Artificial

A new study has reawakened the debate over the safety of artificial sweeteners. The findings suggest an association can be detected between sugar substitutes and increased cancer risk, but experts not affiliated with the research question their validity.

Researchers have built an artificial retina out of perovskite materials that can detect light in a similar fashion to the human eye. In tests, the device was even able to recognize handwritten numbers with a high degree of accuracy.

Artificial devices usually don’t communicate well with nature. Now, researchers have created artificial organic neurons and synapses that can integrate with natural biological systems, and demonstrated this by making a Venus flytrap close on demand.

Researchers have developed a new type of artificial muscle that’s entirely made out of natural proteins. Responding to changes in its environment allows the muscle to flex on demand, which could make it useful for implants, prosthetics or robots.

Patients with kidney failure require regular dialysis, an invasive and potentially risky treatment. But now researchers have successfully demonstrated a prototype bioartificial kidney, which can be implanted and works without the need for drugs.

It may sound like the start of a Frankenstein story, but scientists from New York University (NYU) and the University of Chicago have developed artificial cells made of non-biological matter that mimic the basic functions of living ones.

Tiny robots could serve useful functions, but shrinking actuators has proven challenging. Now researchers at the University of Wollongong have made artificial muscles that surpass your puny natural ones, inspired by the “supercoiling” of DNA strands.

A newfound understanding around the intricate architecture of lobster underbellies has provided MIT engineers with a model for a tough and stretchy new hydrogel, which features great durability and resistance to tearing.

It may be a bit gross, but mucus plays a key role in our bodies. Now, an MIT team has managed to create an artificial version of the stuff, and shown that it’s an effective antimicrobial – even more so than real mucus.

Heart failure often requires a transplant of the whole organ. Now scientists at EPFL have developed an artificial aorta that can help pump blood, taking some of the pressure off the heart to reduce or even eliminate the need for a transplant.

Parkinson’s disease is characterized by clumps of misfolded proteins accumulating and killing brain cells. Johns Hopkins researchers have developed an artificial enzyme that may stop these clumps from spreading, providing a new potential treatment.

Spanish researchers have created a new potential treatment for age-related macular degeneration, which is currently untreatable – a biohybrid artificial retina, made of silk and loaded with new human cells that can integrate and repair the damage.