Source Nature From antibiotics and organoids to CRISPR, improved biomedical methods and apparatus are enabling new therapies. Organoids Mini organs stand in for test models The term ‘organoid’ didn’t exist a decade ago. Now it’s a buzzword in biomedical science for a three-dimensional multi-cellular structure or ‘mini organ’. Thanks to advances with pluripotent stem cells
Source The Economist They create a special surface that fuses with bone A robotic lawnmower keeping the grass neat and tidy outside a modern industrial building in Carrigtwohill, near Cork in Ireland, is a good indication that something whizzy may be going on inside. And so it proves. The airy production hall contains row after row
Source The Economist Western countries, as well as poor ones, are demanding transparency in the cost of drugs THESE DAYS it is hard to find a government that is not struggling with the high price of medicines. In England, the government is fighting Vertex, a drug company, over the cost of a drug for cystic
In Nov. 2018, The National Institute for Innovation in Manufacturing Biopharmaceuticals (NIIMBL) published technology roadmaps addressing needs and gaps in three key product areas: gene therapy, antibody-dug conjugates, and vaccines. The roadmaps were developed with the collaborative input of industry, academic, and government experts. This piece highlights technology opportunities for gene therapy manufacturing. The NIIMBL
Machine learning algorithms predict the repairs made to DNA after Cas9 cuts. The papersM.W. Shen et al., “Predictable and precise template-free CRISPR editing of pathogenic variants,” Nature, 563:646–51, 2018. F. Allen et al., “Predicting the mutations generated by repair of Cas9-induced double-strand breaks,” Nat Biotechnol, 37:64–72, 2019. During gene editing with CRISPR technology, the Cas9 scissors that
Integrating sensoric functions into textiles or elastomers is way more difficult than equipping machines because it requires movable or extensible sensors. The Center Smart Materials CeSMa of the Fraunhofer ISC with its experience in the field of adaptive elastomers has developed highly elastic sensors and actuators based on silicone. They provide a wide range of
GMP compliant software specifically designed for cell therapy manufacturing from process development through commercialization Digital optimization for increased productivity and improved process control GE Healthcare builds on its digital capabilities with the Chronicle web application, the next generation development of my Cryochain™ software now supporting the complete cell therapy workflow. Chronicle automation software is a
When neurosurgeons cut into the brain, they must be very, very precise: A single slip could mean disaster. Ehsan Azimi is working on a new augmented reality platform that could greatly improve brain surgeons’ ability to navigate and visualize important landmarks during the procedure. Azimi, a PhD candidate in computer science at the Whiting School
An international team of researchers representing several institutions in Japan and the US has published promising findings that may stand to benefit people living with the specter of Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative diseases, as well as age-related cognitive decline. In their paper published in PNAS, “Leptin in hippocampus mediates benefits of mild exercise by an antioxidant
Source: JAMA Artificial intelligence (AI) and its many related applications (ie, big data, deep analytics, machine learning) have entered medicine’s “magic bullet” phase. Desperate for a solution for the never-ending challenges of cost, quality, equity, and access, a steady stream of books, articles, and corporate pronouncements makes it seem like health care is on the
