Inventory: 2015 Top Ten Medical Black Technology
Release date: 2016-03-29
(electronic bionic eye)
The year 2015 has ended. Last year, medical technology developed so fast that sometimes it would not be able to keep up with the times. It is very likely that there will be new scientific and technological achievements tomorrow. But we still can't wait to make an inventory for everyone. These black technology, which occurred in 2015, may have appeared in 2014, but this year it really started to be known and began to benefit the people; some may still be in laboratory research, but they have very large market value; Some may have been commercialized, but they reflect a lot of innovation. Although it may not be comprehensive, but in any case, these are a trend that represents medical technology, so let's get started!
1. Microfluidic biodiagnostic chip that can diagnose a variety of diseases
IBM researchers have developed a portable diagnostic chip that can quantitatively detect multiple diseases. Thanks to the powerful research by IBM researchers LucGervais and Emmanuel Delamarche, the use of capillary tension to drive microfluidics can dramatically change the current state of point care diagnostics.
At the IBM Zurich laboratory, scientists have combined microfluidic components with analyte molecules, detection antibodies, capture antibodies and other reagents to creatively propose a one-step immunoassay. Only 5 microliters of human serum samples are required to complete the sandwich immunoassay and the results are read using a fluorescence microscope. The microfluidic functional element consists of a reaction chamber sealed with a PDMS substrate, a sample collector, a time delay valve, a deposition zone for detection of antibodies, a capillary pump, and a fluid inlet and outlet.
A well-designed microfluidic channel is placed on the chip used in the one-step immunoassay, allowing us to precisely control the volume and flow rate of the liquid to be analyzed on the chip. The deposition zone of the detection antibody and the capture antibody can be precisely defined, so that a small number of samples to be tested and a small detection area can be used to complete the detection task. And because the detection area is small, multiple proteins can be analyzed simultaneously on a single chip.
The chip prototype used in this study is capable of detecting the cardiac marker C-reactive protein (CRP), and the chip can also provide quantitative detection for cancer, allergies, viruses, bacteria, and diseases with any known protein marker.
In the future, the further development of a multifunctional chip that relies entirely on capillary tension demonstrates the potential of PDMS as a diagnostic test and a biological base for a lab.
Coris BioConcept and IBM are working together to bring a one-step diagnostic chip to market. Researchers hope to eventually make the device from plastic components and promote it in hospitals. In addition, IBM plans to leverage its strengths in semiconductor technology and manufacturing experience to actively develop point-of-care products in collaboration with other biologists, including Neuro-Zone, which develops devices for detecting brain cells in the treatment of neurological diseases.
2. 3D printed pills for treating epilepsy
A new generation of magical technology "3D printing" can print and eat, and still drugs! A considerable number of researchers are working on the development of this technology. For example, the International Journal of Pharmaceuticals reported that researchers at the University College of London have successfully tested 3D printed tablet technology. At this point, the US company Aprecia is ahead of the scene, they announced that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved its "the world's first" 3D printing drug Spritam (Lesilacetam) instant tablets, which The drug is used to treat epilepsy.
I have to say that this is a milestone in the entire 3D printing field. Because it means that millions of identical products can be manufactured at the same time.
In addition to convenience and personalization, the unique advantages of 3D printing technology can not be ignored, that is, it is more controllable in structure, which is the ability that traditional manufacturing methods can't match. The advantage of using 3D printing drugs is that it contains a lot of holes, which only need a little water to dissolve in the mouth, which is very easy for patients with difficulty swallowing (such as patients with seizures). Drugs with holes can also be made by conventional methods, but are more difficult and more expensive.
Imagine the future, printing drugs may be able to meet more customized medical needs. Other researchers believe that 3D printing drugs may provide cheaper drug production methods for developing countries.
3. Flexible microelectronics
Flexible Microelectronics can adapt to the shape of irregular human tissues and cooperate with the movement of these tissues to achieve sensing capabilities, and even respond to different physiological parameters in the future. In this regard, Google contact lenses are a representative.
Last year, Google announced that it is developing a smart contact lens that can help diabetics monitor blood sugar levels by analyzing the glucose content of the wearer's tears, thus eliminating the pain of taking blood tests from diabetic patients. The contact lens has tens of thousands of tiny transistors and a hairline-like antenna that is wirelessly sent to mobile devices such as smartphones.
