Science & Technology

Implant to give humans self-healing powers

By T.K. Randall
September 19, 2014

Image: The Pentagon
Credit: Touch Of Light / CC BY-SA 4.0 (adapted) A common trait among comic book superheroes is the ability to heal even the most grievous of wounds incredibly quickly, something that would seem to be completely impossible in real life.

A new military-sponsored research project however may be set to change all that through the development of a remarkable new device that can be implanted in to the body where it can both monitor and heal damage to internal organs."The technology DARPA plans to develop through the ElectRx program could fundamentally change the manner in which doctors diagnose, monitor and treat injury and illness," said Doug Weber of DARPA's biological technologies office.

The concept is based on the process known as neuromodulation which sees the body's nervous system monitor internal organs and regulate the response to infection and disease. Sometimes when a person is injured this process can be thrown off, exacerbating their condition.

The new device would work by intervening in such an instance so that neuromodulation can be kept under control and the healing process can proceed as rapidly and efficiently as possible.

Source: Live Science

Tags: Self-Healing, Implant, Pentagon