Smart Textiles to Release Therapeutic Drugs as Needed #WearableWednesday

via Wearable Technologies

Researchers at the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (Empa) are currently working on integrating therapeutic drugs into polymer fibers that can release them into the skin as needed. The smart fibers are able to recognize the need for therapy all by themselves and dose the active ingredients with great precision. The researchers believe in the future, this technology could be used to administer pain medication as soon as an injury occurs during sports, or release an antibiotic as soon as a wound form on the skin.

“The targeted use of the fiber determines which manufacturing process is best,” explains Empa researcher and project coordinator René Rossi.

“The properties of these new materials are currently being investigated with test substances,” she added.

To make the fibers, researchers are using biodegradable polymers and making them release the drugs that are embedded within them in a controlled manner.

To ensure that the active ingredients dosage is precise, the researchers devised a tricky control mechanism; as some polymers are degradable by the body under certain conditions, they could use this property specifically. “In response to a stimulus from the body, the fibers should release their drugs into the environment at a calculated degradation rate,” Rossi explains.

Learn more!


Flora breadboard is Every Wednesday is Wearable Wednesday here at Adafruit! We’re bringing you the blinkiest, most fashionable, innovative, and useful wearables from around the web and in our own original projects featuring our wearable Arduino-compatible platform, FLORA. Be sure to post up your wearables projects in the forums or send us a link and you might be featured here on Wearable Wednesday!


Have an amazing project to share? The Electronics Show and Tell is every Wednesday at 7:30pm ET! To join, head over to YouTube and check out the show’s live chat and our Discord!

Join us every Wednesday night at 8pm ET for Ask an Engineer!

Join over 38,000+ makers on Adafruit’s Discord channels and be part of the community! http://adafru.it/discord

CircuitPython – The easiest way to program microcontrollers – CircuitPython.org


New Products – Adafruit Industries – Makers, hackers, artists, designers and engineers! — New Products 11/15/2024 Featuring Adafruit bq25185 USB / DC / Solar Charger with 3.3V Buck Board! (Video)

Python for Microcontrollers – Adafruit Daily — Python on Microcontrollers Newsletter: A New Arduino MicroPython Package Manager, How-Tos and Much More! #CircuitPython #Python #micropython @ThePSF @Raspberry_Pi

EYE on NPI – Adafruit Daily — EYE on NPI Maxim’s Himalaya uSLIC Step-Down Power Module #EyeOnNPI @maximintegrated @digikey

Adafruit IoT Monthly — The 2024 Recap Issue!

Maker Business – Adafruit Daily — Apple to build another chip at TSMC Arizona

Electronics – Adafruit Daily — SMT Tip – Stop moving around!

Get the only spam-free daily newsletter about wearables, running a "maker business", electronic tips and more! Subscribe at AdafruitDaily.com !


No Comments

No comments yet.

Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.