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Monday, December 23, 2024

Prime Biomedical Tales of 2024


In 2024, biomedical know-how actually acquired to our heads—or extra particularly, our eyes and brains. A few of Spectrum’s hottest articles this yr had been about know-how helping our imaginative and prescient, with tales of retinal implants and good contact lenses drawing your eye. You dug deep into non-invasive tech to hasten sleep and protect mind operate for individuals with Alzheimer’s illness, in addition to an imaging probe to help extremely invasive mind surgical procedures.

But it surely wasn’t all in our heads. This yr, you additionally examine assistive exosuits and low-cost MRI machines, in addition to a DNA knowledge drive promising a brand new solution to save huge quantities of knowledge.

As we wait to see how new know-how will increase our senses or enhance our well being in 2025, take a minute to look again on the previous yr’s greatest tales. Learn on to see Spectrum’s prime biomedical articles of 2024.

Two people work on a skull with a device attached to it.
Wyss Middle for Bio and Neuroengineering

Assistive frames known as exosuits can assist individuals in bodily remedy and rehabilitation transfer their physique. The units work by shifting a person’s muscle mass through electrical pulses, however that stimulation can rapidly tire out the person. Researchers in South Korea and Switzerland are providing a possible answer: an electrostatic clutch system. Within the system, sleeves are positioned round joints and usually versatile, however can quickly stiffen to help the physique between actions with out extra stimulation. The know-how, known as “Synapsuit,” is being prototyped by the Korea Electronics Know-how Institute.

A photograph of a retina with blood vessels.  A yellow patch is located close to the center of the retina.
Pixium

In 2022, contributor Mark Harris detailed how blind customers of a retinal implant made by California biotech firm Second Sight had been left with unsupported units when the producer went out of enterprise. That story got here near repeating when French biotech firm Pixium Imaginative and prescient ran out of cash in November 2023—till, that’s, spectacular trial knowledge arrived earlier this yr, and the corporate was acquired by Science, a startup run by one in all Neuralink’s cofounders.

woman sleeping in bed with black headband looking wearable on her forehead
Elemind

Startup Elemind’s $349 headband guarantees to get you to sleep quicker. The corporate’s first product, which started preorders this yr, tracks mind waves with electrocephalography (EEG) sensors, then tweaks them with sound waves delivered through bone conduction. Spectrum’s esteemed former editor Tekla Perry briefly examined out the headscarf, although in less-than-ideal situations. “It wasn’t the time or place to strive for sound sleep, however I—and the others within the room—famous that after 2 minutes I used to be yawning like loopy.”

A pixelated illustration of an eye. The Neuralink logo is in the center.
Getty Pictures

Elon Musk has made daring claims concerning the coming capabilities of Neuralink Blindsight, his firm’s visible prosthesis aiming to revive imaginative and prescient in individuals who have misplaced sight in each eyes. The machine was designated a breakthrough machine by the U.S. Meals and Drug Administration in September—however specialists informed Spectrum it doubtless received’t reside as much as Musk’s hype.

Illustration of a person holding a phone, with many bubbles floating around them.
Greg Mably

For individuals with psychological well being situations like bipolar dysfunction, it’s necessary to keep watch over their temper. Smartphone apps could possibly just do that, offering goal perception about our internal state from knowledge collected with none person enter. Not like conventional mood-tracking apps and logs, these apps quietly collect knowledge within the background a couple of person’s conduct. However, whereas promising, they face challenges, together with privateness considerations and a necessity for rigorous scientific validation.

Three medical staffers stand in front of monitors showing imaging that is very clear and crisp.
St. Michael’s Basis

When treating aneurysms and strokes, neurosurgeons sometimes must make do with blurry pictures. However which will quickly change, due to a new fiber-optic imaging probe. The probe winds by way of the maze of mind arteries, capturing high-resolution pictures of the mind to information surgeons. “Whereas earlier than … clinicians had a satellite-like view of the mind’s vasculature community, now they’ve a Google Avenue View-like perspective,” writes contributor Elie Dolgin. The probe has been examined in scientific trials at two hospitals in Toronto and Buenos Aires, and a startup is aiming to convey the know-how to market.

A series of MRI brain scans
Getty Pictures

Present MRI scanners are costly and require highly effective magnets and a whole lot of power to energy. With the machines sometimes solely present in specialised hospital facilities, MRIs are inaccessible for greater than two-thirds of the worldwide inhabitants. However a new, simplified full-body MRI scanner works at a fraction of the price and 1,800 watts, in comparison with 25 kilowatts or extra. The machine makes use of AI to match the picture high quality of conventional MRI scanners with a lot much less highly effective magnets.

A colored microscope image of an animal brain with many dots lit within.
Tsai Laboratory/MIT Picower Institute

Early scientific trials are starting to indicate proof that stimulating the mind at sure frequencies may gain advantage individuals residing with Alzheimer’s illness. In line with a workforce of researchers at MIT, sound and light-weight oscillations at 40-hertz lively a neural-cleansing course of that helps take away beta-amyloid, the protein that clumps collectively within the brains of these with Alzheimer’s. The non-invasive remedy is at the moment being examined in randomized trials, and analysis will doubtless proceed for the subsequent few years, although some corporations are already providing “wellness” merchandise that ship gamma frequency mild or sound stimulation.

An illustration of intersecting bands of red and blue with rows of emojis in between.
Edmon de Haro

Our knowledge is piling up rapidly. In reality, it’s rising quicker than our storage functionality will be capable of deal with in just some years. That’s why some organizations are taking steps towards constructing a DNA drive to retailer the deluge of information, rather than magnetic tape and disk drives. With every DNA base (A, T, G, and C) appearing as a bit, DNA presents a lot better storage density; in accordance with one estimate, all 120 zettabytes of knowledge on the Web might be saved in a quantity of DNA the scale of a sugar dice. Now, researchers search methods to effectively learn and write massive volumes of DNA knowledge.

A fake eye with an eyelid and metal objects ringing the iris.
Erfan Pourshaban

Good contact lenses might have varied client and medical makes use of—measuring glucose ranges, delivering medicine for ocular illness, and even appearing as a show for augmented actuality. However how do you energy a tool sitting on probably the most delicate components of the human physique? Researchers on the College of Utah created a hybrid energy-generation unit that attracts power from mild and tears: Whereas the eyes are open, tiny, versatile photo voltaic cells made out of silicon seize mild from the solar and synthetic sources. Then, actually within the blink of a watch, a second system acts like a metal-air battery, with electrolytes in tears serving as a biofuel. The mixture permits for steady energy technology and provides sufficient power for good contacts.

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