Archives: 5/2005

Nanomedicine

Rapid Atomic Force Microscope Captures Nanomovies

by Gene Ostrovsky on May 9, 2005 • 6:11 am

afm large Rapid Atomic Force Microscope Captures Nanomovies
Scientists have demonstrated that an atomic force microscope can capture images of processes with a time resolution of microseconds. From an article at the PhysicsWeb:

An atomic force microscope (AFM) works by measuring how the force between the sample and a tiny “tip” on a cantilever changes as the microscope is moved over the surface of the sample. This allows the AFM to record images with extremely high spatial resolutions. Previous attempts to increase the time resolution of AFMs have focused on scanning the tip over the sample as quickly as possible, but these techniques have had time resolutions of a few tens of milliseconds at best.
Higher temporal resolutions can be obtained by using the AFM in a “force-sensing” mode, which can detect movements from a single point on a sample. Moshiur Anwar of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and the University of California at San Francisco and Itay Rousso of MIT and the Weizmann Institute of Science have now developed a technique in which a series of individual force-sensing measurements are combined to construct images.
The new “step-scan” technique relies on breaking down a sample into individual pixels and then measuring the dynamics of each pixel separately with the AFM. The method, which only works for period processes, can resolve features 10 nanometres across with a time resolution of 5 microseconds.
“The temporal resolution is not affected by the scan area and is limited only by the resonance frequency of the AFM cantilever and the data acquisition electronics – which is often not a limiting factor,” Rousso told PhysicsWeb. “The beauty of the technique is that it does not require any complicated and expensive modifications to the microscope and can be applied to almost any commercial system.”

The MIT’s Technology Review talks about the implications…
More about atomic force microscopy…
Flashback: Magnetic-Resonance Force Microscopy.
(hat tip: Future Feeder)

Pediatrics

In the Works: Baby Emotion Translator

by Gene Ostrovsky on May 9, 2005 • 5:26 am

baby st In the Works: Baby Emotion TranslatorThe Age reports from Tokyo about a device designed to translate baby talk:

“We aim to develop a device to read babies’ feelings,” says Kazuyuki Shinohara, a neurobiology professor at the state-run Nagasaki University who leads the research team.
The gadget could be a godsend in a country where a growing number of young people find child-rearing too burdensome, although some experts are cautious about an almost science-fiction world where babies are understood with machines before they learn to talk.
Shinohara’s group has been conducting experiments involving mothers and their babies by monitoring the infants’ cries, facial expressions and body temperature changes in a project backed by the government-subsidised Japan Science and Technology Agency.
“We are trying to read babies’ faces numerically such as the distance between eyebrows and the nose tip,” Shinohara tells AFP.
As for other clues on what babies mean to say, researchers are also analysing whether high or low frequencies in the sound of the cries show they want specific things.
The team is also monitoring the temperatures of babies’ bodies, mostly the face, through thermography. Shinohara says changes in temperature normally indicate particular desires.
The professor, who declined to elaborate on his conclusions or the shape of the gadget pending patenting, aims to launch the device by mid-2006.

Paint us skeptical. The device seems to be more like a polygraph for babies than a friendly home gadget…
More from Kyodo…

Nuclear Medicine / Oncology / Radiology

Xsight™ Spine Tracking System by Accuray™

by Gene Ostrovsky on May 9, 2005 • 5:10 am

cyberknife accu Xsight™ Spine Tracking System by Accuray™Accuray, Inc., the maker of the CyberKnife Stereotactic Radiosurgery System, has announced the introduction of Xsight™ Spine Tracking System:

