Massachusetts Institute of Technology Archives - Page 2 of 4

MIT researchers seek to ‘see’ inside the body during rehab

[Image from MIT]

Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) developed an unsupervised physical rehabilitation system.

MuscleRehab came from researchers at MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) and Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH).

Together, they combined three ingredients: motion tracking, imaging and virtual reality (VR). The motion tracking captures motion activity. The electrical impedance tomography (EIT) imaging technique measures what muscles are doing. Finally, a VR headset and tracking suit lets users watch themselves perform alongside a physical therapist.

In a news release, MIT described its all-black tracking suit as “sleek” and “ninja-esque.” The VR captures 3D movement data. The user performs various exercises that measure the activity of their quadriceps, sartorius, hamstring…

This robotic capsule could deliver large-protein drugs like insulin

A new drug capsule developed at MIT can help large proteins such as insulin and small-molecule drugs be absorbed in the digestive tract.[Image from Felice Frankel/MIT]Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) developed a new drug capsule with a robotic cap for improved drug delivery.

Large-protein drugs generally can’t pass through the mucus barrier that lines the digestive tract. Insulin and most other “biologic drugs” with proteins or nucleic acids thus must be injected or administered in a hospital, according to MIT’s news website.

The researchers believe the new drug capsule developed at MIT could one day replace those injections. It features a robotic cap that spins. This helps it tunnel through the mucus barrier when it reaches the small intestine. Thus, drugs carried by the capsule can pass into the cells lining the intestine.

Get the full story at our sister site, Drug Delivery…

7 innovative digital health offerings to treat diabetes

MIT engineers are working on an app that that identifies and quantifies food content, which can aid in carbohydrate counting for people with diabetes. [Image from MIT News] From using your smartphone to track data to reversing your diabetes altogether, these digital health technologies stand out.

Advances in treatments for diabetes never stop coming. Whether that be in the form of insulin pumps or continuous glucose monitors, we’ve seen plenty.

Moving away from the physical device, innovations in the digital diabetes space continue to impress. Digital therapeutics, artificial intelligence- and cloud-based offerings and more comprise an intriguing list of technologies.

Here are seven digital offerings aimed at treating diabetes that you might want to keep an eye on:

1. Digital therapeutics for diabetes

Digital therapeutics is an ever-growing space capable of treating a range of diseases and conditions. That reach extends to diabetes, as shown by companies…

How AI could detect Parkinson’s using breathing patterns

[Image courtesy of MIT]

Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology recently developed an artificial intelligence model that can detect Parkinson’s from breathing patterns.

The diagnostic algorithm uses a series of connected algorithms that mimic how a human brain works to analyze whether a patient has Parkinson’s from their sleep breathing patterns. MIT PhD student Yuzhe Yang and postdoc Yuan Yuan also trained the neural network to discern the severity of someone’s Parkinson’s disease (PD) and track the progression of the disease.

In the past, researchers have studied the potential of using cerebrospinal fluid and neuroimaging to detect PD. Still, that method can be invasive, costly and require specialized medical centers, according to the researchers.

MIT’s research team developed a device that looks like a home Wi-Fi router that emits radio signals, an…

MIT engineers fabricate chip-free, wireless e-skin

An e-skin film developed at MIT could be the first step toward chip-free, wireless sensors. [Image courtesy of MIT]

MIT engineers have developed a new wireless, wearable sensor without semiconductors or batteries in what they say is a first step toward chip-free wireless sensors.

This electronic skin — or e-skin — is a flexible, semiconducting film that MIT describes as a sort of electronic Scotch tape.

The device has an ultrathin gallium nitride film that can respond to mechanical strain with an electrical signal and vibrate in response to an electrical impulse. The researchers made pure, single-crystalline samples of gallium nitride and paired it with a conductive layer of gold to boost the income and outgoing electrical signals, MIT said.

RELATED: MIT engineers develop wearable, stamp-sized ultrasound stickers for continuous imaging

That allows the e-skin to not only detect vital signs l…

COVID-19 immunity test developers at MIT seek diagnostic manufacturer

A COVID-19 immunity detection test developed by MIT could help people determine their risk of infection. [Image courtesy of MIT]

MIT researchers have developed a device for predicting an individual’s COVID-19 immunity and are looking for a diagnostic company to get it manufactured in large numbers and approved by the FDA.

The lateral flow test uses the same technology as at-home rapid antigen COVID-19 tests to measure neutralizing antibodies for SARS-CoV-2 in a blood sample, the researchers said in a study published in Cell Reports Methods.

The researchers have filed for a patent on the technology, which could help people weigh their COVID-19 immunity against risk and determine necessary precautions such as boosters.

