
IBM nanostructures terminate antibiotic-resistant bacteria:
IBM Corp. (NYSE:IBM) and the Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology in Singapore designed a new type of polymer that can detect and destroy antibiotic-resistant bacteria such as MRSA. The polymer nanostructures also prevent bacteria from developing drug resistance. Moreover, because of the mechanism by which the nanostructures work, they don’t affect circulating blood cells, and, unlike most traditional antimicrobial agents, the nanostructures are biodegradable, naturally eliminated from the body rather than remaining behind and accumulating in tissues. The project’s researchers published their work in Nature Chemistry.

Implant controls computer through thought:
Brain implants designed to control external devices like computers and bionic prostheses have typically focused on the brain’s motor regions as the input. At Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis clinical researchers decided to use the brain’s speech networks for input and were able to differentiate between four spoken or thought sounds.

Undergraduates develop brain-controlled prosthetic arm:
A couple of undergraduate biomedical engineers from Ryerson University in Toronto developed a brain-controlled prosthetic arm. While their robotic arm certainly isn’t the world’s first or the most technologically-advanced prosthetic, it could very well be the safest and least expensive. That’s because unlike traditional prosthetic limbs, which contain sophisticated electronic and mechanical components, the Artificial Muscle-Operated (AMO) arm is made primarily of simple pneumatic pumps and valves and a tank of compressed air to create movement. This has allowed the prosthetic to be developed at just one-quarter of the cost of a traditional prosthetic limb. Moreover, most prosthetic limbs controlled by neural signals require an invasive and expensive re-innervation surgery to re-route major nerves, followed by weeks of training. The AMO arm uses brain signals measured with a head-worn device (EEG, we presume) connected to a computer that controls the arm’s pneumatic system.

Snake-like robots may soon aid heart surgery:
Less-invasive heart surgery isn’t a new concept, but researchers at Carnegie Mellon have applied the concept of "serpentine robotics" to improve the state of the art. Howie Choset’s lab at CMU is using the Highly Articulated Robotic Probe (HARP) to enter the thorax through a subxiphoid port and reach regions of the pericardium that are inaccessible with traditional techniques. The novelty of this robot lies in the "follow-the-leader" mechanism – when the distal link as its location set, the other 49 links follow its location, allowing the operator to "snake" around curves to reach the desired target.
A weekly roundup of new developments in medical technology, by MedGadget.com.