RESEARCH SPINOFF.COM

The fire truck of the future that can overcome a traffic jam

A new way to target headaches and tumors with nano-submarines

A new way to keep liquids from freezing at very low temperatures

Novel device that can help treat spinal cord injuries

A breakthrough 3-D-printed device that could someday help patients with long-term spinal cord injuries regain some function has been developed by the team of engineers at the University of Minnesota. A 3-D-printed guide, made of silicone, serves as a platform for specialized cells that are then 3-D printed on top of it. The guide would be surgically implanted into the injured area of the spinal cord where it would serve as a type of bridge between living nerve cells above and below the area of injury. The hope is that this would help patients alleviate pain as well as regain some functions like control of muscles, bowel, and bladder. A bioengineered spinal cord is fabricated via extrusion‐based multi-material 3D bioprinting.

by Tetiana Nedashkivska

6 days ago

Using urine samples to diagnose lung diseases in newborns

The new technology for the diagnosis of lung diseases in newborns after the urine sample was developed by scientists at Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology. Most diagnostic methods in neonatal intensive care are invasive, requiring the intake of blood or tissues. Russian scientists have developed an innovative method for diagnosing lung diseases. New invention aroused genuine interest from Western medical circles. Scientists report that urine analysis for several specific proteins may indicate congenital pneumonia and a number of other diseases of the respiratory system and clinically significant conditions. The majority of patients in neonatal intensive care units are premature babies, who often have infectious (congenital pneumonia) or noninfectious (tachypnea, infant respiratory distress syndrome) respiratory pathologies.

by Yana Kurchenko

9 days ago

A new way to see objects melting in fire

A novel method to image three-dimensional (3D) objects melting in flames has been developed by the team of researchers at National Institute of Standards and Technology. This method could offer a perspective, safe and compact way to measure structures as they collapse in fires. Optical range measurements, that are already used in manufacturing and other fields, can help overcome practical challenges posed by structural fires, which are too hot to measure with conventional electromechanical sensors mounted on buildings. The scientists used a commercial LADAR system to map distances to objects melting behind flames that produced varying amounts of soot.

by Tetiana Nedashkivska

10 days ago

Inexpensive biology kits for students

Stem cells for muscle repair

Protein from intestinal worms lead to a cure for asthma

New way to prevent the spread of the Ebola virus

The study that prevents the spread of the Ebola Virus was conducted by scientists from the Texas Biomedical Research Institute. The new research reveals the role of specific proteins that trigger a mechanism that allows the Ebola virus to introduce cells to establish replication. The study was led by Staff Scientist Olena Shtanko, Ph.D., in Texas Biomed's Biosafety Level 4 laboratory. As a rule, BSL4 is a high-security facility in which disease studies are conducted for which there are no approved vaccines or medicines. Usually, the outbreak of the deadly Ebola virus affects a large number of people. Therefore, scientists see the need to find a way to stop the pathogen from killing the people that it infects.

by Yana Kurchenko

11 days ago

A new way to monitor movement in a room with the help of radio waves

A novel method to reveal a person's presence in a room, even beyond the sensor's line of sight, has been developed by the team of researchers at Duke University and Institut Langevin. This new motion-sensing technology could lead to new smart home devices for energy savings, security, healthcare, and gaming. The infrared motion detectors are not preferred by energy companies because they have lots of problems. The amount of space they can cover is limited, a person has to be within their line of sight to be detected, and probably everyone has had the experience where the lights have gone off because they've sat still for too long. Radio waves are able to get around all of these limitations.

by Tetiana Nedashkivska

12 days ago

New way to treat lung cancer

The new technology that prevents tumour growth has been developed by scientists from the University of Michigan. According to the American Cancer Society, lung cancer causes the highest death from cancer among men and women and is the second most common cancer, in addition to skin cancer. However, researchers came up with a new solution for treating this disease. They have identified a gene that, when inhibited or decreased, in turn, reduces or prevents the growth of lung cancer of non-small-celled human cancer. When mice were injected with non-small cell lung cancer cells containing the NOVA1 gene, three of the four mice formed tumours. When mice were injected with cancer cells without NOVA1, three of the four mice remained without tumours. The fourth mice developed a tumour, but it was very small compared to mice with tumour cells NOVA1.

by Yana Kurchenko

12 days ago