Yu Takagi, Shinji Nishimoto and Osaka University colleagues have published a study which demonstrates that AI can read brain scans and re-create largely realistic versions of images a person has seen. Future applications could include enabling communication of people with paralysis, recording dreams, and understanding animal perception, among others. Additional training was used on the existing text-to-image generative […]
Brain
Amyloid beta oligomer blood test could predict Alzheimer’s disease several years in advance
University of Washington’s Valerie Daggett, Dylan Shea, and colleagues, have developed a lab test that can measure levels of amyloid beta oligomers in blood samples. Known as SOBA, the test detected, in a study of 310 subjects, oligomers in the blood of Alzheimer’s patients, but not in most of the control group, which had no […]
Heart / Ultrasound / Wearables
Wearable cardiac ultrasound continuously monitors heart structure, function for 24 hours
UCSD professor Sheng Xu has developed a wearable ultrasound device that can continuously monitor and assess the structure and function of the human heart for 24 hours, during normal daily activity. This could eliminate the need for highly trained technicians and bulky devices. Signs of cardiac diseases are transient and unpredictable, and imaging can detect […]
Sensors
Wearable sensor glows when bacteria, toxins detected
David Baker, Fiorenzo Omenetto, and University of Washington and Tufts colleagues have developed a garment-printed biopolymer sensor which detects bacteria, toxins, and dangerous chemicals. To work, a chemical activator must be sprayed after potential exposure. If the target is present, the sensor generates light. The intensity of emitted light provides a quantitative measure of the […]
AI
Google AI detects tuberculosis
Google’s deep learning technology detected tuberculosis with similar accuracy to radiologists in a Radiology study. 165,174 chest radiographs from 22,284 patients in four countries were scanned. In detecting active tuberculosis, its sensitivity was higher (88 percent versus 75 percent) and its specificity was noninferior (79 percent versus 84 percent) compared to nine radiologists. Costs were […]
Brain / Parkinson's
qMRI for early detection of Parkinson’s disease
Aviv Mezer and Hebrew University colleagues used quantitative MRI to identify cellular changes in Parkinson’s disease. Their method enabled them to look at microstructures in the striatum, which is known to deteriorate during disease progression. Using a novel algorithm developed by Elior Drori, biological changes in the striatum were revealed, and associated with early stage […]