This year, University of Illinois professor John Rogers and a research team at the University of Washington developed a flexible collar that can be wrapped around the heart of a beating rabbit to monitor its electricity in 3D. activity. In the near future, this technology may be used for highly accurate perception and response to arrhythmias.
In addition, Professor Rutgers has developed a flexible skin "patches" that record ECG and EEG signals and send them wirelessly to smartphones or other devices.
4. Rapid hemostasis system
In the past, when soldiers were unfortunately shot on the battlefield, the medical emergency treatment was rude, and it was better than the gun. The gauze must be immediately inserted into a bloody wound. Sometimes the cavity formed by the bullet is as deep as 5 inches. The limited first-aid measures are also very helpless in the face of such a serious situation. The old nose is not able to stop the gauze in the wound, and the medical personnel have to dig up the gauze. The whole step is coming again. For the wounded, this is a bit of a ruin, and the body and mind are falling apart.
Former US Army Physician John Steinbaugh said: Before we can save, we must kick their guns away, otherwise we will wait for us to do it...
Even if the medical officer works hard, many wounded people can only watch their bloodshed and die; the big bleeding is the primary cause of the death of the wounded on the battlefield. Steinbaugh, a military doctor who has served in Iraq and Afghanistan for many years, said: Actually, gauze, as long as it encounters a serious injury, does not use it. When Dr. Steinbaugh retired from a head injury in April 2012, he joined a startup in Oregon called RevMedx to work with a group of veterans, scientists and engineers to study how to stop bleeding.
In April 2014, the US FDA approved their new invention: XStat, a portable, modified, powerful syringe that infused a large amount of mulched sponge into the wound. XStat can save the lives of a large number of soldiers on the battlefield, alleviate the pain caused by brutal rescue, fill the wound more quickly than gauze, and stop bleeding quickly.
This thing works very quickly: in just 15 seconds, the entire wound is completely blocked and generates enough pressure to stop the bleeding. And because the hemostasis licks the entire wound, it won't be spit out like a bloody wound.
But how to put a strong hemostatic pill into the wound, but need some skills, on the battlefield, the medical officer must carry a variety of life-saving guys, running around the battlefield with guns and rain, and still have to carry a gun to fight. Therefore, RevMedx has developed a portable and lightweight device that can push the hemostatic drug into the wound. The development team then designed a 30 mm diameter, polycarbonate-filled syringe that was stored directly in the syringe to save space. When using, pull out the putter, pour the syringe into the wound, try to be close to the blood-stained blood vessels, and quickly take the medicine before the wounded soldier smashes himself.
Written here suddenly thought of a joke:
Soldier A: Depressed, bitten by a poisonous snake.
Soldier B: Don't panic, I have a hemostatic sponge, come on, hit it.
Passerby is a pawn.
5. Glow-eye drops that can detect glaucoma in advance
Glaucoma is one of the three major blind diseases that cause blindness in humans. It refers to an eye disease in which intraocular pressure is intermittent or continuously elevated. Continuous high intraocular pressure can cause damage to various tissues and visual functions of the eyeball. If not treated in time, the visual field can be completely lost to blindness. However, it does not show symptoms at the beginning, is often not detected, and is only diagnosed in routine eye examinations, which often makes it difficult for patients to realize visual problems after ten years.
In collaboration with the University of London, Wellcome Trust and Imperial College Medical NHS Foundation, a new test method is being developed to detect dead nerve cells in the eye, detect glaucoma ten years in advance, and hopefully save hundreds of The vision of thousands of people.
The team used a natural protein containing dye (anectin) to detect dead cells, which fluoresce when they encounter dead nerve cells. Fluorescence detection can be performed in conventional eye detection devices. If the patient has a large number of dead cells, the risk of glaucoma is high, and medication is recommended to prevent nerve cell death before visual loss.
The research team is currently developing the dye as an eye drop, and the researchers believe that the method may be applied to early diagnosis of other neurological diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease.
When the product is successfully developed, it will be welcomed by everyone when it goes on sale. Changing the technology can save thousands of people's vision problems, reduce the blindness rate, and the world is bright. At the same time, it is also widely used in the field of chronic neurological diseases. It is found in advance that early prevention, perhaps "longevity is not old" is no longer a dream.
