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Ingestible gut sensors reveal potential new immune system
Ingestible technology -- the stalwart theme of medical sci-fi -- has been in the works for decades, but now researchers are closer than ever before to taking it mainstream thanks to successful trials of gas-sensing capsules. The swallowable sensors, designed by RMIT University in Australia, could revolutionize the way gut disorders and diseases are diagnosed and treated, offering a potential game-changer for the one-in-five people worldwide who will suffer from gastrointestinal problems in their lifetimes.
Recommended Reading: Trust your gut
Is Your Gut Microbiome the Key to Health and Happiness? Amy Fleming, The Guardian You've likely heard the phrase "trust your gut" at some point in your life, but the key to being healthy and happy could actually lie in all of those organisms in your digestive system. The Guardian lays out the case for how influential your gut really is and discusses the act of "poop doping." Yes, that's a thing.
Scientists build logic gates out of gut bacteria, then hopefully wash their hands
Ever thought about upgrading your PC by breeding more cores? Or planting a few GBs of extra storage out in the yard? Us neither, until we heard that scientists at Imperial College in London have succeeded in building "some of the basic components of digital devices" out of genetically modified E.Coli. We've seen these germs exploited in a similar way before, but Imperial's researchers claim they're the first to make bacterial logic gates that can be fitted together to form more complex gates and potentially whole biological processors. Aside from our strange upgrade fantasies, such processors could one day be implanted into living bodies -- to weed out cancer cells, clean arteries and deliver medication exactly where it's needed. So much for Activia.
UK researchers build artificial stomach, antacid software coming soon
Think you have an iron stomach? British scientists at the Institute of Food Research built one that won't get indigestion from that triple-patty chili cheeseburger you had for lunch. IFR's artificial stomach simulates human digestion, and is made of "sophisticated plastics and metals" to endure all the natural chemicals and enzymes an actual stomach has. According to the BBC, chief designer Dr. Martin Wickham claims that his design improves on previous models (models? plural?) as it actually simulates contractions the stomach uses to process food. But why build such a model, unless you're a big stomach nerd scientist type? It turns out that the stomach's processes are still something of a mystery, and that these researchers would like to be able to develop healthier foods that can "manipulate the digestive process," or as we'd prefer, "hack the digestive process." Now, while the artificial stomach does have the ability to throw up (we're not really sure how that's triggered), we do hope that those boffins are standing well back when they run that particular experiment.[Via Spluch]Read - BBCRead - The Associated Press
