NIH-funded researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital find surprising link between the death of tumor-support cells and an increased risk of cancer metastasis in mice.
The Center of Excellence for Mobile Sensor Data-to-Knowledge—or MD2K—for tools to gather and interpret health data generated by wearable sensors. MD2K, headquartered at the University of Memphis, is a consortium of 12 universities and university medical centers—with 20 investigators whose research spans computing, engineering, and statistics and biomedical research.
NIBIB-funded researchers used ultrasound-activated microbubbles to improve preservation of heart muscle and function in a pig heart attack model. The method is now in phase I human clinical trials. The promising treatment could be administered to heart attack patients arriving at the emergency room (or even while in the ambulance), and could preserve heart muscle before patients receive invasive interventions to open blocked arteries.
Frequent measurement of blood flow changes could improve the ability of health care providers to diagnose and treat patients with vascular conditions. A U.S.-Chinese team that included researchers from NIH conducted a pilot study showing that an ultrathin, skin-conforming sensor—resembling a peel-away tattoo—provides non-invasive, precise, and continuous monitoring of circulation, including blood flow within the smallest vessels.
The latest video in NIBIB's 60 Seconds of Science video series explains what tissue engineering is and how it works.
Researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), have developed a synthetic biomaterial that fills wounds and aids in regeneration of skin cells, which ultimately improves wound healing.
A research team including NIBIB-funded scientists have developed a sunscreen that encapsulates the UV-blocking compounds inside bio-adhesive nanoparticles, which adhere to the skin well, but do not penetrate beyond the skin’s surface. These properties resulted in highly effective UV protection in a mouse model, without the adverse effects observed with commercial sunscreens, including penetration into the bloodstream and generation of reactive oxygen species, which can damage DNA and lead to cancer.
A new, open-source software that can help track the embryonic development and movement of neuronal cells throughout the body of the worm, is now available to scientists.
It’s called optogenetics and it refers to the use of light to regulate cells. In this case, NIBIB-funded researchers engineered fruit flies that carry light-sensitive proteins in their hearts. When hit by a blue laser, the proteins open channels that cause a flow of ions or charged particles that cause the heart to beat.
As part of the National Robotics Initiative (NRI), the National Institutes of Health announced that it will fund the development of three innovative co-robots—robots that work cooperatively with people. Two of the robots will improve health and quality of life for individuals with disabilities, and the third will serve as a social companion for children that inspires curiosity and teaches the importance of hard work and determination.
Researchers have developed a swallowable device engineered for stability in the stomach, allowing for potential extended drug release or physiological monitoring and subsequent degradation in the small intestine for safe passage out of the body.
Researchers have developed a brain imaging technique for patients whose epilepsy does not respond to drug treatment and are not candidates for seizure-relieving surgeries. The imaging technique, known as glutamate chemical exchange saturation transfer (GluCEST), images changes in glutamate levels in brain structures that identify the location of seizures not detected with conventional MRI.
A research team including NIBIB-funded scientists used eye drops to deliver the gene for a growth factor called granulocyte colony stimulating factor (G-CSF) in a mouse model of brain ischemia. The treatment led to a significant reduction in brain atrophy, neurological deficits, and death in the mice. The research team also devised a system to monitor the success of the gene delivery using MRI. The combination of simple delivery and non-invasive monitoring has the potential to contribute to improved studies of experimental gene therapy in animal models of stroke, Alzheimer’s dementia, Parkinson’s disorder, and ALS. The system also offers the intriguing possibility that acute brain injury may someday be treated by emergency medical workers through the simple delivery of eye drops carrying a therapeutic gene.
A team of NIBIB-supported bioengineers are working to reduce blood clots caused by platelet activation in ventricular assist devices (VADs) implanted in advanced heart failure patients. Previously, the team re-engineered the VAD's high-speed rotors to eliminate more than 90% of platelet activation and clotting. The current study examines the role of platelet stiffness in activation with the goal of developing treatments that would increase platelet pliability and further reduce platelet activation and clotting.
NIBIB-funded researchers at the Massachusetts General Hospital have developed a smartphone-based device that can reliably carry out molecular diagnoses in under an hour for approximately two dollars per patient. The device could enable point-of-care cancer diagnostics in low- to middle-income or remote areas, which often have high rates of mortality from cancer due to missed opportunities for treatment.