RELATED: Harvard researchers plan to sell at-home, PCR-grade COVID testing system

The development comes more than two years into the pandemic as the latest virus mutation…

New implant design prevents scar tissue without drugs, MIT says

Ellen Roche, MIT School of Engineering associate professor, and a team of researchers developed a new implant design for delaying scar tissue formation. [Photo courtesy of MIT]

Mechanically inflating and deflating an implantable device for 10 minutes a day prevents immune cells from building the scar tissue that has been a major obstacle for artificial pancreas researchers.

That’s according to new findings from a team of MIT engineers who built mechanical deflection into a two-chambered, soft polyurethane device tested on mice. By pumping up and down for five minutes every 12 hours, the device prevented immune cells from accumulating and building scar tissue without immunosuppressants.

The researchers reported fewer neutrophils surrounding the device in the short term. And when scar tissue did eventually form, the researchers described an unusual structure of highly aligned collagen fibers instead …

AI-enabled 3D printer watches and improves material handling on the fly

Two computer vision cameras monitor this 3D printer to detect errors and adjust in real time. [Photo courtesy of MIT]

An AI-enabled additive manufacturing system allowed a 3D printer to monitor and adjust material handling in real time, cutting down the trial-and-error process of learning how to print with new materials.

The technology could make it easier for engineers in medtech and other industries to use new materials in 3D printed products for special electrical or chemical properties, cutting down on the time and materials spent on trial-and-error. It could also help manufacturing equipment adjust to changes in the material or printing environment.

The MIT researchers behind the research project said it could have applications for manufacturing processes beyond 3D printing.

“This project is really the first demonstration of building a manufacturing system that uses machine learning to learn …

Customizing textiles to design formfitting face masks

Image courtesy of MIT and Lavendar Tessmer

Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have developed an active fiber and process that uses heat to activate face masks and conform to an individual’s face.

The COVID-19 pandemic has emphasized the importance of face masks that effectively seal around the nose and mouth. However, faces and their features vary and make standard one-size-fits-all face masks less effective.

Lavender Tessmer, who is a doctoral candidate in MIT’s Department of Architecture, created an active fiber and process that uses heat with specific knit textile architecture to activate a mask to conform to specific faces. It uses standard textile equipment and a new customization process that allows any manufacturer to create a customized mask.

Prior to the pandemic, Tessmer was working with associate professor Skylar Tibbits in the department of archite…

How fluorescent signals could allow for deeper sensor implants in the brain

[Image courtesy of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology]Engineers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have developed a photonic technique for fluorescent sensors that could improve sensor signals deep in the body.

Fluorescent sensors are typically used to label and image a variety of molecules to give a unique glimpse inside living cells. However, the method has been limited to cells grown in a lab dish or in tissues closer to the surface of the body because the signal from the sensors are lost when implanted too deeply in the body.

The team of MIT engineers’ photonic technique “dramatically improved” the fluorescent signal, according to a news release. The researchers showed that sensors could be implanted as deep as 5.5 cm in the tissue and still provide a strong signal. Improved signaling could help fluorescent sensors to track specific molecules inside the brain or other tissues deep within the body for medical diagnosis or monitoring drug effect…

How fluorescent signals could allow for deeper sensor implants in the brain

[Image courtesy of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology]

Engineers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have developed a photonic technique for fluorescent sensors that could improve sensor signals deep in the body.

Fluorescent sensors are typically used to label and image a variety of molecules to give a unique glimpse inside living cells. However, the method has been limited to cells grown in a lab dish or in tissues closer to the surface of the body because the signal from the sensors are lost when implanted too deeply in the body.

The team of MIT engineers’ photonic technique “dramatically improved” the fluorescent signal, according to a news release. The researchers showed that sensors could be implanted as deep as 5.5 cm in the tissue and still provide a strong signal. Improved signaling could help fluorescent sensors to track specific molecules inside the brain or ot…

MIT researchers think their tube-based device could improve gastrointestinal disorder diagnosis

Image courtesy of MIT

Researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have developed a knotted-tube device that could be an easier alternative to gastrointestinal dysmotility diagnostics.

The MIT researchers, along with collaborators from Brigham and Women’s Hospital, designed a device that comprises a silicone tube filled with liquid metal and knotted multiple times and can generate measurements similar to high-resolution manometry, the gold-standard diagnostic technique. It is derived from the “ancient Incan technology” known as quipu, in which a set of knotted cords is used to communicate information, the researchers said.

They suggest that the device could be a cheaper and easier-to-manufacturing alternative to existing diagnostic devices for GI dysmotility that usually involve a catheter containing pressure transducers to sense contractions in the GI tract.