Medgadget - October 11, 2022 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Conn Hastings Tags: Surgery hopkinsmedicine johnshopkins Source Type: blogs
Conductive Cotton Thread for Wearable Sensors in Commercial Textiles
Imperial College London researchers created a conductive cotton thread that can undergo a computerized embroidery process for incorporation into commercially produced textiles, such as t-shirts and face masks. The thread, called PECOTEX, can be used to create wearable health sensors, such as heart rate monitors, breathing monitors and even gas sensors, including ammonia sensors for the breath, which can provide information on liver and kidney function.
The embroidered sensors are machine washable and are stronger and more conductive than previously developed conductive threads. The major benefit, though, is the thr...
Source: Medgadget - October 5, 2022 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Conn Hastings Tags: Cardiology Materials Medicine Telemedicine imperialcollege Source Type: blogs
Robotic Capsule Drills Intestinal Mucus to Deliver Protein Drugs
Engineers at MIT have collaborated to develop a robotic drug delivery capsule that is specially designed to administer delicate protein drugs, such as insulin, through the wall of the intestine. Proteins are not suited for oral delivery, as they are typically destroyed by the low pH in the intestine and they can’t pass through the mucus layer that lines the gastrointestinal tract.
Protecting protein drugs from the acidic environment and providing a way to traverse this mucus layer is the goal behind this latest technology. The capsule can be loaded with the protein and then once swallowed it becomes activated by ...
Source: Medgadget - October 5, 2022 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Conn Hastings Tags: GI Materials Medicine mit MITnews Source Type: blogs
