The search may be over for the perfect biomaterial for replacement blood vessels and connective tissue. Ideally, biomaterial should have at a minimum mechanical strength, elasticity, degradability, compatibility with the body so that it does not get rejected, and an ability to join the blood circulation system. Current biomaterials on the market usually have most, [...]
Scientist Wants to Regenerate Human Tissue
December 28, 2012 By 1 Comment
Imagine a world in which if, through a horrible accident, you lose a finger or foot. Currently, with luck and a good surgeon, you might be able to have that lost appendage reattached and even regain some of its function. In Michael Levin’s world, that lost appendage could be regenerated rather than reattached. The key [...]
Polymers More Easily Unhinge Molecules
December 27, 2012 By Leave a Comment
It seems molecules don’t have to open or have their component parts break away just through chemical reactions. Scientists are now finding that they can unlock molecules’ binding properties through mechanical force more easily with polymers. Traditionally, chemists have focused on how so-called mechanophores in molecules react when they are under stress and strain from [...]
Development of Shrinking Medical Devices Grows Larger
December 26, 2012 By Leave a Comment
Scientists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have developed protein hydrogels made with plastics that can be injected into a human body and can deliver drugs, prevent blood loss, accelerate wound healing, and protect against infections. This technology seems to be catching on as other researchers have developed similar innovations. Harvard scientists created collapsible [...]
Medical Device Excise Tax Set for Jan. 1, 2013
December 24, 2012 By Leave a Comment
A 2.3% excise tax will be imposed on the sales of medical devices, starting Jan. 1, 2013, because of the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010. The tax is not helping the fiscal health of medical device manufacturers, which are facing large layoffs, the companies say. The Medical Device Excise Tax (MDET) applies [...]
County Bans BPA in Receipts
December 21, 2012 By 1 Comment
If you buy something in Suffolk County, New York, on Long Island, the receipt you get may not have any bisphenol A (BPA) in it because the county has banned the chemical in those items. Research has shown that some thermal paper receipts have up to 2.2% of the weight coming from the chemical, reports [...]
FDA Wants Safer Use of Medical Devices at Home
December 20, 2012 By Leave a Comment
More people are using medical devices at home, and there are some safety risks involved in that trend, says the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). But resources are available to lessen those risks, the agency says. It used to be that patients needed medical devices just to stay alive. Now they help people be more [...]
MPC Polymer Has Come a Long Way
December 19, 2012 By Leave a Comment
Because of advances in scientific techniques, the polymer, 2-methacryloyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine (MPC), has many biological and medical applications, according to Japanese scientists. Developments in synthesis techniques have given the polymer invaluable potential as a biomaterial, says Yasuhiko Iwasaki at KansaiUniversity and Kazuhiko Ishihara at the University of Tokyo. The polymer can act like a cell membrane, [...]
Partnership Formed to Test Medical Devices
December 18, 2012 By Leave a Comment
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will help advance a public-private partnership that will work to give patients quicker access to medical devices. Many manufacturers have complained that the current approval process for allowing medical devices on the market is unnecessarily burdensome. But advances in regulatory schemes – the development of new tools and [...]
New Polymer Bulbs Silent, Emit White Light
December 17, 2012 By Leave a Comment
Hmmmmmmm. Bzzzt. Hmmmmm. Zzzzt. Thanks to some researchers at Wake Forest University, office workers won’t have to hear these noises coming from the lights overhead. That’s because the scientists have developed a polymer electroluminescent (FIPEL) technology that emits a quiet, soft, white light, rather than a humming, yellowish glow or a bluish tinge from light-emitting [...]
