The world of medicine is developing all the time and not standing still. There are always new technologies of rehabilitation and treatment, new methods of diagnostics and medical gadgets that improve the quality of life. The year 2016 was rich in various events in the field of medicine and public health, about which you can read on our website in the relevant section, but for now let’s summarize this year and will try to highlight the most interesting and important thing that happened in medicine in the past year.
1. Stem cells
Stem cells the first year is a topic of discussion and the objects of research scientists from around the world. 2016 is no exception. A lot of the development has been done in this area. Even managed to create artificial stem cells, but it’s all a matter of the future. And now one of the most effective methods of using stem cells is therapy. In early 2016, scientists first managed to put on feet of people with paralyzed limbs. The experiment took place on the basis of Stanford University, and took part in it, 18 people aged 33 to 75 years. They all suffered a stroke a few years before the start of the experiment. In the study, doctors injected stem cells into the damaged part of the brain. Within the first month all the people began to show positive dynamics in improvement of the sensitivity and motor activity. By the end of the year, some of the participants of the experiment were even able to find long-lost functions, and to stand up.
2. The fight against diabetes
Diabetes, though, and is corrected as, continues to be an incurable disease. This year, scientists proposed to conduct transplantation of pancreas from pigs, developed patch to control the level of sugar in blood and even successfully conducted a series of tests using the bionic pancreas.
But the most significant event was, we think, the creation of artificial cells that are sensitive to changes in the level Sahara. These cells are enclosed in a special capsule and is able to produce insulin in response to the change in the concentration of sugar in the blood. While this method is tested only on rodents, but in 2017, the planned full-scale research involving humans.
3. A new method of cancer treatment
Studies on the treatment of cancer are ongoing. One of the most “technologically advanced” you can call the method using the graphene, but now we are not talking about it. With the new method of treatment, doctors were able to achieve remission in 90% of patients with leukemia who participated in the research. In the experiment, leukocytes were extracted from patients ‘ blood and then modified in a special way and then returned to the bloodstream. 10% of the subjects, this procedure caused the rejection, but the majority of people, the disease went into remission.
4. Faux leather
Undoubtedly, transplantation is one of those areas that need more rapid development of the process of creating artificial organs. Undoubtedly, this year was development for the production of artificial organs, muscles, and even nerve cells, but they all have one significant drawback: they are extremely expensive to manufacture, which prevents the implementation in practice everywhere, but scientists from Chile have managed to create a cheap, but still neutorgena artificial leather-based algae. Needless to say that successful completion of a series of experiments, scheduled for 2017, it will open up new perspectives in cosmetology and regenerative medicine? Read more about a new type of leather you can read in our recently published material.
5. Nobel prize for the discovery of the mechanism of autophagy
Of course, one cannot ignore one of the most outstanding events of the scientific world: the Nobel prize. This year one of the winners became a Professor at Tokyo University of Technology, Mr. asinari Osumi, who received the prestigious award in physiology and medicine for his discovery of the mechanism of autophagy. Asinari, Osumi described the process of removal and disposal of damaged components of cells. Due to this discovery it is possible to considerably improve the quality of life, “it will be possible to cleanse the body from the inside out” and rejuvenate it. During such manipulation may be a significant increase in life expectancy.
Top 5 medical discoveries and events of 2016
Vladimir Kuznetsov