In case you're looking for a unique Valentine's Day story, I have a possibility for you: 

  • UW researchers have engineered heart tissue that beats like a tiny human heart.
  • Their system is made up of roughly a million heart cells that contract and relax in concert (B-roll available). 
  • These cells form tissues that are slightly longer than a grain of rice and grow between two posts. When these "mini-hearts" beat, they push and pull the posts, which the researchers can measure.
  • The team is using this system to screen for drugs that could help protect the heart against COVID-19. 
  • This system has also gone up into space to study what happens to astronauts' hearts in zero gravity. 
  • More details about this project here.
  • Soundbites and B-roll available