Institute for Medical Engineering and Science (IMES)

Samantha Cole writes for Popular Science that researchers from MIT’s Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics are developing boots that pulse and vibrate to warn the wearer of nearby obstacles. Cole explains that the researchers see the technology “as valuable not only for space walks, but for firefighters, the elderly, or those with compromised sensory systems.” 

In this article and video, Nature reporter Corie Lok spotlights Prof Lydia Bourouiba’s work studying the fluid dynamics of coughing and sneezing. Bourouiba explains that her research combines “fluid mechanics to problems that are relevant in health and epidemiology to understand better how pathogens are transmitted.”

In an article for The Huffington Post, Susan Blumenthal highlights how researchers from MIT have developed a paper-based test for diagnosing the Zika virus. Blumenthal writes that “the test consists of a paper covered with yellow dots that turns purple in the presence of the RNA of the virus.”

CNN’s Jareen Imam writes that MIT researchers have developed a new topical solution that can make wrinkles invisible and could potentially deliver medications to the skin. "We hope this can be used for many different things," explains Prof. Daniel Anderson. "For example, if you need it for a large area of skin you might put it on like sunscreen."

CBS This Morning highlights the “second skin” material developed by MIT researchers that can help tighten wrinkles and protect the skin. CBS News medical contributor Dr. David Agus says that the material is “really an amazing work in chemical engineering,” highlighting how the material could be used to deliver medication to the skin. 

A new material developed by MIT researchers could assist with everything from tightening wrinkles to delivering medication to the skin, reports Enjoli Francis for ABC News. Prof. Robert Langer explains that the material is invisible and “conforms to the skin. You can use it to deliver a drug, if you want, and it's mechanically quite strong."

FOX 25 reports on the new polymer developed by MIT researchers that can smooth wrinkles and could one day potentially deliver medications to the skin. The material is a “‘silicone-based polymer’ that acts as a kind of ‘second skin,’ and could be used to provide protection from the sun.”

Washington Post reporter Rachel Feltman writes about the new “second skin” material developed by MIT researchers. The researchers found that the new material “could actually find its best use in patients with severe skin problems like eczema or psoriasis, which can both cause extremely dry and itchy skin.”

Prof. Robert Langer speaks with Scientific American reporter Gary Stix about the material he and his colleagues developed that can tighten skin and deliver medications. Langer explains that the material is an “ointment that you can apply very easily but then the way we've set up the chemistry, it actually hardens and becomes almost like an invisible Band-Aid.”

A new material developed by MIT researchers can help smooth wrinkles, protect the skin from sun damage and could one day even administer medications, reports Gina Kolata for The New York Times. “We made literally hundreds of polymers,” explains Prof. Robert Langer. “We were looking for safety, spreadability, adherence, and the right kind of mechanical and optical properties.”

MIT researchers have developed a transparent, silicon-based polymer that can protect skin from sun damage and smooth out wrinkles, writes Amina Khan for The Los Angeles Times. Prof. Robert Langer explains that users of the material will “hardly know that it’s on. It sort of conforms to the skin.”

BBC News reporter Michelle Roberts writes that MIT researchers have developed a new material that can hide wrinkles and could eventually be used to deliver medicines and sun protection. The researchers found that skin “coated with the polymer was more elastic than skin without the film. And, to the naked eye, it appeared smoother, firmer and less wrinkly.”

Wired reporter Emily Reynolds writes about Anna Young, who works with the Little Devices Lab at MIT, and her talk at “WIRED Health” on bringing innovation to hospitals. "There's another side of medical devices," says Young. “I consider myself a medical device archaeologist. I want to take these tools apart, understand how they work."

Huffington Post reporter Carolyn Gregoire writes that MIT spinoff Synlogic is working on reprogramming gut bacteria to act as a living therapeutic. “It’s become really clear that the bacteria living in us and on us affect our bodies in a variety of different ways — in ways that we never imagined,” explains Prof. Timothy Lu. 

Tech Insider’s Chris Weller reports on a new study by MIT researchers that examines how sneezes travel and spread viruses. The findings could help researchers “predict and prevent disease spread,” Weller explains. “If they know how quickly a pathogen spreads via sneeze, then they can learn more about the risks posed by the viruses themselves.”