Category Health/Medical

A section of “e-skin.” Credit: Jianliang Xiao / University of Colorado Boulder

University of Colorado Boulder researchers have developed a new type of malleable, self-healing and fully recyclable “electronic skin” that has applications ranging from robotics and prosthetic development to better biomedical devices. Electronic skin, known as e-skin, is a thin, translucent material that can mimic the function and mechanical properties of human skin. A number of different types and sizes of wearable e-skins are now being developed in labs around the world as researchers recognize their value in diverse medical, scientific and engineering fields.

The new CU Boulder e-skin has sensors embedded to measure pressure, temperature, humidity and air flow, said Assistant Professor Jianliang Xiao, who is...

Kidney glomeruli — constituent microscopic parts of the organ- were generated from human embryonic stem cells grown in plastic laboratory culture dishes. Credit: Image courtesy of University of Manchester

Scientists have successfully produced human kidney tissue within a living organism which is able to produce urine, a first for medical science. It signifies a significant milestone in the development of treatment for kidney disease. Kidney glomeruli – constituent microscopic parts of the organ- were generated from human embryonic stem cells grown in plastic laboratory culture dishes containing a nutrient broth known as culture medium, containing molecules to promote kidney development...

A schematic illustration of the strategy for overcoming cancer drug resistance.

Researchers ‘turn off’ multi-drug resistance capabilities in cancer cells. The ability for cancer cells to develop resistance to chemotherapy drugs – known as multi-drug resistance – remains a leading cause for tumor recurrence and cancer metastasis, but recent findings offer hope that oncologists could one day direct cancer cells to “turn off” their resistance capabilities...

Extracellular asparagine availability drives invasion and metastasis.

A single protein building block commonly found in food may hold a key to preventing the spread of an often-deadly type of breast cancer, according to a new multicenter study published today in the medical journal Nature. Investigators found that by limiting an amino acid called asparagine in laboratory mice with triple-negative breast cancer, they could dramatically reduce the ability of the cancer to travel to distant sites in the body. Among other techniques, the team used dietary restrictions to limit asparagine.

Foods rich in asparagine include dairy, whey, beef, poultry, eggs, fish, seafood, asparagus, potatoes, legumes, nuts, seeds, soy and whole grains. Foods low in asparagine include most fruits and vegetables...