Science and progress are moving by leaps and bounds, and this, of course, also applies to medicine - medicines and procedures appear and are replaced by new ones during the lifetime of one generation, and what for our parents still sounded like science fiction has become a reality today. And the future promises to be even more exciting …
Anticipating the question “if they are so wonderful, why not yet on the shelves of pharmacies,” we answer - from the moment of the discovery in the field of medicine and until the product appears on the shelves or a new device in hospitals, it takes 5-7, sometimes even 9-12 years.
Clinical trials, regulatory approvals, fundraising, mass production technologies … this is not your new iPhone. Not to mention the fact that many of the described technologies are just a foundation on which to build a great variety of very different specific things.
DNA constructor
DNA serves as an ideal carrier that can contain a huge amount of information. The structure of DNA is constantly evolving and changing, and its molecules are often called the building blocks of living organisms.
For Harvard researchers, this phrase makes much more sense than for the common man - scientists actually use DNA as building blocks to design various structures and systems.
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Using this method, scientists have encoded 284 pages of the book in one DNA molecule. They were able to record this information by first translating the data into binary, and then converting the numbers from one to zero to the quaternary notation of DNA - A, T, G and C. As a result, it turned out that this data can be easily read, although this process while it takes quite a long time. But this is for now.
Life support devices
Devices such as pacemakers, which regulate the rhythm of the heart, are used by about 700,000 people worldwide. The downside is that they can last only about seven years, and after that the equipment must be replaced. It is not only difficult, but also an expensive surgical procedure. Scientists at the University of Michigan have solved this problem once and for all - they have developed a completely new pacemaker that works by contracting the heart muscle.
After conducting experiments and tests, Dr. Amin Karami stated that they all gave positive results. According to him, the next stage in testing the new device should be the implantation of the device into a living human heart. If the technology works and shows a positive result, it can revolutionize not only the medical field, but also the industrial one. This mechanism is so sensitive that it can produce electricity at any heart rate.
Cerebral disorders treatment
The brain is a sensitive organ, damage to which can have long-term consequences. For people with traumatic brain injury, complex rehabilitation is perhaps the only hope to return to normal life. But now there is an alternative method.
Your tongue is connected to the central nervous system through thousands of nerve endings, some of which lead directly to neurons in your brain. Portable neurostimulators (PoNS) stimulate specific nerve regions of the tongue and through this apparatus the brain receives signals to repair the damaged areas. Patients using the system showed significant improvement in just a week.
In addition to traumatic brain injuries, the PoNS system can be used to treat diseases such as Parkinson's disease, alcoholism, stroke, multiple sclerosis, etc.
Printed bones
Using a 3D printer, researchers at the University of Washington have created an artificial material that has the properties of bone. This "model" can be transplanted into the human body while real bone heals, and then it is split and excreted without causing harm to the body.
The main problem was the choice of material for creating the bone. After a while, scientists have created a formula that includes zinc, silicon, phosphate and calcium. The mixture was tested and it was concluded that with the addition of stem cells, it would work much more efficiently.
A ProMetal 3D printer was used for the study. It works in much the same way as a regular printer. You just need to pour the mixture into it and print the desired bone.
The main advantage of this technology is that now, with the correct combination of the constituents of biological material, any tissue, even real organs, can be obtained using a printer.
Pollen as a method of vaccination
Pollen is one of the most common allergens in the world. Its structure is so rigid and resistant to moisture that once it gets into the body, it easily makes its way into the human digestive system. When the same thing happens during oral vaccination, not all the amount of the introduced substance is absorbed in the body, since the juices of the digestive tract affect it.
Scientists from the University of Texas decided to study the properties of pollen and develop a vaccine using it. The head of the study, Harvinder Gill, overcame the main disadvantage of using pollen - he removed all allergens from its surface. This technology could leave behind the injection method of vaccination and be a watershed in medicine.
Electronic underwear
Even though it sounds funny, underwear can save thousands of lives. Patients who lie in a coma or are unconscious for several weeks or months may develop pressure sores - dead tissue that results from constant pressure. Pressure sores can even be fatal - approximately 60,000 people die from infections each year.
Canadian scientist Sean Dukelow was able to develop an electronic pants called "Smart-E-Pants". There are special devices in the underwear that send an electrical impulse every ten minutes, forcing the muscles to contract. The effect of the adaptation is the same as if the patient was exercising independently. By targeting the muscles, electronic underwear can permanently solve this problem.
Brain cells from urine
Chinese biologists at the Guangzhou Institute of Biomedicine and Health have been able to create stem cells using human urine. The main advantage of the method is that cells created from urine do not provoke cancer, while embryonic stem cells used in medicine today, unfortunately, have such a side effect - after their transplant, tumors often begin to develop.
Urine-based cell transplantation did not lead to any unwanted neoplasms.
The researchers believe this method is more affordable and practical for creating stem cells. Neurons obtained from urine can be used to treat degenerative diseases of the nervous system.
Gel that simulates living cells
A lot of medical research is devoted to attempts to recreate human tissue from various materials. In the future, with the successful development of this technology, it is possible to ensure a healthy life for all mankind: if, for example, one of the organs has ceased to function, it can be grown in laboratory conditions and replaced.
Now scientists are developing a gel that mimics the activity of living cells. The material is formed into bundles 7.5 billionths of a meter wide, in comparison, about four times the width of the DNA double helix. As you know, cells have their own type of skeleton - the cytoskeleton, which consists of proteins. The synthetic gel replaces damaged tissues in the cell scaffold, stopping the spread of infections and bacteria.
Magnetic levitation
Artificial lung tissue was grown by magnetic levitation. Despite the fact that it sounds fantastic, a group of scientists led by Gluko Sousa in 2010 clearly demonstrated that it is possible. The researchers set a goal to create a bronchiole in the laboratory. The experiment used tiny magnets inserted into the cells.
The result is the most realistic synthetically grown lung tissue available. Tissue grown by magnetic levitation could be a breakthrough in medicine. Now work on improving the technology continues.
Anti-bleeding gel
A small group of scientists shocked the world of science with an innovative discovery: Joe Landolino and Isaac Miller were able to create a gel that stops bleeding of any complexity. The gel works by sealing the wound tightly.
Anti-Bleeding Gel creates an easily absorbable synthetic tissue that helps cells heal. In one of the experiments, the scientists used a piece of pork with a tube filled with blood. They cut the meat, and when liquid flowed from the "wound", they applied a gel to the cut, and the "bleeding" stopped within a few seconds. In the next test, Landolino applied the gel to the rat carotid artery. The experiment was just as successful.
If this development will soon be used in surgical medicine, it could save the lives of many people.
Alla Razumikina