NETWORK OF THE BODY
How would you feel in a world where it is not possible for you to communicate with anyone, to move, to relocate, to feed and breathe? In a reality where there were no veins, our organs would feel exactly the same. The circulatory system, which plays such a critical role in the destiny of life, has had its share from the rapidly developing technology.
We managed to make our blood cells smarter 1. Our digitalized bodies now can measure the pumping quality of blood instantaneously 2. While genetic engineers are discovering hidden genes that affect blood values, 3 bioengineers are making invisible veins visible 4
3D printers face us here again and we are getting closer and closer to designing this "red-blooded" Internet network 5.
1 SMART BLOOD CELLS
The blood cells which are called hemoglobin transport oxygen to the smallest cells of our body. Not only did the scientists produce hemoglobin but also, they made them smarter. By measuring the pH balance, the blood cells coated with a special polymer carry oxygen to the parts of the body that need it.
2 VOICE OF THE HEART
PillCam COLON is designed as a small swallowable camera capsule for colon imaging. The poles at the end are used for imaging purposes. It is an appropriate alternative for patients who d cannot have colonoscopy because of inflammatory bowel and internal hemorrhage.
The pulse and the blood pressure values are the most easily measured insight metrics into the body. If the wearable technologies that allow you to find out that information excites you, hold tight; we are getting introduced to the term "insideable". We will be able to track that information by our mobile phones - thanks to a small chip which is located under the skin.
3 CHOLESTEROL
Cholesterol has become one of the most controversial topics of the scientific world with "everything good" and "bad" about it. A finding which came into light within the Human Genome Atlas project is directly related to cholesterol. Previously thought to have a very small function, Lexis genome which is called the "junk DNA" was actually discovered to balance the cholesterol levels and remove the blockages in the veins.
4 INFRARED VEINS
Trypanophobia is the psychological term for the fear of needles. This anxiety brings along various negative effects from complicating medical operations to lowering the blood donation rate. The device which is called VeinWiewer can reflect the entire vein system in real time by infrared lights, therefore, the health-care personnel and even DaVinci robots can easily perform the necessary medical intervention with minimum pain.
5 ARTIFICIAL VEINS
3D printers are taking their place in every part of the medical world. The University of California nano-engineers have succeeded in creating the entire vein network of the body using 3D printers and UV rays. In China, the blood vessels produced by 3D printers using stem cells have been successfully transferred to a monkey.
