Toxicity testing on the placenta and embryo
27/07/2021
Drugs must be safe not just for the patients; in the case of pregnant patients, drugs must also be safe for the unborn children still in the womb. Therefore, at an early stage in the development of new medicines, candidate substances are tested in the Petri dish on embryonic stem cells from mouse cell lines.
World's first digital model of a cancer cell
16/07/2021
The computer model, developed under the lead management of researchers at TU Graz, simulates the cyclical changes in the membrane potential of a cancer cell using the example of human lung adenocarcinoma and opens up completely new avenues in cancer research.
MHH fills important gap in lung research
13/07/2021
For the first time, a team of scientists clearly demonstrates the existence of lipofibroblasts in human electron microscope.
Regenerative medicine: RegeneratOR Test Bed to launch start-ups
01/07/2021
The RegeneratOR Test Bed has officially launched, bringing together resources to advance the regenerative medicine field nationally and create an economic development engine for the region and the state overall.
Novel calibration procedure for super-resolution brain imaging
25/06/2021
A simple and robust procedure corrects a systematic error in microscopy, enabling precise imaging of biological tissue at greater depth.
Probing deeper into tumor tissues
23/06/2021
Researchers at the MDC, the BIH and Charité have developed methods for performing comprehensive analyses of fixed tumor tissue samples. These analyses make it possible to shed new light on the clinical course of various cancer types, as the team reports in Nature Communications.
AI predicts how patients with viral infections will fare
16/06/2021
Gene expression patterns associated with pandemic viral infections provide a map to help define patients' immune responses, measure disease severity, predict outcomes and test therapies - for current and future pandemics.
Controlling insulin production with a smartwatch
15/06/2021
Many modern fitness trackers and smartwatches feature integrated LEDs. The green light emitted, whether continuous or pulsed, penetrates the skin and can be used to measure the wearer's heart rate during physical activity or while at rest.
Neurology: chemical reactions as the key to understanding Alzheimer's
15/06/2021
Research teams from TU Darmstadt, British and US universities are focusing on one possible main process that leads to the death of brain cells – chemical reactions between different proteins in the brain and essential metals such as copper and iron – in their investigation of the causes and mechanisms of Alzheimer's disease.
Pathology: diagnoses with Deepflash
14/06/2021
In medicine, it is still standard practice to evaluate microscopy images of tissue sections by hand. This is used, for example, to assess how many cancer cells are in a lymph node.
Better ways to culture living heart cells on the ISS
10/06/2021
As part of preparing for an experiment aboard the International Space Station, researchers explored new ways to culture living heart cells for microgravity research.
New method for ultra-high-throughput RNA sequencing in single cells
07/06/2021
RNA sequencing is a powerful technology for studying cells and diseases. In particular, single-cell RNA sequencing helps uncover the heterogeneity and diversity of our body. This is the central technology of the "Human Cell Atlas" in its quest to map all human cells.
Breaking the mould for 3D printing medical implants
27/05/2021
Researchers have flipped traditional 3D printing to create some of the most intricate biomedical structures yet, advancing the development of new technologies for regrowing bones and tissue.
New miniature organ to understand human pancreas development
25/05/2021
The pancreas is a little organ behind the stomach and has two main functions – digestion and blood sugar regulation. How the human pancreas develops has been relatively unexplored for ethical and practical reasons.
Biosensor developed to aid early diagnosis of breast cancer
24/05/2021
A team of Spanish researchers have developed, at the laboratory level, a prototype of a new biosensor to help detect breast cancer in its earliest stages.
Cardioids – Heartbeat, heartbreak and recovery in a dish
24/05/2021
Self-organizing heart organoids developed at IMBA – Institute of Molecular Biotechnology of the Austrian Academy of Sciences – are also effective injury- and in vitro congenital disease models. These “cardioids” may revolutionize research into cardiovascular disorders and malformations of the heart. The results are published in the journal Cell.
Unprecedentedly versatile new DNA staining probe
20/05/2021
A group of scientists at Nagoya University, Japan, have developed an incredibly versatile DNA fluorescent dye, named 'Kakshine' after a former NU student of its members, Dr. Kakishi Uno, but it also means to make the nucleus shine brightly, since the nucleus is pronounced 'Kaku' in Japanese.
Microfluidics: efficiently smuggling drugs into cells
19/05/2021
A new, patented method called Progressive Mechanoporation makes it possible to mechanically disrupt the membranes of cells for a short time period and let drugs or genes inside cells. In this way, researchers can test new therapies more easily than before.
Researchers advance 3D printing to aid tissue replacement
07/05/2021
Professor Arda Gozen looks to a future someday in which doctors can hit a button to print out a scaffold on their 3-D printers and create custom-made replacement skin, cartilage, or other tissue for their patients.
3-D 'bioprinting' to create nose cartilage
05/05/2021
A team of University of Alberta researchers has discovered a way to use 3-D bioprinting technology to create custom-shaped cartilage for use in surgical procedures. The work aims to make it easier for surgeons to safely restore the features of skin cancer patients living with nasal cartilage defects after surgery.
System to deliver glue for sealing defects in broken blood vessels
03/05/2021
A team of researchers led by Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) has developed a device that offers a quicker and less invasive way to seal tears and holes in blood vessels, using an electrically-activated glue patch applied via a minimally invasive balloon catheter.
21st century medical needles for high-tech cancer diagnostics
29/04/2021
Modern medicine needs better quality samples than traditional biopsy needles can provide. Ultrasonically oscillating needles can improve treatment and reduce discomfort.
Fighting harmful bacteria with nanoparticles
28/04/2021
In the arms race "mankind against bacteria", bacteria are currently ahead of us. Our former miracle weapons, antibiotics, are failing more and more frequently when germs use tricky maneuvers to protect themselves from the effects of these drugs.
