https://medicalxpress.com/ en-us Medical Xpress internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. Eating a placenta may not give you the health benefits some people want you to believe it has, but using it as a bandage might. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-05-placenta-bandages-health-benefits-risky.html Fri, 16 May 2025 08:51:05 EDT news666604262 Hydrogels, which are soft materials formed by cross-linking polymers, could have a variety of medical applications. In research published in Advanced Science, investigators developed an injectable hydrogel containing components of fish swim bladders and used it to repair damaged heart tissue. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-04-fish-bladders-treatment-heart-failure.html Wed, 09 Apr 2025 03:10:07 EDT news663319502 Millions of people in the U.S. and around the world suffer from urinary tract infections every year. Some groups are especially prone to chronic UTIs, including women, older adults and some veterans. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2024-11-chronic-utis-future-treatments-bacteria.html Mon, 18 Nov 2024 13:50:01 EST news651159825 In the elderly, a multitude of factors contribute to diminished bone regeneration capabilities, including a reduction in the self-renewal and differentiation abilities of mesenchymal stem cells, an excessive accumulation of inflammatory signals, compromised blood vessel regeneration capacity, an imbalance between bone anabolism and catabolism, and inadequate bone innervation. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2024-04-materiobiology-advances-aging-bone-regeneration.html Tue, 09 Apr 2024 16:41:10 EDT news631899661 A study published in the journal MedComm – Biomaterials and Applications, led by Dr. Xiaojing Wang from the Department of Oral Implantology at The Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University, focuses on addressing tooth loss, a prevalent dental condition linked to accidents, decay, periodontal disease, and congenital deficiencies. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2024-03-multiple-biomaterials-implant-placement-tissue.html Fri, 29 Mar 2024 14:04:02 EDT news630939841 For the well over 700 million people around the globe living with type 1 diabetes, getting a host immune system to tolerate the presence of implanted insulin-secreting cells could be life-changing. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2023-04-potential-breakthrough-diabetes-treatment.html Thu, 27 Apr 2023 13:48:05 EDT news601822082 Engineers from UNSW Sydney have developed a miniature and flexible soft robotic arm that could be used to 3D-print biomaterial directly onto organs inside a person's body. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2023-02-3d-bioprinting-human-body-soft.html Mon, 27 Feb 2023 16:26:05 EST news596737562 A new biomaterial, which can be injected intravenously, reduces inflammation in tissue and promotes cell and tissue repair. The biomaterial was tested and proven effective in treating tissue damage caused by heart attacks in both rodent and large animal models. Researchers also provided proof of concept in a rodent model that the biomaterial could be beneficial to patients with traumatic brain injury and pulmonary arterial hypertension. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2023-01-biomaterial-intravenously-potential-application-heart.html Mon, 30 Jan 2023 16:43:04 EST news594319381 Blood vessel replacements (vascular grafts) are used today for hemodialysis blood access, trauma repair and cardiovascular reconstruction. The first synthetic vascular grafts (blood vessel replacements) were developed just after World War II and were fabricated from materials such as parachute cloth, stitched on home sewing machines. By the 1970s, commercial vascular grafts were introduced, made primarily from Dacron fabric or expanded Teflon (ePTFE). https://medicalxpress.com/news/2023-01-vascular-grafts-technology-success-failure.html Mon, 30 Jan 2023 13:47:03 EST news594308821 One of the approaches to improve the regeneration of body tissues is to focus on the physical surface cues of the biomaterial to see how different surface topographies such as tiny pillars may instruct cells "to do what we want them to do"—in this case regenerate bone tissue. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2023-01-interface-biomaterials-cells-regenerate-body.html Mon, 16 Jan 2023 13:06:35 EST news593096790 Unique new material developed at University of Limerick (UL) in Ireland has shown significant promise in the treatment of spinal cord injury. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2022-11-method-spinal-cord-tissue.html Tue, 29 Nov 2022 15:59:29 EST news588959962 Moniek Schmitz developed a fast and feasible way to test new, multifunctional biomaterials that prevent bacterial growth and reduce the use of antibiotics. