Nanopatch for the Heart

While regenerative medicine researchers work on growing new hearts from collagen scaffolds and induced pluripotent stem cells, engineers at Brown University have developed a nanotube “heart patch” that can fit over an area damaged from a heart attack and restore electrical conductance and blood flow.  Moreover, the patch stimulates muscle, nerve and blood vessel cells to regenerate-at least so in animals.  Those involved in this work imagine a minimally invasive technique for putting it into place.            MORE

Image Credit:  Thomas Webster at Brown University and Technology Review