Bioprinting: life from the printer
01/12/2020
It aims at the production of test systems for drug research and gives patients on the waiting lists for donor organs hope: bioprinting. Thereby biologically functional tissues are printed. But how does that actually work? What are the different bioprinting methods? And can entire organs be printed with it? These and other questions are examined in our Topic of the Month.
Printed life – possibilities and limits of bioprinting
01/12/2020
Implants, prostheses and various other components made of plastic, metal or ceramics are already being produced by additive manufacturing. But skin, blood vessels or entire organs from the printer – is that possible? For years now, intensive research has been underway into the production of biologically functional tissue using printing processes. Some things are already possible with bioprinting.
Multi-photon lithography: printing cells with micrometer accuracy
01/12/2020
How do cells react to certain drugs? And how exactly is new tissue created? This can be analyzed by using bioprinting to embed cells in fine frameworks. However, current methods are often imprecise or too slow to process cells before they are damaged. At the TU Vienna, a high-resolution bioprinting process has now been developed using a new bio-ink.
"Cells are highly sensitive" – material development for bioprinting
01/12/2020
The big hope of bioprinting is to someday be able to print whole human organs. So far, the process has been limited to testing platforms such as organs-on-a-chip. That's because the actual printing process already poses challenges. Scientists need suitable printing materials that ensure the cell's survival as it undergoes the procedure. The Fraunhofer IGB is researching and analyzing this aspect.
Angiogenesis: light shows blood vessels the way
03/02/2020
Regenerative medicine aims to replace damage in the body with functional tissue and restore normal function. The first defense for large defects are implants made of hydrogels, designed to promote cell growth. They need their own blood supply, which is a problem when it comes to larger implants because you cannot regulate where and how the blood vessels grow - until now.
Regenerative medicine: helps the body healing
03/02/2020
Severe wounds heal slowly and leave scars. This is why we have been using regenerative therapies for some time now to accelerate and improve healing. They also help to avoid permanent damage. Still, complex applications like replacing organs or limbs will rather remain vision than become reality for a long time.
AI software: "iSTIX opens your world to the possibilities of digital pathology"
08/10/2019
The healthcare market offers a multitude of microscopes that make cells visible to the human eye. The same applies to AI-based software for image analysis. After taking the microscopic images, scientist are faced with large volumes of scans with usually low resolution. Yet when all aspects merge together, they open up a the world of digital pathology.
Organ-on-a-chip – Organs in miniature format
01/02/2019
In vitro processes and animal tests are used to develop new medications and novel therapeutic approaches. However, animal testing raises important ethical concerns. Organ-on-a-chip models promise to be a feasible alternative. In a system the size of a smartphone, organs are connected using artificial circulation.
Multi-Organ Chips – The Patients of Tomorrow?
01/02/2019
The liver, nervous tissue or the intestines: all are important human organs that have in the past been tested for their function and compatibility using animal or in vitro test methods. In recent years, TissUse GmbH, a spin-off of the Technical University of Berlin (TU Berlin), has launched multi-organ chip platforms. But that’s not all.
Organ-on-a-chip systems: limited validity?
01/02/2019
Organ-on-a-chip systems are technically a great enhancement of medical research because they facilitate testing of active ingredients on cell cultures in the chambers of a plastic chip. This replaces animal testing and improves patient safety. That being said, they are not a true-to-life replication of the human body and can only simulate a few functions and activities.
From algorithm to rapid test – Artificial Intelligence classifies blood cells
21/11/2018
Our blood reveals a lot about our physical health. The shape of our blood cells sheds light on several hereditary diseases for example. For a diagnosis, the cells must first be examined under the microscope and categorized into a specific cell class. We met with Dr. Stephan Quint and Alexander Kihm of the Institute of Physics at the Saarland University, who explained how this classification works.
Early detection: Tattoo signals cancer – and more
09/07/2018
People who are not ill and do not show any symptoms typically do not visit the doctor. And while most people know that preventive medical checkups for cancer, for example, are important, they still avoid them. They tend to be very hesitant because the doctor might detect a serious illness. In the future, a new type of implant could make it easier to go to a screening test.
Cells in the speed trap – diagnosis in a matter of seconds
22/06/2018
A drop of blood provides a lot of valuable information. However, it takes several hours to analyze the blood of a patient and make a diagnosis. This takes away a lot of time that's crucial for treatment. A new method intends to considerably speed up this process by testing the cells in the blood in terms of their deformability and immune response.
Tissue engineering: how to grow a bypass
23/04/2018
A bypass is a complicated structure. It is either made of synthetic materials that can cause blood clots and infections or created by using the patient’s veins. However, the latter often does not yield adequate material. A newly developed bioreactor could solve this problem in the future. It is designed to tissue engineer vascular grafts by using the body’s own material.
Personalized cancer medicine: customized treatment
01/03/2018
Everyone is different. This statement also applies to our health. Cancer, in particular, can look and progress differently depending on the individual person. That’s why every patient ideally also needs a customized treatment that is tailored to their individual needs. But how feasible is this idea?
Cells in space – extraterrestrial approaches in cancer research
22/02/2018
Here on Earth, all experiments are bound by gravitation. Yet, freed from gravity's grip, tumor cells, for example, behave in an entirely different way. As part of the "Thyroid Cancer Cells in Space" project by the University of Magdeburg, smartphone-sized containers carrying poorly differentiated thyroid cancer cells are sent into space.
"Spray-On" muscle fibers for biomimetic surfaces
08/01/2018
Few patients with heart failure are fortunate enough to receive a donor's heart. Ventricular assist devices (or heart pumps) have been around for several years and are designed to buy time as patients wait for a transplant. Unfortunately, the body doesn't always tolerate these devices.