Dave Gobel, founder of the Methuselah Foundation, looks back and comes up with a list of the top five anti-aging advances of 2009. He includes mentions of drug research that extends the life of mice, benefits of vitamin D, 3D tissue printing, advances in organ replacement, and more (along with two bonus developments). I’ve started [...]
Posts under ‘Medicine’
We have the technology: Advancements in bionic arms
Modern materials and designs have prompted major advancements in prosthetic legs to the point where athletes equipped with them may have an advantage over runners with biological legs. The development of prosthetic arms and hands has lagged, however – most people who use prosthetic arms use a simple hook design, which is very primitive. Mechanical [...]
Aubrey de Grey and Dan Buettner talk longevity on CNN
This morning, Dr. Sanjay Gupta interviewed geneticist and anti-aging expert Aubrey de Grey and author Dan Buettner, who spoke about “how to live longer.” Buettner provided tips based on his research of long-lived groups around the world, while de Grey discussed regenerative medicine that will be able to radically extend the human lifespan to several [...]
In time for Thanksgiving: Human health continues to improve
Here in the United States, we’re getting ready to celebrate the beginning of what’s regarded as the “holiday season” with Thanksgiving, a time to reflect on the things we’re thankful for. I don’t think I’m alone when I say I spend a lot of time looking forward to scientific advances yet to come, which sometimes [...]
Your next surgeon may be a robot
Employing nanobots to patrol the blood vessels of the human body and repair damage along the way is still a couple decades away, at least, but doctors are already employing small robots that patients can swallow to perform remote surgeries. Some of these robots are even capable of being swallowed as separate components and then [...]
Gene therapy: Don’t call it a comeback?
Gene therapy has been shown to have great potential, but has been difficult to administer effectively and for some, has had tragic side effects. In one of the most well-known incidents, a few children cured of a rare disease through gene therapy developed leukemia, from which one died. Despite this terrible setback, researchers now believe [...]
Engineering neurons to respond to light
Many therapeutic technologies, including Cochlear implants that enable the deaf to hear, or deep brain stimulators that treat some symptoms of Parkinson’s disease, use electricity to stimulate neurons in the brain. This method isn’t exactly precise, however, as the electrical fields stimulate neurons around the targeted area, which leads to side effects. Researchers at Stanford [...]