Driven by the need to develop more effective therapies requiring less recovery time for common joint conditions such as osteoarthritis, an international team including NIBIB-funded researchers has developed an integrated two-part scaffold for implantation into damaged joints -- with cartilage scaffold made from silk, and bone scaffold made from ceramics. This combination of materials allows stem cells to successfully populate the graft and differentiate into cartilage and bone cells. The cells fill the damaged areas to reconstitute the original structure of the joint, after which the scaffold biodegrades, leaving the smooth surface required for a pain-free, functioning interface.
NIBIB-funded researchers at Tufts University and their collaborators have successfully developed a 3-dimensional (3D) tissue-engineered model of bone marrow that can produce functional human platelets outside the body (ex vivo).
Three unique projects focused on improving global health won the National Institutes of Health’s Design by Biomedical Undergraduate Teams (DEBUT) Challenge. The winners showed exemplary initiative in designing tools for a less expensive, portable device to monitor HIV treatment, a new surgical clamp to treat drooping eyelids, and a low-cost patient monitor.
Researchers have shown that MRI can detect the earliest signs of breast cancer recurrence and fast-growing tumors. Their approach detects micrometastases, breakaway tumor cells with the potential to develop into dangerous secondary breast cancer tumors elsewhere in the body. The approach may offer an improved way to detect early recurrence of breast cancer in women and men. The work was completed at Case Western Reserve University and was funded by the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering, part of NIH.
Five men with complete motor paralysis were able to voluntarily generate step-like movements thanks to a new strategy that non-invasively delivers electrical stimulation to their spinal cords, according to a new study funded in part by the National Institutes of Health.
The capture and analysis of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) is a valuable tool for cancer treatment decisions and therapy monitoring. Researchers funded by the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering are using sound waves to isolate CTCs without physical contact or damage to the cells, assuring that their original characteristics are maintained. The contact-free nature of the method offers the potential for more precise cancer treatment and monitoring.
NIBIB-funded researchers have developed two near-infrared contrast agents that are efficiently taken up by the thyroid and parathyroid glands following intravenous injection. The contrast agents could be used to help surgeons operate on the glands with greater precision.
A research team funded by the National Institutes of Health has generated a novel system for growing cardiac tissue from undifferentiated stem cells on a culture plate. This heart on a chip is a miniature physiologic system that could be used to model early heart development and screen drugs prescribed during pregnancy. Researchers from the University of California (UC) Berkeley; the Gladstone Institutes, in San Francisco; and UC San Francisco, reported their work in the July 14, 2015, online issue of Nature Communications.
Researchers funded by the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering have designed a nanoparticle gene delivery system that destroys brain gliomas in a rat model, significantly extending the lives of the treated animals. The nanoparticles are filled with genes for an enzyme that converts a prodrug called ganciclovir into a potent destroyer of the glioma cells
NIBIB-supported researchers have created tiny gel particles that can perform the same essential functions as platelets. The particles could one day be used to control excessive bleeding following traumatic injury or in individuals with impaired clotting due to an inherited condition or as a result of certain medications or chemotherapy.
An NIBIB-funded researcher has developed a new technique that creates digital pictures of a tissue’s chemical composition using light and a computer. The technique replaces the need for dyes or stains, which can be costly and require significant time and effort to apply.
Scientists at Georgia State University (GSU) with funding from the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB) have designed an imaging technique to detect early-stage liver tumors, and have proven it successful in mice. Their study in an animal model is an essential step toward creating tools to improve liver tumor detection in human patients—whether primary liver cancer or metastatic tumors that arise in liver but have spread from other tissue.
NIBIB-funded researchers have developed a highly sensitive imaging technique for non-invasive screening of lymph nodes for metastatic cancer. The new imaging technique – so far tested in mice – offers a rapid tool to noninvasively identify cancer’s spread at its earliest stages.
Researchers have developed a microfluidic chip that can capture rare clusters of circulating tumor cells, which could yield important new insights into how cancer spreads. The work was funded by the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB), part of the National Institutes of Health.
