Bioengineering News and Research

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Scientists develop new circuit board modeled on human brain

The Neurogrid circuit board can simulate orders of magnitude more neurons and synapses than other brain mimics on the power it takes to run a tablet computer.

29 Apr 2014

Researchers investigate impact of nutrition in resource-poor regions on infant brain development

Brain activity of babies in developing countries could be monitored from birth to reveal the first signs of cognitive dysfunction, using a new technique piloted by a London-based university collaboration.

22 Apr 2014

U.Va. researchers named recipients of 2013 Hartwell Individual Biomedical Research Awards

University of Virginia neurologist Dr. Erin Pennock Foff, biologist Sarah Kucenas and biomedical engineer Shayn Peirce-Cotter have been named recipients of 2013 Hartwell Individual Biomedical Research Awards to benefit children of the United States. Each scientist will receive $100,000 in direct annual research support from The Hartwell Foundation for three years.

19 Apr 2014

New procedure helps curtail complication rate associated with bone grafting

UT Arlington and Texas Health Arlington Memorial Hospital are investigating whether bone grown from the body's own stem cells can replace traditional types of bone grafting.

11 Apr 2014

Lemelson-MIT Program announces winners of National Collegiate Student Prize Competition

The Lemelson-MIT Program today announced winners of the Lemelson-MIT National Collegiate Student Prize Competition (NCSPC), a nationwide search for the most inventive undergraduate and graduate students.

10 Apr 2014

Rice University research targets Parkinson's, Huntington's and other proteasomal diseases

Synthetic genetic circuitry created by researchers at Rice University is helping them see, for the first time, how to regulate cell mechanisms that degrade the misfolded proteins implicated in Parkinson's, Huntington's and other diseases.

9 Apr 2014

New injectable hydrogel repairs damaged cardiac tissue following heart attack

University of California, San Diego bioengineer Karen Christman's new injectable hydrogel, which is designed to repair damaged cardiac tissue following a heart attack, has been licensed to San Diego-based startup Ventrix, Inc, which is planning the first human clinical trials of the technology. Christman is a co-founder of Ventrix.

8 Apr 2014

Study shows spinal stimulation therapy may have potential to change prognosis of people with paralysis

Four people with paraplegia are able to voluntarily move previously paralyzed muscles as a result of a novel therapy that involves electrical stimulation of the spinal cord, according to a study funded in part by the National Institutes of Health and the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation.

8 Apr 2014

Scientists battle against cancer with nanoballoons and lasers

Chemotherapeutic drugs excel at fighting cancer, but they're not so efficient at getting where they need to go.

4 Apr 2014

ATHENA develops surrogate organ system for toxicity testing

Creating surrogate human organs, coupled with insights from highly sensitive mass spectrometry technologies, a new project is on the brink of revolutionizing the way we screen new drugs and toxic agents.

29 Mar 2014

Study suggests that self-administration of influenza vaccine may be feasible with microneedle patch

There are many reasons some people may not get a flu shot, but would they be more likely to do so if there was a simple device that could be mailed directly to them, was easy enough to use by themselves, and provided at least the same level of protection as a traditional flu shot without the pain of a needle jab? A recent NIBIB-funded study, published online February 2014 in the journal Vaccine, suggests the answer is yes.

25 Mar 2014

Neurexin proteins play key role in formation of synaptic connections

Neuroscientists and bioengineers at Stanford are working together to solve a mystery: how does nature construct the different types of synapses that connect neurons -- the brain cells that monitor nerve impulses, control muscles and form thoughts.

19 Mar 2014

Biologists discover WBC moves to inflamed sites by walking in a stepwise manner

A team of biologists and engineers at the University of California, San Diego has discovered that white blood cells, which repair damaged tissue as part of the body's immune response, move to inflamed sites by walking in a stepwise manner.

19 Mar 2014

Researchers identify new player in onset and progression of heart failure

A team of cardiovascular researchers from the Cardiovascular Research Center at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute, and University of California, San Diego have identified a small, but powerful, new player in the onset and progression of heart failure.

13 Mar 2014

Research could lead to 'smart bandages' to help heal wounds

Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, found that an electrical current can be used to orchestrate the flow of a group of cells, an achievement that could establish the basis for more controlled forms of tissue engineering and for potential applications such as "smart bandages" that use electrical stimulation to help heal wounds.

11 Mar 2014

Researchers determine long-term fate of chemicals in drinking water

Virginia Tech faculty engineers and students are unravelling fundamental chemical and health properties of the chemical that contaminated the drinking water for the residents of West Virginia.

11 Mar 2014

3D scaffolds bring hope for lung regeneration

In end-stage lung disease, transplantation is sometimes the only viable therapeutic option, but organ availability is limited and rejection presents an additional challenge.

10 Mar 2014

Biodegradable scaffolds promote tissue growth during the healing process

Researchers from the University of Pittsburgh's Swanson School of Engineering and McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine (MIRM) are proposing that if 3-D printers, or additive manufacturing, can produce custom replacement parts for machines, why couldn't the same process create biodegradable tissue repair structures for the human body?

7 Mar 2014

New bioinspired gel material could help repair damaged teeth and bone

A bit of pressure from a new shrinking, sponge-like gel is all it takes to turn transplanted unspecialized cells into cells that lay down minerals and begin to form teeth.

6 Mar 2014

Berkeley Lab scientists explore bacteria-resistant materials as a line of defense against Staph infection

The bacterium Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) is a common source of infections that occur after surgeries involving prosthetic joints and artificial heart valves. The grape-shaped microorganism adheres to medical equipment, and if it gets inside the body, it can cause a serious and even life-threatening illness called a Staph infection. The recent discovery of drug-resistant strains of S. aureus makes matters even worse.

5 Mar 2014