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2022-02-multifunctional-biomaterial-bacterial-infection.html Thu, 17 Feb 2022 08:02:04 EST news564307321 Brittany Taylor is a biomedical engineer and assistant professor who studies novel ways to improve bone and tendon healing after injuries. She is exploring drug delivery systems and temporary artificial tissue replacements to promote healing of tendons and the interface with bones and muscle. Millions of musculoskeletal injuries each year cause pain and reduce people's quality of life. Here, she answers questions about the benefits of using composite materials—biological materials like tissue from animals or synthetic materials—to improve repair outcomes. Many of the techniques are still in the experimental stages and have been tested in animal models. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2022-01-bones-tendons-human-made-materials.html Wed, 05 Jan 2022 10:20:02 EST news560598073 From ski slopes to Girl Scouts, Rosalyn Abbott's classroom of choice has evolved over the years, but her love for teaching and discovery remains a steady constant. On any given day, she can be found integrating biomaterials, namely silk, with tissue engineering techniques in her lab, or teaching introductory engineering courses to undergraduate students at Carnegie Mellon University. Her group's latest research uncovered a novel finding—that silk scaffolding is responsive to ultrasound. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2021-06-exploring-silk-full-potential.html Mon, 28 Jun 2021 10:46:05 EDT news544095960 Scientists have developed a new biomaterial that regrows blood vessels and bone, potentially providing a single-stage approach when repairing large bone defects. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2021-04-biomaterial-regrows-blood-vessels-bone.html Tue, 20 Apr 2021 11:48:13 EDT news538138091 Biomaterials are substances, natural or manmade, that are used in medicine to interact with the human body for various purposes, such as wound healing and tissue regeneration. Previous work on biomaterials has shown that they can affect cells in many ways, including how they grow, move, and the type of cell they develop into. Scientists have recently begun investigating biomaterials with properties that can be fine-tuned to optimize their use in regenerative medicine. Now, researchers at Tokyo Medical and Dental University (TMDU) have identified a polymer with tunable mobility properties that can alter the immune activity of specific liver cells. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2021-03-biomaterial-mobility-revolutionize-immunomodulation.html Wed, 24 Mar 2021 12:19:20 EDT news535807156 Scientists have developed a new biomaterial that helps bones heal faster by enhancing adults' stem cell regenerative ability. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2020-11-biomaterial-bones-faster.html Mon, 30 Nov 2020 11:18:46 EST news525957521 Researchers at Mayo Clinic are studying ways to engineer human-like tissue to bolster the body's ability to heal itself. Scientists in the Regenerative Medicine Biomaterials and Biomolecules Lab have engineered biomaterials that could regenerate tissue capable of restoring injured nerves and bones. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2020-08-harnessing-body-ability.html Wed, 26 Aug 2020 12:10:29 EDT news517662627 Successful tissue regeneration can have major benefits in healing injuries or replacing portions of diseased or damaged tissue in bone, skin, the nervous system and in organs such as the muscle, kidney, liver, lung and heart. But the effectiveness of the body's own system for repairing such damage can vary greatly, depending on the kind of tissue involved and its location. Tissue engineers have been working to address these limitations by creating substances called biomaterials, which can be used in various ways to boost the body's ability to heal. In a recent publication in Nature Reviews Materials, Ali Khademhosseini, Ph.D., Director and CEO of the Terasaki Institute, and colleagues discuss the use of biomaterials for tissue regeneration. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2020-07-regenerating-body-biomaterials.html Tue, 07 Jul 2020 11:00:35 EDT news513338432 Dendritic cells (DCs) are one of our bodies' first line of defense against invaders, and are stationed like sentinels at all outer and inner surfaces as well as in most of our organs. When they detect something foreign, they become active and migrate into lymph nodes, where they present the foreign substance to B cells and T cells to initiate a protective response. This crucial role in activating immune responses makes DCs an attractive target for immunotherapy, but so far no technology exists that can effectively label, track, and target DCs in the body. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2020-05-dendritic-cells-tracking-immune-modulation.html Mon, 18 May 2020 11:00:06 EDT news509006658 The team from the University of Nottingham's Schools of Pharmacy and Life Sciences have found that the surface shape (topography) and chemical composition of polymer materials can be changed to create materials that control the body's immune response. This could have future applications in the fight against rejection of medical devices including artificial joints, dental implants and vascular implants. The results from two recent studies have been published in Advanced Science and Matter. