Rummaging in the medicine chest
[2008-5-16]
Tag: lollipop candy
Welcome to The Deep science and technology column where we cover topics from the deep sea to deep space and beyond. Visit our website at www.thedeepradioshow.com
Well, there seems to be a lot of articles built up in the 'Medicine' file this week so we'll have a whole column on what ails 'ya and what to do about it. First up: every little kid's dream.
Wenyuan Shi, a microbiologist at UCLA has great news for you and your kids. Shi and his lab team at the UCLA School of Dentistry have managed to make candy that's actually good for your teeth. The orange-flavored, sugar-free lollipop they devised is infused with a natural ingredient found in licorice that kills the primary bacterium causing tooth decay, Streptococcus mutans.
Marketed as Dr. John's Herbal Candy, the lollipop, now available for purchase through a candy manufacturer that licenses the technology from UCLA, is the first therapeutic developed by Shi. But he has many more in the works designed to target bacteria wreaking havoc in the nose, ear and gut, to name just a few.
And he's also working on kits to test for these devilish pathogens. "Part of my wild dream is that one day you will walk into the dentist's office and give a saliva sample to be tested, just as you would give urine and blood samples to doctors," said Shi, a professor with joint appointments in UCLA's dental and medical schools.
Keep it up Dr. Shi! The world needs more candy that's good for you!! And now more good news from the world of medicine.
Mind over body: New hope for quadriplegics
Around 2.5 million people worldwide are wheelchair bound because of spinal injuries. Half of them are quadriplegic, paralyzed from the neck down. European researchers are now offering them new hope thanks to groundbreaking technology that uses brain signals alone to control computers, artificial limbs and even wheelchairs.
Using electrical signals emitted by the brain and picked up by electrodes attached to the user's scalp, the system allows people to operate devices and perform tasks that previously they could only dream of. So far, the team, led by the IDIAP Research Institute in Switzerland, has carried out a series of successful trials in which users have been able to maneuver a wheelchair around obstacles using brainpower alone.
Brain controlled devices for people with impaired movement and for other uses, have been under development for many years, but they've had only limited success, mainly because of the difficulties of turning brain signals into accurate mechanical movement. What sets the Swiss system apart is that it doesn't rely on the human brain alone to do all the work but also incorporates artificial intelligence into the device being used.
A person using the BCI (brain control interface) to control a wheelchair, for example, only has to think about going straight ahead or turning left and the chair follows their command. However, they do not have to worry about colliding with obstacles – even moving ones like people – because the wheelchair itself monitors and reacts to its environment.
A user can tell the chair to go straight ahead, but it will stop if there's a wall or a flight of stairs in the way. The system combines the intelligence of the person with the artificial intelligence of the device. In a sense, the artificial intelligence embedded in the chair acts much like a human's subconscious. People, for example, don't consciously send commands to every muscle in each leg in order to walk and don't think where to step to avoid an obstacle – they do it subconsciously. Similarly, a wheelchair-bound user of the Swiss system simply has to send the signal to go in a certain direction and the chair figures out how to get there.
The researchers point out that there's still a long road ahead before the system can be put into general use. Before a wheelchair like this one can reach the market there would have to be extensive trials to prove that the technology is robust enough. You certainly don't want it breaking down when someone is in the middle of the street! Carrying out such validation trials remains a goal of the project partners who are actively seeking further funding and investment to continue their work.
And here's hoping that, on behalf of not only paralyzed people but the world's aging population, that they get their funding!
Welcome to The Deep science and technology column where we cover topics from the deep sea to deep space and beyond. Visit our website at www.thedeepradioshow.com
Well, there seems to be a lot of articles built up in the 'Medicine' file this week so we'll have a whole column on what ails 'ya and what to do about it. First up: every little kid's dream.
Wenyuan Shi, a microbiologist at UCLA has great news for you and your kids. Shi and his lab team at the UCLA School of Dentistry have managed to make candy that's actually good for your teeth. The orange-flavored, sugar-free lollipop they devised is infused with a natural ingredient found in licorice that kills the primary bacterium causing tooth decay, Streptococcus mutans.
Marketed as Dr. John's Herbal Candy, the lollipop, now available for purchase through a candy manufacturer that licenses the technology from UCLA, is the first therapeutic developed by Shi. But he has many more in the works designed to target bacteria wreaking havoc in the nose, ear and gut, to name just a few.
And he's also working on kits to test for these devilish pathogens. "Part of my wild dream is that one day you will walk into the dentist's office and give a saliva sample to be tested, just as you would give urine and blood samples to doctors," said Shi, a professor with joint appointments in UCLA's dental and medical schools.
Keep it up Dr. Shi! The world needs more candy that's good for you!! And now more good news from the world of medicine.
Mind over body: New hope for quadriplegics
Around 2.5 million people worldwide are wheelchair bound because of spinal injuries. Half of them are quadriplegic, paralyzed from the neck down. European researchers are now offering them new hope thanks to groundbreaking technology that uses brain signals alone to control computers, artificial limbs and even wheelchairs.
Using electrical signals emitted by the brain and picked up by electrodes attached to the user's scalp, the system allows people to operate devices and perform tasks that previously they could only dream of. So far, the team, led by the IDIAP Research Institute in Switzerland, has carried out a series of successful trials in which users have been able to maneuver a wheelchair around obstacles using brainpower alone.
Brain controlled devices for people with impaired movement and for other uses, have been under development for many years, but they've had only limited success, mainly because of the difficulties of turning brain signals into accurate mechanical movement. What sets the Swiss system apart is that it doesn't rely on the human brain alone to do all the work but also incorporates artificial intelligence into the device being used.
A person using the BCI (brain control interface) to control a wheelchair, for example, only has to think about going straight ahead or turning left and the chair follows their command. However, they do not have to worry about colliding with obstacles – even moving ones like people – because the wheelchair itself monitors and reacts to its environment.
A user can tell the chair to go straight ahead, but it will stop if there's a wall or a flight of stairs in the way. The system combines the intelligence of the person with the artificial intelligence of the device. In a sense, the artificial intelligence embedded in the chair acts much like a human's subconscious. People, for example, don't consciously send commands to every muscle in each leg in order to walk and don't think where to step to avoid an obstacle – they do it subconsciously. Similarly, a wheelchair-bound user of the Swiss system simply has to send the signal to go in a certain direction and the chair figures out how to get there.
The researchers point out that there's still a long road ahead before the system can be put into general use. Before a wheelchair like this one can reach the market there would have to be extensive trials to prove that the technology is robust enough. You certainly don't want it breaking down when someone is in the middle of the street! Carrying out such validation trials remains a goal of the project partners who are actively seeking further funding and investment to continue their work.
And here's hoping that, on behalf of not only paralyzed people but the world's aging population, that they get their funding!
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