Wellcome Trust-funded stem cell research has produced red blood cells fit for transfusion into humans.
The production of blood on an industrial scale could become a reality once a trial is conducted in which artificial blood made from human stem cells is tested in patients for the first time. It is the latest breakthrough in scientists’ efforts to re-engineer the body, which have already resulted in the likes of 3d-printed bones and bionic limbs.
The Mayo Clinic is offering unlimited access to the famed hospital’s nurses through a smartphone app for about $50 a month. The Mayo Clinic partnered with Better, a California-based health technology startup, to launch the new subscription-based app. The app is not covered by insurance but offers real-time, 24/7 health care assistance. Think of it as a mobile WebMD. (Video)
Continue reading… “Mayo Clinic’s ‘Better’ turns your smartphone into a personal health concierge”
Blockade of p25 generation in the brain of an Alzheimer’s disease mouse model mitigates amyloid plaque buildup.
Symptoms of Alzheimer’s in mice have been reversed by limiting a certain protein in the brain, according to a report by neuroscientists at MIT’s Picower Institute for Learning and Memory.
Continue reading… “Neuroscientists reverse symptoms of Alzheimer’s in mice”
Scientists are working on the futuristic idea of growing custom-made organs in the lab.
Scientists in a north London hospital are growing noses, ears and blood vessels in the laboratory in a bold attempt to make body parts using stem cells.
Continue reading… “UK scientists make custom-made body parts in the lab”
Researchers at at John A. Rogers’ lab at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign have incorporated off-the-shelf chips into flexible electronic patches to allow for high quality ECG and EEG monitoring. (Video)
Continue reading… “Flexible, stick-on electronic patches for wireless health monitoring”
New low-intensity pulsed ultrasound device helps regrow teeth.
Researchers at the University of Alberta in Canada have developed a low-intensity pulsed ultrasound (LIPUS) technology that they hope will ultimately be able to re-grow lost or severely damaged teeth from the root, eliminating the need for pricey prosthetics and painful procedures.
Continue reading… “New technology promises the ability to regrow teeth”
The discovery could lead to developing a drug that can trigger regrowth of damaged nerves.
Spinal cord injuries are currently irreparable. Most people who suffer from such an injury never fully recover, and many end up with partial or even full paralysis. Although we’ve made great strides in understanding how spinal injuries damage nerves and how we might fix the spinal cord in the future, and even how those patients can cope in the meantime, we still don’t know how to repair the nerves themselves when such an injury occurs. However, scientists at Imperial College London have recently discovered a mechanism that allows them to repair, and even regenerate, nerves in the central nervous system after a spinal cord injury.
Continue reading… “Scientists discover mechanism that could regrow damaged nerves”
The wearable sensor stores and transmits motion data and delivers drugs.
A wearable device that is as thin as a temporary tattoo and can store and transmit data about a person’s movements, receive diagnostic information and release drugs into skin has been developed by researchers.
Continue reading… “Researchers create ‘electronic skin’ equipped with memory”
3D printed skullcap
An anonymous man in the U.S. received what was then the world’s largest 3D-printed skull implant a year ago. That record has just been broken. A 22-year-old Dutch woman has just received a transplant of her entire cranium in an operation that lasted an incredible 23 hours. (Video)
Continue reading… “Surgeons replace woman’s entire cranium with 3D printed skull”
Print different shapes to encourage kids to eat healthy foods.
Food replicators used to be science fiction. But 3D food printers came along and started giving us things like chocolate on demand. But what about people who want to eat healthier food? Welcome Foodini, the world’s first 3D printer designed to print meals with fresh, nutritious ingredients. (Video)
Continue reading… “Foodini: World’s first 3D food printer prints fresh, nutritious foods”
India has been polio free for the past 3 years.
India had over 200,000 cases of polio reported in 1988. For the past three years, they’ve had 0. At the end of this month, the WHO will announce the end of polio in India.
Continue reading… “India has declared the end of polio”
Robotic check-ups
Medical technology companies are focusing more than ever on products that deliver cheaper, faster, more efficient patient care. They are also making inroads with U.S. Food & Drug Administration regulators to re-engineer the complex review and approval process for new medical devices.
Continue reading… “Top 5 emerging medical technologies to watch in 2014”
By delving into the futuring techniques of Futurist Thomas Frey, you’ll embark on an enlightening journey.
Learn More about this exciting program.