Marking a major advance in non-invasive surgery, Accuray™ has introduced the Xsight™ Spine Tracking System, which integrates with the CyberKnife® Stereotactic Radiosurgery System to eliminate the need for surgical implantation of radiographic markers, or fiducials, in the delivery of radiosurgery treatments for spinal tumors.
Spinal radiosurgery has long posed difficult problems for oncologists and neurosurgeons. Due to the close proximity of sensitive structures like the spinal cord, traditional radiation treatments were not accurate enough. In addition, since skeletal structures such as spinal vertebra move independently, clinicians were required to surgically implant fiducials into the spine in order to track the movement of the lesion during treatment, which introduced some of the drawbacks associated with invasive surgery. Prior to the introduction of the CyberKnife System, patients had few options and little hope for tumors that could not be surgically removed.
The CyberKnife Radiosurgery System is the only system in the world that continually tracks lesions and automatically compensates for their movements throughout the entire treatment. Only the CyberKnife is capable of delivering sub-millimeter total clinical accuracy, now in the spine without fiducials, thus offering unparallel precision and conformality.
“Xsight obviates the need for placement of fiducials and allows for computerized real-time tracking and delivering of radiation with sub-millimeter accuracy. For those wishing to irradiate tumors of the spine this represents a major breakthrough,” remarked Fraser Henderson M.D., Director, Spine Tumor Center, Georgetown University Hospital. Additionally he stated, “This is a significant advance in eliminating pain for the patient and for allowing the surgeon to expedite treatment within the limited therapeutic window.”

More at Accuray…
BTW, they have videos here.

Nanomedicine

Ten Overlooked Nano Firms

by Gene Ostrovsky on May 9, 2005 • 4:53 am

UPI’s Nano World reports about the nanotech companies to watch for. And some of them are working to develop pretty impressive health-related technologies:
– Front Edge Technologies, a Baldwin, California firm, that is developing “batteries slimmer than a sheet of paper”, possibly to be used in implantable medgadgets;
– Nanospectra Biosciences of Houston, “holds an exclusive license to the intellectual property of non-invasive medical therapies using nanoshells — nanoparticles made up of an insulating core coated with an ultra-thin metallic layer.” Possible oncology applications.
Read the whole thing.

Uncategorized

The Ambrosial Antioxidants

by Gene Ostrovsky on May 9, 2005 • 4:44 am

whiskey large The Ambrosial Antioxidants

Bottles of whisky. Single malt whisky can beat the threat of cancer, thanks to high levels of a powerful antioxidant that kills cancer cells, a medical conference in Glasgow was told.(AFP/File/Jean-Pierre Muller)

Then there is this: Moderate alcohol consumption enhances the formation of new nerve cells…

Neurology / Rehab

“RUPERT”: Robotic Upper Extremity Repetitive Therapy

by Gene Ostrovsky on May 6, 2005 • 11:08 am

kinetic asu RUPERT: Robotic Upper Extremity Repetitive TherapyFrom a press release by the Biodesign Institute at Arizona State University about their efforts to develop a robotic arm to help stroke survivors recover the ability to perform essential tasks:

Dubbed “RUPERT,” for Robotic Upper Extremity Repetitive Therapy, the ASU team is partnering with Tempe-based Kinetic Muscles, Inc., to produce the arm. The project is funded by the National Institutes of Health.
There are two key benefit phases for stroke victims in the project development timetable, according to Dr. He. Currently, the device is able to mimic a fluid, natural extension of the arm using pneumatic muscles and can be programmed for repetitive exercises specific to the user that improve arm and hand flexibility and strength.
The team is now working to engineer greater intelligence into the device so that it responds directly to a user’s intent. “We want RUPERT to be able to sense when the user is attempting to reach for something, and to automatically assist their volitional movement.” said Dr. He. “Not only is the goal to make the motion more intuitive, but we want the robot to assist at those points in the movement where the individual needs it,” said He. As the individual’s motor function improved, RUPERT would adapt to allow the user faster recovery by requiring the muscles to work independently where possible.
The first RUPERT prototype was fitted and tested on able-bodied individuals and stroke survivors at Banner Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center in Phoenix. Eight able-bodied individuals tried on RUPERT I to see how well it could be adjusted to fit each in each case. The testers ranged from 5-foot females to over-6-foot males. In addition, two stroke survivors completed a three-week course of therapy using the device. RUPERT II, a second generation prototype, is under development using results of the fitting evaluations and therapy testing at the medical center.
RUPERT I and II are powered by four pneumatic muscles to assist movement at the shoulder, elbow and wrist. The design was based on a kinematics model of the arm, which showed where to locate the pneumatic muscles and how much force was needed for normal reaching and feeding movements. The mechanical arm is adjustable to accommodate different arm lengths and body sizes.

