Utafiti unaonyesha kwa mara ya kwanza kitengeneza moyo kibunifu kinachojiendesha chenyewe kilichojaribiwa kwa mafanikio katika nguruwe
Utawala moyo maintains a pace through its internal pacemaker called sinoatrial node (SA node), also called sinus node located in the upper right chamber. This internal pacemaker releases electrical charge 60-100 times in a minute and this energy carries out contractions in heart muscles which allow our heart to pump blood throughout our body. As we age or get an illness, this internal pacemaker is unable to keep the heart beating properly. Irregular heartbeat is also caused by a condition called arrythmia which slows down one’s heart’s normal rate. To substitute for this loss, a traditional heart pacemaker – a battery-operated electronic device – can be surgically implanted inside a patient to regularize heartbeat and keep the heart beating steadily.
Kipima moyo cha jadi
Kifaa hiki kina jenereta ya kunde inayoendeshwa na betri ambayo hupandikizwa chini ya ngozi karibu na mfupa wa kola. Pia ina waya za maboksi ambazo huunganisha kifaa na moyo. Mzunguko wa kielektroniki hutoa ishara za umeme ambazo hutolewa kwa moyo kupitia elektroni. Pacemaker ni kifaa cha kuokoa maisha; hata hivyo, kikwazo kimoja kikubwa cha kisaidia moyo cha sasa ni kwamba zinahitaji kubadilishwa wakati wowote kati ya miaka 5 hadi 12 ya kwanza zinapowekwa kwa sababu ya muda mdogo wa betri. Upandikizaji huo unaweza tu kufanywa kupitia upasuaji wa vamizi kwa kutumia ganzi ya ndani ambayo yenyewe ni changamoto kwani pango la kifua cha mgonjwa linahitaji kufunguliwa. Upasuaji sio tu wa gharama kubwa lakini pia huongeza hatari ya mgonjwa ya shida, maambukizo au hata kutokwa na damu. Aina nyingine ya pacemaker ndogo imeundwa ambayo inaweza kupandikizwa kupitia catheter kuepuka upasuaji lakini bado inafanyiwa majaribio.
Watafiti wamekuwa wakizingatia ujenzi pacemaker za moyo ambayo inaweza kutumia nishati asilia kutoka kwa mpigo wa moyo wa mtu badala ya betri. Kinadharia, pacemaker kama hiyo haitahitaji kubadilishwa mara tu inapopandikizwa ndani ya mgonjwa. Vidhibiti moyo vinavyoendeshwa na Plutonium vimetengenezwa miongo mingi mapema. Muundo wa kimajaribio wa visaidia moyo vipya umekumbana na vikwazo kadhaa kufikia sasa - kama vile muundo dhabiti wa muundo ambao unazuia nguvu na matatizo yake na uboreshaji mdogo.
Kisaidia moyo kibunifu kisicho na betri chenye muundo wa kipekee
Katika utafiti mpya uliochapishwa katika ACS Nano researchers from National Key Laboratory for Science and Technology, Shanghai, China set out to design a novel small pacemaker device which can be powered from energy of one’s own heartbeat and they successfully tested this device in pigs. The new device can be tucked under the heart rather than near the collar bone as with conventional pacemakers. The pacemaker is based on an ideal symbiotic relationship between one’s heart and the device.
The design of this new pacemaker was initiated by first making a small flexible plastic frame. This frame was bonded with piezoelectric layers which upon being bent generate energy. This part, called energy ‘harvester’ was placed on a chip. The device was implanted in pigs and it was observed that the animals’ own heartbeat could alter (bend) the shape of the frame thereby generating enough energy (power) equivalent to a battery-powered pacemaker. The device’s flexible plastic frame allows it to capture more energy from the heart compared to traditional pacemakers which have hard cases.
Since humans have a physiology very similar to pigs, this pacemaker could work well in humans too. Researchers point out some technical issues which will need to be addressed, example the device comprises of three separate technologies –energy harvester, pacemaker chip and wires – which need to be integrated into one device. Further testing in animals and then in humans can confirm the device’s long-term stability. Such a device if successful will require invasive surgery only once reducing patient’s risk of complications. One major limitation of this new device could be that doctors may not be able to remotely monitor patients as in the case of battery-operated pacemakers.
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{Unaweza kusoma karatasi asili ya utafiti kwa kubofya kiungo cha DOI kilichotolewa hapa chini katika orodha ya (vyanzo) vilivyotajwa}
Chanzo (s)
Ning L et al. 2019. Kuongeza Nguvu Moja kwa Moja kwa Kisaidia Moyo Halisi kwa Nishati Asilia ya Mapigo ya Moyo. ACS Nano. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsnano.8b08567
