What if it were possible to treat a broken bone or an injury to an internal organ by simply injecting a liquid that adheres to the damaged tissue before being molded to any desired shape and rigidity? Engineers from Duke University and Harvard Medical School have taken steps in this direction, creating a biocompatible liquid that hardens and assumes a given shape when subjected to ultrasound waves. The liquid, which contains hydrogels and microparticles sensitive to these sound waves, which are inaudible to humans, was dubbed sono-ink. Three laboratory tests demonstrated its viability. In one, the researchers used a catheter to deposit sono-ink into a small cavity in a goat’s heart and then used ultrasound waves to harden the material and change it to the desired shape. The structure sealed off a deformation created by the goat’s heartbeat. One potential advantage of this technique is that it allows the biocompatible material to be molded inside deeper structures than light-based strategies (Science, December 7).
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