New paper and flexible polymer substrates were combined with special sensing devices for rapid and accurate detection of HIV and other pathogens for point-of-care medicine in remote areas, where there is minimal diagnostic infrastructure and a lack of trained medical technicians.
An NIBIB grantee has developed an ultrafast camera that can acquire two-dimensional images at 100 billion frames per second, a speed capable of revealing light pulses and other phenomena previously too fast to be observed.
A head and neck surgeon at UCSD discusses the development of new molecules that cause tumors and nerves to glow, making it easier for them to be identified during surgery.
NIBIB-funded researchers have developed a highly effective sensor system to improve the quality of clinical breast examinations by physicians. To improve training, the device incorporates a sensor that indicates when a physician is palpating (pressing) with adequate force necessary to detect a lump in the breast.
A new technique to create tissue-engineered bladders has been shown to decrease scarring and significantly increase tissue growth. The bladders are produced using scaffolds coated with anti-inflammatory peptides. Tissue-engineered organs such as supplemental bladders, small arteries, skin grafts, cartilage, and even a full trachea have been implanted in patients, but the procedures are still experimental, very costly, and often fail.
A research team including NIBIB-funded scientists has developed a new MRI technique for more precise and effective treatment for prostate cancer. The sharper MRI image can provide more accurate biopsies, enable better treatment planning, and help surgeons pinpoint the tumor while sparing surrounding healthy tissue.
A preliminary study conducted by researchers funded by the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB) may improve our prediction of mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI).
Researchers have reversed some of the symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease in mice using magnetic resonance (MR) imaging-guided focused ultrasound.
NIBIB-funded researchers have developed a novel 3D vaccine that could provide a more effective way to harness the immune system to fight cancer as well as infectious diseases. The vaccine spontaneously assembles into a scaffold once injected under the skin and is capable of recruiting, housing, and manipulating immune cells to generate a powerful immune response. The vaccine was recently found to be effective in delaying tumor growth in mice.
New research in robotics might help with stroke rehabilitation, guide wheelchairs, and assist children with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Projects investigating co-robotics are the focus of new funding from the National Institutes of Health.
Diagnosing HIV and other infectious diseases presents unique challenges in remote locations that lack electric power, refrigeration, and appropriately trained health care staff. To address these issues, researchers funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) have developed a low-cost, electricity-free device capable of detecting the DNA of infectious pathogens, including HIV-1.
When individuals suffer a spinal cord injury, they often lose bladder control, which causes infections that can lead to kidney damage. Scientists used spinal stimulation technology to enable spinal cord- injured rats to empty their bladders more fully and in a timelier manner. The promising results achieved in rats represent a significant step towards deployment of this novel approach in humans with paraplegia.
Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) from breast cancer patients were isolated from blood and grown in the laboratory for extensive genetic analysis. Such analysis enabled the identification of the most effective cancer drug or drug combination for each patient's tumor -- a significant step towards "precision" cancer treatment.
Researchers used human iPSC stem cells to grow brand new nerves in a rat model of spinal cord injury. The neurons grew tens of thousands of axons that extended the entire length of the spinal cord. The iPSCs were made using the skin cells of an 86 year old male, demonstrating that even in an individual of advanced age, the ability of the cells to be turned into a different cell type (pluripotency) remained.
Researchers at Purdue University have developed a novel sensor that can wirelessly relay pressure readings from inside a tumor.
Learn about exciting research in biotechnology with NIBIB's Bionic Man interactive web tool.
NIBIB-supported researchers have significantly reduced the amount of time it takes for a child to undergo an MRI scan at Stanford.
Four winning teams were announced in the Design by Biomedical Undergraduate Teams (DEBUT) challenge, a biomedical engineering design competition for teams of undergraduate students.
NIBIB-funded researchers have developed an imaging system that rapidly and accurately detects a molecular marker found in brain gliomas. It promises to improve the precision of these difficult surgeries by enabling the complete removal of the tumor, while reducing residual damage to brain tissue and neural function.
Bioengineers have created three-dimensional brain-like tissue that functions like and has structural features similar to tissue in the rat brain and that can be kept alive in the lab for more than two months. The tissue could provide a superior model for studying normal brain function as well as injury and disease, and could assist in the development of new treatments for brain dysfunction.
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