The press release…
Kinetic Muscles Inc’s website…

Orthopedic Surgery / Radiology

Mayo Clinic BC-10 MRI Coils

by Gene Ostrovsky on May 6, 2005 • 10:12 am

mri mayo coil Mayo Clinic BC 10 MRI CoilsBy reading yesterday’s press release from IBM, we stumbled upon Mayo Medical Ventures, an offshoot of Mayo Clinic research, that has developed new small scale MRI coils for hand and wrist injury imaging (MRI coils are used inside the MRI machine to improve resolution and visualization of structures.) These coils have been reported originally in 2003, and the device has been approved by the FDA. The coils are being manufactured by IBM in Rochester, Minn.
Some info about the coils:

Named Mayo Clinic BC-10 MRI Coils, these devices are highly sophisticated units used in taking detailed pictures of a particular part of the body. They produce high resolution images at 1.5 and 3 Tesla. Tesla indicates the strength of the main magnetic field used in MR imaging. High resolution images improve a physician’s ability to see small structures such as tiny ligaments and nerves in the hand. This means more accurate diagnosis of injuries and diseases, and in some cases, eliminates the need for invasive diagnostic procedures such as arthroscopy, the visual examination of the interior of a joint with a special surgical instrument.

IBM press release…
Mayo Clinic’s 2003 press release…

Society

Pessimism For Drugs, Good Value Seen In Devices

by Gene Ostrovsky on May 6, 2005 • 9:30 am

Ian Morrison, PhD, the “healthcare futurist”, gives everyone his words of wisdom:

Ian Morrison, PhD, who bills himself as a “healthcare futurist,” was the plenary session speaker Thursday morning at Heart Rhythm 2005, the 26th annual scientific sessions of the Heart Rhythm Society (Washington).
An author and consultant specializing in long-term forecasting and planning focused on healthcare, Morrison detailed positives and negatives (backed by a wide variety of data from different sources) about the U.S. healthcare system and what these trends portend for the future of medicine in America.
He had good news to share for the device sector.
In a recent survey of American satisfaction of different industries, respondents placed “a very high value” on medical devices and equipment such as pacemakers and stents, Morrison said.
“People appreciate the value they get from devices,” he said. That’s certainly a positive given that public sentiment is completely opposite for pharmaceuticals. “Pharmaceutical companies are right up there with tobacco companies as the most despised in America,” he added.

Medgadget sends out shoutouts and respect to the man!
More…

the good old days...

The Telling Story of Napoleon’s Trousers

by Gene Ostrovsky on May 6, 2005 • 8:51 am

napol small The Telling Story of Napoleons TrousersNapoleon’s trousers, apparently, tell us a lot about the real reasons of his death. From the BBC News:

Now Swiss researchers say his trousers show he lost weight prior his death, confirming he had cancer.
The research, by scientists from the anatomical pathology department of the University Hospital in Basel and the Institute of Medical History at the University of Zurich, looked at 12 pairs of Napoleon’s trousers.
Four were from before his exile and eight were pairs he wore during the six years he spent in exile on St Helena, including the pair he wore while dying.
The researchers also collated information from post mortems on the weights of patients who had died of stomach cancer.
They then measured the waists of healthy people to work out the correlation between that measurement and their actual weight.
This information was then used to calculate Napoleon’s weight in the months leading up to his death.
The largest pair of trousers Napoleon wore had a waist measurement of 110cm; those he wore just before his death measured 98cm.
This, they say, shows he lost between 11 and 15kg over the last six months of his life.
The Swiss team say the presence of arsenic in Napoleon’s hair, the source of the poisoning theory, was linked to this enthusiasm for wine.
At the time, it was the custom of winemakers to dry their casks and basins with arsenic.

Another week is over and the weekend is upon us (“the good old days…” feature is always a happy sign of the end of the week, isn’t it?). Have a great weekend. Thanks for visiting us. See you here soon!

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