Science Highlights

NIH-funded researchers are investigating how to use smartwatches to predict clinical test results, which could potentially serve as an early warning signal for underlying health issues.

A team led by NIBIB scientists has developed hardware and software innovations to construct super-resolution, 3D confocal images of fine structures in living samples.

Fluorescent “dots” – that is, tiny particles that can emit light – have a multitude of promising biomedical applications, yet making such dots is usually a long and tedious process that uses harsh chemicals. Now, NIBIB-funded researchers are developing a fluorescent dot that is not only easier to make, but uses environmentally friendly materials.

NIBIB-funded engineers are using deep learning to differentiate tumor more accurately from normal tissue in positron emission tomography (PET) images.

NIBIB-funded engineers are using focused ultrasound to modulate motor activity in the brain without surgical device implantation, a first step toward non-invasive brain stimulation therapies.

NIBIB-funded researchers are working on an ankle prosthetic that relies on the user’s residual muscles—and the electrical signals that they generate—to help amputees control their posture continuously.

The gut microbiome can impact us in a variety of different ways, from our metabolism to our mood. Now, NIBIB-funded researchers are investigating if a fiber-based gel can restore beneficial microbes in the gut to enhance the efficacy of immune checkpoint inhibitors, a type of cancer immunotherapy treatment.

Placenta accreta spectrum (PAS) disorder is a life-threatening condition that occurs when the placenta remains attached to the uterus after childbirth. Now researchers have developed a blood test to identify this condition, enabling early intervention by high-risk pregnancy specialists.

NIBIB-funded research drives progress in the diagnosis, treatment, and monitoring of middle ear infections.

Bioengineers have developed biocompatible self-assembling “piezoelectric wafers,” which can be made rapidly and inexpensively to enable broad use of implantable muscle-powered electromechanical therapies.