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2020-05-biomaterial-immune-discoveries-implant.html Mon, 04 May 2020 11:07:18 EDT news507809231 According to the statistics from World Health Organization (WHO), cardiovascular disease has become the leading cause of death worldwide, inducing almost 1/3 of death each year. Owing to its importance and promise in cardiovascular disease treatment, vascular regeneration has attracted global attention in both academic and clinical settings. Within the vascular regeneration process, endothelium remodeling, which refers to the formation of a confluent vascular endothelial cell monolayer on the lumen, plays a vital role. However, rapid endothelialization confronts large challenges using existing synthetic biomaterials or engineering methods as vascular endothelium remodeling is a complicated and dynamic process. Successful endothelium remodeling has become the key to the success of vascular remodeling. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2020-02-vascular-endothelium-remodeling-remote-controlled-smart.html Wed, 05 Feb 2020 10:35:23 EST news500121317 According to the World Health Organization, cardiovascular (CV) disease has become the leading cause of death worldwide. However, vascular regeneration is a promising treatment for cardiovascular disease. Remodeling the endothelium—i.e., forming a confluent vascular endothelial cell monolayer on the lumen—plays a vital role in this process. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2019-12-remote-controlled-smart-platform-cardiovascular-disease.html Tue, 03 Dec 2019 10:14:00 EST news494590437 TU/e spin-off NC Biomatrix BV is developing a biomaterial that will help to treat intervertebral disc degeneration in a non-invasive way. The new biomaterial (a cell-derived matrix gel) can be injected directly into the spinal disc. Matrix gel will restore disc volume and height thus easing the intense pain experienced by the patients with degenerative disc disease. In addition, it will provide an optimal scaffold for autologous cellular regeneration of the disc core. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2019-06-biomaterial-spinal-disc-degeneration.html Thu, 13 Jun 2019 09:19:01 EDT news479636336 Researchers have successfully created a novel biomaterial that can be seeded with insulin-producing beta cells. Implantation of the beta cell-seeded biomaterial reversed diabetes in a mouse model by effectively normalizing glucose levels and significantly increasing survival. The research results will be presented Monday, March 19, at ENDO 2018, the annual 100th meeting of the Endocrine Society in Chicago, Ill. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2018-03-beta-cell-seeded-implant-insulin-production.html Mon, 19 Mar 2018 14:16:44 EDT news440687786 Very little is still known about how neurons can be generated from stem cells. Researchers at the University Medical Center of Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) have now developed a promising technique that will facilitate the differentiation of stem cells into neurons. This even enables them to accelerate the maturation process. For this purpose, they use a hydrogel to create a stiffness-controlled scaffold for artificial brain tissue that furthermore stimulates the development of neurons. The team subsequently plans to investigate how hydrogel-based biomaterials can be injected into severely damaged brain regions in order to improve brain tissue regeneration. Over the long term it is hoped it will be possible to provide help to stroke victims or those suffering from neurodegenerative diseases. The Mainz-based researchers have recently published their findings in the leading journal Stem Cell Reports. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2017-10-method-maturation-stem-cells-neurons.html Wed, 25 Oct 2017 14:43:19 EDT news428161381 To regenerate dental pulp tissue after emptying of a tooth's root canals researchers compared the effectiveness of 3D scaffolds made of natural or customized synthetic materials containing pulpal stem cells and dentin-derived growth factors. The substantial differences in terms of scaffold degradation, cell viability, vascularization, and pulpal tissue formation are reported in Tissue Engineering, Part A. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2017-08-effective-materials-dental-pulp-tissue.html Wed, 23 Aug 2017 13:20:02 EDT news422710729 In a study published in Biomaterials, a team of researchers from Australia and the US has come up with a way of printing brain structures in 3D so they can grow nerve cells to mimic a real brain. Their work has been selected by an independent, international Advisory Board to be given the Elsevier Atlas award. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2016-03-human-brain-d-technology.html Mon, 21 Mar 2016 08:58:53 EDT news377769523 After undergoing surgery to remove diseased sections of the colon, up to 30 percent of patients experience leakage from their sutures, which can cause life-threatening complications. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2015-01-tailored-tissue-adhesives.html Thu, 29 Jan 2015 05:54:24 EST news341733255 You fall and scrape your knee. After cleaning the wound, you plaster a bandage over it and presto! In two to three days, your injury is nothing but a memory. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2014-07-wounds-chronic-faster.html Wed, 16 Jul 2014 07:00:01 EDT news324712096