6.3D printing micro-machine fish
As we all know, the fish is delicious, rich in protein, vitamins, iron and other elements. It has high nutritional value and is easy to absorb. It is excellent for health. So what about fish-shaped robots?
Researchers at the University of California, San Diego, use the new 3D printing technology to develop miniature robots that can swim in liquids and serve multiple purposes. This robot, called "miniature fish", can be driven and controlled by the chemical reaction of hydrogen peroxide and magnetic force, and can perform various functions such as detoxification, remote sensing and targeted administration.
The currently machined robots are self-propelled and magnetically operated. Researchers say they use a high-resolution 3D printing technology called micro-continuous light. This process enabled researchers to print hundreds of 120 micron long, 30 micron thick micro-machine fish at a time. They can quickly change the design through computer-aided design (CAD) programs to print out sharks, manta rays, and even bird-shaped machine fish.
Nano-engineers can easily place nanoparticles of different functions into a “mini-fish†part of the body: printing platinum nanoparticles in the fishtail, which can react with hydrogen peroxide to promote the “mini-fish†as a fuel; The iron oxide nanoparticles are printed on the head of the fish and can be controlled by the magnetic properties of the iron oxide. By changing the shape of the “miniature fish†and adjusting the amount of hydrogen peroxide used, the researchers were able to control the speed of swimming of the “miniature fish†in the liquid.
The poly-nanoparticles in the robotic fish can be neutralized with toxins. As the neutralization process progresses, the robotic fish will emit more and more intense red fluorescence, and the sparkling red color becomes denser. This means that robotic fish can function as both a detoxification and toxin sensor. Researchers also believe that robotic fish can be used for targeted drug delivery, environmental protection and many other applications.
The simple “mini-fish†can not only act as a “drug deliverer†or “scavenger†in the future, but also transform various appearances, which may mean that one day in the future, your body may become a “zooâ€.
7. CRISPR gene scissors
This year, scientists have used the CRISPR system to rewrite the equations of life. This is a new gene editing tool that rewrites DNA and guides us into a gene that not only prevents but also eradicates disease and can edit plants and animals. Even the era of "customizing baby" (modifying embryonic genes).
The CRISPR Cas9 system, born at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, is the largest biotech discovery of the century and is essentially a tool for finding and replacing genomes. Don't want a DNA code associated with a particular disease? Cas9 protein can be cut off or even replaced.
One of the co-discoverers of the CRISPR, biologist Jennifer Doudna, said that in fact, we have a molecular scalpel that can cut the genome. All the techniques of the past are a bit like a sledgehammer... This discovery provides scientists with practical tools that are incredible. Dustin Rubinstein, head of the CRISPR Collaboration Lab at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, told us that gene editing can turn all of the problems of cancer research and neuroscience into chemical engineering and even energy production.
Since then, you are only limited by your imagination.
8. Synthesize opioid analgesics with yeast
Many of the drugs come from plants, and our ancestors chew the leaves or make tea leaves, or later chemically extract and concentrate the active ingredients to make them into pills. For thousands of years, people have only used yeast to ferment wine, brew beer and fermented bread, and rarely use it for biological purposes. Now, researchers at Stanford University in the United States have created an opioid analgesic by genetically modifying yeast. This breakthrough indicates that we can produce many different types in a faster and potentially cheaper way. Plant medicines.
This composite biology feat was published in this year's issue of Science: By introducing 21 genes from plants, bacteria and rodents, a "drug line" is built in yeast to convert sugar into Tiba. Thebaine - this is the precursor of morphine. The team also found that further adjusted yeast produced hydrocodone, a widely used analgesic that was synthesized by thebaine chemical.
Synthetic biology is an interesting area in which scientists treat genes of various organisms as components and assemble them like “circuits†to accomplish the tasks that the designer envisions.
Previously, synthetic biologists designed a yeast that produced artemisinin (anti-malarial drugs), but only needed to insert a few plant genes. This time, it is more complicated. The production of thebaine requires the introduction of 21 genes from different species, while the production of hydrocodone requires 23 genes.
Finally, synthetic biologists successfully synthesized opioid analgesics by adjusting the metabolic pathways of yeast. This process is like brewing beer at home, and maybe you can make more drugs in a similar way in the future.
