In 2024, biomedical expertise actually acquired to our heads—or extra particularly, our eyes and brains. A few of Spectrum’s hottest articles this yr have been about expertise aiding our imaginative and prescient, with tales of retinal implants and sensible contact lenses drawing your eye. You dug deep into non-invasive tech to hasten sleep and protect mind perform for individuals with Alzheimer’s illness, in addition to an imaging probe to help extremely invasive mind surgical procedures.
Nevertheless it 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 approach to save huge quantities of data.
As we wait to see how new expertise 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.
Wyss Heart for Bio and Neuroengineering
Assistive frames referred to as exosuits might help individuals in bodily remedy and rehabilitation transfer their physique. The units work by transferring a consumer’s muscle tissues through electrical pulses, however that stimulation can rapidly tire out the consumer. 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 further stimulation. The expertise, referred to as “Synapsuit,” is being prototyped by the Korea Electronics Know-how Institute.
Pixium
In 2022, contributor Mark Harris detailed how blind customers of a retinal implant made by California biotech firm Second Sight have 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.
Elemind
Startup Elemind’s $349 headband guarantees to get you to sleep sooner. 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 scarf, although in less-than-ideal circumstances. “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.”
Getty Photos
Elon Musk has made daring claims in regards to 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 possible gained’t dwell as much as Musk’s hype.
Greg Mably
For individuals with psychological well being circumstances like bipolar dysfunction, it’s essential to control their temper. Smartphone apps might be able to just do that, offering goal perception about our interior state from knowledge collected with none consumer enter. In contrast to conventional mood-tracking apps and logs, these apps quietly collect knowledge within the background a couple of consumer’s habits. However, whereas promising, they face challenges, together with privateness issues and a necessity for rigorous medical validation.
St. Michael’s Basis
When treating aneurysms and strokes, neurosurgeons sometimes should make do with blurry pictures. However which will quickly change, because of a new fiber-optic imaging probe. The probe winds via 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 Road View-like perspective,” writes contributor Elie Dolgin. The probe has been examined in medical trials at two hospitals in Toronto and Buenos Aires, and a startup is aiming to convey the expertise to market.
Getty Photos
Present MRI scanners are costly and require highly effective magnets and quite a lot of vitality 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 fee 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.
Tsai Laboratory/MIT Picower Institute
Early medical trials are starting to indicate proof that stimulating the mind at sure frequencies may benefit individuals dwelling with Alzheimer’s illness. In accordance with a group of researchers at MIT, sound and lightweight 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 presently being examined in randomized trials, and analysis will possible proceed for the subsequent few years, although some firms are already providing “wellness” merchandise that ship gamma frequency mild or sound stimulation.
Edmon de Haro
Our knowledge is piling up rapidly. Actually, it’s rising sooner than our storage functionality will have the ability to deal with in just some years. That’s why some organizations are taking steps towards constructing a DNA drive to retailer the deluge of knowledge, instead of magnetic tape and disk drives. With every DNA base (A, T, G, and C) appearing as a bit, DNA presents significantly better storage density; in keeping with one estimate, all 120 zettabytes of data on the Web might be saved in a quantity of DNA the dimensions of a sugar dice. Now, researchers search methods to effectively learn and write massive volumes of DNA knowledge.
Erfan Pourshaban
Good contact lenses might have numerous client and medical makes use of—measuring glucose ranges, delivering remedy for ocular illness, and even appearing as a show for augmented actuality. However how do you energy a tool sitting on some of the delicate components of the human physique? Researchers on the College of Utah created a hybrid energy-generation unit that attracts vitality from mild and tears: Whereas the eyes are open, tiny, versatile photo voltaic cells constituted 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 vitality for sensible contacts.
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