Health sciences and technology

New technology may enable earlier cancer diagnosisNanoparticles amplify tumor signals, making them much easier to detect in the urine.

Tissue engineering: Growing new organs, and moreResearch could lead to better ways to heal injuries and develop new drugs.

Inspiration from a porcupine’s quillsUnderstanding the mechanisms behind quill penetration and extraction could help engineers design better medical devices.

Precisely engineering 3-D brain tissuesNew design technique could enable personalized medicine, studies of brain wiring.

On the hunt for rare cancer cellsJellyfish-inspired device that rapidly and efficiently captures cancer cells from blood samples could enable better patient monitoring.

Medical devices powered by the ear itselfFor the first time, researchers power an implantable electronic device using an electrical potential — a natural battery — deep in the inner ear.

Inside the unconscious brainNew study reveals brain-wave patterns that mark loss of consciousness during anesthesia.

Taking the sting out of medical tapeNew adhesive comes off quickly, sparing infants’ delicate skin from damage.

How cancer cells break free from tumorsNew MIT study identifies adhesion molecules key to cancer’s spread through the body.

Replicating living structuresResearch examines how to control spatial distribution of cells in microenvironments

Merging tissue and electronicsNew tissue scaffold could be used for drug development and implantable therapeutic devices.

New nanoparticles shrink tumors in miceParticles that shut off cancer genes could also allow researchers to screen potential drug targets more rapidly.

Success of engineered tissue depends on where it’s grownCells grown on different types of scaffolds vary in their ability to help repair damaged blood vessels.

Sana AudioPulse wins Mobile Health Challenge

New energy source for future medical implants: sugarImplantable fuel cell built at MIT could power neural prosthetics that help patients regain control of limbs.

Researchers achieve RNA interference, in a lighter packagePared-down nucleic acid nanoparticle poses less risk of side effects, offers better targeting.

Alumnus, incoming MBA student win Soros Fellowships

13 faculty members elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences

Measuring blood flow to monitor sickle cell diseaseNew technology may help doctors predict when patients are at risk for serious complications.

A faster way to catch cellsNew microfluidic device could be used to diagnose and monitor cancer and other diseases.

Five MIT engineers named to National Academy of EngineeringSeveral Institute alumni also among 66 new members announced today.

Neuroscientists link brain-wave pattern to energy consumptionNew model of neuro-electric activity could help scientists better understand quiescent brain states such as coma.

MIT to launch Institute for Medical Engineering and ScienceBased in School of Engineering but spanning all of MIT, IMES will be led by Arup K. Chakraborty.

Stopping influenza evolution before it startsModel of flu proteins suggests new way to design vaccines that slow mutations.

Data mining without prejudiceA new technique for finding relationships between variables in large datasets makes no prior assumptions about what those relationships might be.

How to stop the fluEngineering-systems researchers identify proven strategies to prevent influenza from spreading through a household.

Double dutyA computational biologist and physician, Collin Stultz takes a unique approach to studying diseases that could lead to new treatments.

Seeing cancer in three dimensionsScientists find that the 3-D structure of a cancer cell’s chromosomes plays a big role in which genes get deleted or copied.