In this paper, the authors acknowledge that this new process for the manufacture of opioid analgesics can increase concerns about the potential problems of opioid abuse. Because in the United States, opioids have been widely used, and the focus is on potential abuse.
9.Intelligent sensing limbs
Imperial College of Technology recently released a new type of robot that is equipped with sensors that directly sense the tiny vibrations of the muscle fibers of the arm, which can be easily manipulated by the user through simple muscle reactions and arm movements. This technology is expected to be used in the future to develop more advanced and cost-effective mechanical prostheses for people with disabilities.
The developers involved in this project said that most of the mechanical prosthesis was controlled by electrical signals generated by muscle activity. This requires the sensor to contact the user's residual limb and detect electrical signals, but the electrical signal is easily disturbed, such as the human body. Sweat can cause signal transmission to be interrupted, affecting the manipulation of mechanical prostheses. Moreover, the cost of manufacturing, debugging and correcting such equipment is relatively high and is not easy to popularize.
In addition, the researchers also equipped the robot with a motion sensor to further refine the robot's control mode. Through a series of simple muscle reactions and arm movements, the user can control the robot to pick up objects of different sizes. An amputated volunteer has initially tried this manipulator and is satisfied with the results.
Similarly, researchers at the EPFL in Switzerland and the University of Pisa (ISASA) in Italy have developed a new type of intelligent prosthetic with a tactile sensor at the fingertip that senses the object being touched. By connecting with the human nerves, the prosthetic can feed back information such as the softness and shape of the object to the wearer, and thus can simulate the touch of the human hand to a certain extent.
These research and development results will make the mechanical prosthesis more stable, flexible and easy to control. In the future, researchers will further improve the stability of the prototype robot and help the disabled to better control the prosthesis.
10. Artificial plastic skin
The Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology in Korea has recently developed a super sensitive electronic skin that detects both heat and temperature changes.
This latest electronic skin was developed by a colleague led by Professor Jonghwa Park, a researcher at the Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology in Korea. Human skin contains unique epidermis, dermal microstructure, and sensor receptors. The miniature ridges on the fingertips are designed to fine tune the surface texture perception and deliver sensor information to the brain.
In the test, the groove of the electronic skin can sense the water droplets flowing through and can detect the pressure of the hair placed on its surface. Existing electronic skin technology enables robots and mechanical prostheses to grasp and manipulate objects, identify surface texture and hardness, and sense the temperature of the object. However, it is difficult to realize that the electronic skin can detect heat and different types of pressure very sensitively at the same time.
The researchers tested the response of the electronic skin to sensory changes through water droplets and found that the electronic skin was able to detect water drops at different pressures and temperatures. At the same time, they found that artificial fingertip skin can detect the tiny pressure generated by human hair.
When the electronic skin adheres to the wrist of the human body, the blood vessels of the wrist expand and contract, and the electronic skin can be used to monitor the pulse pressure by detecting changes in skin temperature.
As early as September of this year, researchers from Stanford University in the United States developed a sensitive tactile artificial skin that not only detects stress but also transmits signals to nerve cells.
This technology works like the iPhone fingerprinting technology and is expected to replace burned skin or prosthetic skin, allowing the patient to feel a "touch".
Stanford University professor Zhenan Bao is the principal person in charge of the project, which mimics the receptors of human skin by adding sensors to artificial skin. These sensors are capable of collecting ever-changing pressure data, and researchers hope that one day they will be able to "transmit" the data to the brain in some form.
Although electronic skin has only made some breakthroughs in experiments, they hope that this proof-of-concept experiment will revolutionize artificial prosthetics, allowing the wearer to perceive different surface textures and distinguish between hot and cold temperature changes. This two-layer "electronic skin" top layer is elastic and can sense pressure, and the underlying skin is capable of producing biochemical signals suitable for delivery to nerve cells.
If further commercialized, then we can use this technology to create more realistic prostheses, or to improve the accuracy of wearable sensors and medical diagnostic equipment.
Humanoids are talking about robots, intelligent electronic scalpels iknife, experimental transparent mice, nanobots, nanopore sequencers, artificial blood, etc., and many medical achievements that have emerged this year are not mentioned, but this does not mean They are not important. In the long process of medical technology development, no matter how advanced the technology, the most important thing is still our own human beings.
Source: Instruments
HPV Nucleic Acid Detection Solution
hpv
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