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Living heart cells drive microfluid pump
* 16:37 30 November 2006
* NewScientist.com news service
* Tom Simonite
A tiny pump driven by living heart cells has been developed by researchers in Japan. Future versions could perhaps power medical implants or devices that analyse biological samples, the researchers say.
The pump is made from a hollow sphere of flexible polymer with tubes connected to opposite sides. The sphere is coated with a sheet of cultured rat heart muscle cells and these cells drive the pump with pulsing contractions.
The device was developed by Takehiko Kitamori at the University of Tokyo, Japan, and colleagues at the Japan Science and Technology Agency. The team liken their invention to the simple one-chamber heart of an earthworm.
The pump has no need for a battery, just a ready supply of nutrients for the cells. The researchers say similar pumps could someday drive small amounts of fluid around chips for biological analysis or through medical implants that release drugs inside the human body.
Pump and power
* 16:37 30 November 2006
* NewScientist.com news service
* Tom Simonite
A tiny pump driven by living heart cells has been developed by researchers in Japan. Future versions could perhaps power medical implants or devices that analyse biological samples, the researchers say.
The pump is made from a hollow sphere of flexible polymer with tubes connected to opposite sides. The sphere is coated with a sheet of cultured rat heart muscle cells and these cells drive the pump with pulsing contractions.
The device was developed by Takehiko Kitamori at the University of Tokyo, Japan, and colleagues at the Japan Science and Technology Agency. The team liken their invention to the simple one-chamber heart of an earthworm.
The pump has no need for a battery, just a ready supply of nutrients for the cells. The researchers say similar pumps could someday drive small amounts of fluid around chips for biological analysis or through medical implants that release drugs inside the human body.
Pump and power
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