“No cut CRISPR” breakthrough lets scientists turn genes on and off at will
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Being able to precisely turn genes on and off “at will” will revolutionise personal medicine and bring about the creation of new revolutionary healthcare treatments. The gene editing tool CRISPR is one of the most exciting developments in modern genetics, for example recently it...
Editing living memories demonstrated for the first time
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF We all have memories we’d like to change, keep, or even, perhaps, edit, embellish, or erase, and now the technology to do all of these and more, including correcting blindness and reversing dementia, has just been demonstrated in living subjects. Recently scientists transferred memories...
Revolutionary blood test lets doctors see chronic pain in colour
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF We all suffer from pain now and again, but for chronic pain sufferers the condition can leave them feeling depressed, disheartened, and isolated, this new test that lets people see pain could be a game changer. Around 100 million Americans are in pain right now. Chronic...
Scientists successfully transferred memories between two snails
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF The brain still has many mysteries, memory formation being one of them, but breakthroughs in epigenetics and neuroscience are starting to unravel them and it could lead to new sci-fi like capabilities and revolutionary new healthcare treatments. A lot has been going on in...
Scientists steered nanomachines through living cells and wrote letters in cytoplasm
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF In the future we will increasingly rely on tiny machines to help monitor our health, and diagnose and cure disease, and being able to control and direct them will be crucial. It’s probably high time for you to forget your outdated belief that tomorrow’s nanomachines...
Researchers record first ever HD movies of cells moving through the living body
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Being able to watch cells move under the microscope isn’t the same as being able to observe them in their natural environment, and this breakthrough will lead to a better understanding of cell biology and help create new revolutionary medical treatments. In 2016 we...
Diagnose the onset of dementia using your voice and this smartphone app
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Being able to diagnose cognitive conditions using just a smartphone, even if you have no formal access to healthcare, will help millions of people catch the signs of dementia earlier, meaning they can seek treatment sooner. WinterLight Labs in the US have just announced...
These nanomachines can drill into diseased cells and kill them
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Tomorrow’s medical treatments won’t necessarily just include new fancy drugs, nanomachines and nanobots will play an increasingly important role in helping us all stay fit, healthy, and alive… Researchers in the UK and the US recently demonstrated single-molecule nanomachines that can independently target diseased...
Placenta-on-a-Chip breakthrough could prevent birth defects and save lives
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Studying the effects that different drugs that pregnant women take during their pregnancies on their unborn children is complex, difficult and expensive, this technology could help save lives and reduce the likelihood of unwelcome birth defects. Recently we’ve seen the creation of Brain in...
Smartphone app uses selfies to detect Pancreatic Cancer
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Every year thousands of people die from Pancreatic Cancer, one of the most deadly forms of cancer, but now people can screen for it in the comfort of their own home using just their smartphone and an app. Better screening tools for all Cancer...
Empatica’s smartwatch predicts Epileptic seizures
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Epileptic seizures are debilitating, but they can also be fatal, this latest breakthrough pre-warns people before they have them. Embrace is a smartwatch of a different kind. It’s able to tell time, analyse sleep patterns, and, more crucially, it’s also able to tell if you’re about...
Nanoparticles help researchers accurately locate metastasising cancers
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Until now it has been hard, almost impossible, to identify how Cancer spreads around the body, and that’s made metastasising cancers harder to treat. Following on from a recent announcement from another team that they’ve managed to use a simple blood test to detect...
New polymer tears up anti-biotic resistant bacteria from the inside out
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF As the number of superbugs and anti-biotic resistant bugs increase, we need to find new novel ways of fighting them. A research team composed of scientists from the A*Star Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology, and IBM, have produced a new macromolecule that can target...
Semi-synthetic cells could revolutionise everything from sensors to healthcare
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF The ability to create semi-synthetic cells that have both organic and inorganic properties opens up a whole world of new use cases that span everything from biotech to new forms of manufacturing. The more we study natural biological cells, the more we learn about...
Novoheart has grown real, miniature hearts in jars that beat like the real thing
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Trying to demonstrate that new drugs don’t have any negative impacts on a patients heart is difficult, but this new technology provides research organisations with a fast, cheap way to test their new drugs without the risks. Beating rhythmically and suspended in a jar,...
New smartphone app lets users detect fatal heart conditions at home
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Being able to detect fatal heart conditions before they kill you is a good thing… enough said. The most common type of Arrhythmia, a form of atrial fibrillation, is an irregular beating of the heart that can lead to stroke, blood clots, or heart...
World’s first stem cell bone tissue transplant is a success
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF When patients loose part of a bone, for example, to Cancer, often there is no way to get the bones to grow or fuse together again resulting in amputation, this breakthrough will prevent that. Medical history was made at Emek Medical Center in Afula...
New hydrogel that mimics cartilage could transform knee surgeries
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Hydrogels are proving to be an amazingly versatile material, and in this case they could help revolutionise how surgeons treat knee conditions and injuries. A new cartilage-like hydrogel material could make the job of repairing knees much easier, say a team of scientists in...
Ultrasound on a smartphone, Butterfly Network release the iQ
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Healthcare in many countries is expensive and difficult to access, tools like these help democratise access to vital services helping people live longer, healthier lives. Engineer Jonathan Rothberg became famous for creating the world’s first DNA sequencer on a chip called the Ion Torrent back in...
New Cancer “Vaccine” wipes out cancer in mice, human trials next
WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF Cancer ruins millions of lives every year, but now, thanks to an army of researchers and new powerful technologies and tools it might just be possible we’re seeing a tiny chink of light at the end of the tunnel. The eradication of cancer has...
