New recommendations from the NIH Rapid Acceleration of Diagnostics (RADx®) Tech Program provide a blueprint for the design and manufacture of more accessible diagnostic tests.

Established by NIBIB in January, the BETA Center will serve as a hub for expert teams of technology developers at the NIH intramural program and beyond to work together to rapidly address pressing health needs. Source: NIH Catalyst

For most of our tissues and cells, a lack of oxygen, or hypoxia, is bad news. However, cancer cells can thrive in these conditions, rendering tumors less susceptible to anti-cancer treatments including radiation. Now, new research may offer a way to break through cancer’s hypoxia-induced defenses.

This fully wireless ultrasound patch, which can capture detailed medical information and wirelessly transmit the data to a smart device, could represent a major step forward in at-home health care technology.

With an eye toward early disease detection, synthetic biology engineers at the University of Wisconsin have designed and engineered bacteria that find and detect fragments of DNA shed from infectious pathogens.

T cells experience different mechanical signals in different tissues. Researchers have engineered a tissue-mimicking hydrogel model to show that more elastic tissues induce T cells to become effector-like T cells with strong tumor-killing potential, while more viscous tissues induce them to become memory-like T cells. This new concept could help advance adaptive T cell therapies by producing desired patient-specific T cell populations in the dish that could provide stronger effects when infused back into the same patient. Source: Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard/Science Daily

A first-of-its-kind robotic glove is lending a “hand” and providing hope to piano players who have suffered a disabling stroke. Developed by researchers from Florida Atlantic University’s College of Engineering and Computer Science, the soft robotic hand exoskeleton uses artificial intelligence to improve hand dexterity. Source: Boca Raton Tribune

Researchers have discovered a new combination of drugs that significantly boosts the efficacy of anti-cancer treatments for colorectal cancers implanted in mice. The results also highlight a previously unknown mechanism of DNA repair. Source: National Cancer Institute

A team of researchers has developed a new method for controlling lower limb exoskeletons using deep reinforcement learning. The method enables more robust and natural walking control for users of lower limb exoskeletons. The study, "Robust walking control of a lower limb rehabilitation exoskeleton coupled with a musculoskeletal model via deep reinforcement learning," is available open access. Source: Kessler Foundation/Science Daily