Bones

For some time now, we've heard about scaffolding-like materials that are implanted into bone fractures, prompting the body's own bone cells to grow into them and heal the break. Now, however, scientists have developed a special bandage that may also do the job.

One of the largest, most complete and most famous Tyrannosaurus rex skeletons is about to go under the hammer. The dinosaur, nicknamed “Stan,” has been on display in the Black Hills Institute for decades, but will now be auctioned off by Christie’s.

The results of an interesting experiment in which muscled-up mice were sent into space has shed some new light on how the low-gravity environment impacts physiology, with the rodents retaining muscle mass when engineered to lack a certain protein.

Like most machines, the human body tends to wear out faster at the points of articulation, where decades of stress are focused. Now, researchers at Stanford have found a way to induce cartilage tissue to regenerate in joints by tweaking the stem cells there.

Scientists at the National University of Science and Technology in Russia are developing a new bioactive polymer-ceramic composite derived from common eggshells that can be used to treat skull injuries and other surgical bone procedures.

It was just a couple of months ago that we heard about an implantable material that electrically stimulates bone cells, causing them to reproduce. Now, scientists have created a similar substance that utilizes magnetism.

Mysteries surrounding an ancient, long-necked reptile that lived 242 million years ago have finally been resolved. It's so difficult to understand from its fossils, at one time scientists weren't even sure if it swam in the sea or flew in the sky.

Researchers in Canada have diagnosed an advanced, malignant bone cancer – in a dinosaur. Using human diagnostic techniques, a team examined a large growth on the animal’s leg bone, marking the first time such a diagnosis has been made for a dinosaur.

Whenever someone receives an implant such as an artificial hip, there's always a risk that it won't integrate with the surrounding bone, ultimately causing it to separate and fail. A new coating, however, has been created to keep that from happening.

More and more, we're hearing about scaffolding-like materials that are used to help heal bone injuries. A new one is claimed to be particularly versatile, as it's inspired by Lego building blocks.

We've already heard about implantable materials with a scaffolding-like microstructure, that help heal broken bones by giving bone cells a place to migrate into. A new one could work even better, though, by also providing electrical stimulation.

A substance known as calcium phosphate cement is commonly used to repair broken bones, both holding them together and encouraging the growth of new bone tissue. Now, scientists have added carbon fibers to the material to also make it self-healing.