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An ACL Tear That Heals Itself?

Treatment for a torn ACL typically involves surgically reconstructing the ligament with harvested tissue. But what if a new type of treatment could prompt the ruptured ligament to just grow back together again, eliminating the need to harvest replacement tissue?

Moving beyond reconstruction toward restoration, or enabling the ligament to repair itself, is the idea behind an emerging area of orthopedics that looks to harness biologics—in some cases animal tissue augmented with human blood and other growth factors—to rally the body’s natural healing processes.

Read the original article in The Wall Street Journal.

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New Brain Implant Transmits Full Words from Neural Signals

Neuroscience
Earlier generations of neuroprostheses have relied on communications from the brain to the limb or hand muscles to activate letters on a keyboard. Now, researchers have decoded the origin of brain signals controlling speech and created the new neuroprosthesis that facilitates the production of whole words, yielding a faster word-per-minute rate.

Modern Life is Messing with Our Microbiomes, But Science is Fighting Back

Microbiology
The microbiome plays a crucial role in physical and mental health. A person's first few years of life are critical in acquiring the microbes necessary for a robust microbiome. Modern life is making it harder to get this exposure, with the drop in interactions due to the pandemic potentially having long-lasting effects. Scientists are researching solutions to restore this essential biological system.