Is the bone implant of the future a hydrogel?

ETH Zurich

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From hard, stiff implants to soft, bone-like structured implants. 

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Credit: X-H Qin / ETH Zurich

Bones broken in a (skiing) accident usually heal on their own. But if the break is too severe or a bone tumour needs to be removed, surgeons insert an implant that enables the bone to grow back together. 

Implants often consist of pieces of the patient’s own bone, known as autografts, or metal or ceramic parts. A key drawback of many of today’s implants is that they require a second surgery to harvest the tissue for the autografts. Additionally, metal implants tend to be too rigid and may loosen over time, compromising stability. 

Taking biology into account

What’s even more significant is that bone is an incredibly complex organ with numerous tunnels and cavities. “For proper healing, it is vital that biology is incorporated into the repair process,” says Xiao-Hua Qin, Professor of Biomaterials Engineering at ETH Zurich. A successful repair of this nature depends on various cell types that must first colonise the implant before forming new bone tissue.

This prompted the ETH researcher to adopt a new strategy: Qin, along with his team and ETH Professor Ralph Müller, has created a novel hydrogel suitable for future implants. This hydrogel, which is as soft as jelly, dissolves gradually in the body and could potentially be used for personalised bone implants. The study detailing this development has recently been published in the journal Advanced Materials.

Healing begins with soft material

The researcher explains that at the start of natural bone healing, the body initially employs a soft material. In the first days after a fracture, a haematoma or bruise forms that is permeable and facilitates the migration of reparative and immune cells and the delivery of nutrients. A fibrin network binds these cells together. This initial soft structure gradually transforms into hard, stiff bone.

The hydrogel is modelled on this natural bone healing process. It is made up of 97 percent water and 3 percent biocompatible polymer. To make it solidify, the researchers introduced two special molecules: one that links the polymer chains together and another that, when exposed to light, triggers the reaction.

Wanwan Qiu, Qin and Müller’s former doctoral student, developed the connecting molecule specifically for this application. “It enables rapid structuring of hydrogels in the sub-micrometre range,” she says. The polymer chains are linked as soon as laser pulses of a certain wavelength hit the hydrogel. The irradiated areas immediately become solid, while the non-irradiated parts can be washed out later. 

Jelly can be set at world-record speed 

In this way, the researchers can use the laser beam to print any shapes and structures into the hydrogel with very fine resolution and extreme precision. The structures can be as small as 500 nanometres. 

“Hydrogels resemble jelly, making them difficult to shape,” says ETH Professor Qin. “With our newly developed connecting molecule, we can now not only structure the hydrogel in a stable and extremely fine manner but also produce it at high writing speeds of up to 400 millimetres per second. That’s a new world record.” 

Structures in the nanometre range 

In their study, the researchers created complex, structured hydrogels that resemble real bone and feature a fine network of bone trabeculae. They used medical imaging as a template. 

Even healthy natural bone is criss-crossed by a fine network of channels that are only nanometres thick and filled with fluid. “A piece of bone the size of a dice contains 74 kilometres of tunnels,” says Qin. By way of comparison, the longest railway tunnel in the world, the Gotthard Base Tunnel, measures 54 kilometres. 

Material is biocompatible 

So far, the researchers have tested the material only in a test tube. Results showed that bone-forming cells rapidly colonise the structured hydrogel and begin forming collagen, a vital component of bone. The tests also confirmed that the material is biocompatible and does not damage the bone-forming cells. The researchers have patented the base material and plan to make it available to the medical industry.  

The researcher’s declared goal is for the hydrogel-based implant to one day be used in clinics to repair broken bones. However, more work is needed. Qin is preparing to conduct animal tests in collaboration with the AO Research Institute Davos. The team aims to determine whether their new bone repair material promotes the migration of bone-forming cells in living organisms and whether it restores bone strength over time. 

A promising sign: bone-forming cells (purple) have already colonised a hydrogel-based bone structure and are producing collagen (light blue).

Credit

Xiao-Shua Qin / ETH Zurich

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Journal

Advanced Materials

DOI

10.1002/adma.202510834 

Article Title

Water-Soluble PVA Macrothiol Enables Two-Photon Microfabrication of Cell-Interactive Hydrogel Structures at 400 mm s−1.

 

Mount Sinai, Uniformed Services University join forces to predict and prevent diseases before they start

Multidisciplinary study uses blood samples to identify disease years early, including cancers, heart disease, and autoimmune disorders

The Mount Sinai Hospital / Mount Sinai School of Medicine

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NEW YORK, NY (March 2, 2026)—What if doctors could tell you a disease was coming years before you felt a single symptom—and stop it in its tracks? That is the goal of a sweeping new research initiative launched by the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in collaboration with the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU) and the Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine (HJF).

The project, called “ORIGIN: Omics to Characterize Preclinical Stages of Non-Infectious Diseases,” brings together 10 specialties across Mount Sinai Health System in an ambitious multidisciplinary disease-prevention study.

The study will analyze stored blood samples from up to 13,000 active-duty U.S. service members, drawn years before any diagnosis, using advanced molecular “omics” tools such as proteomics, exposomics, metabolomics, genomics, and more. By identifying risk factors and early warning signals, ORIGIN aims to lay the groundwork for predicting and ultimately preventing some of today’s most common and devastating diseases.

A Decade of Partnership, Now Expanded to a Global Scale

“For years, we have dreamed of being able to tell a patient: ‘We see this coming, and here is what we can do about it,’” said Jean-Frédéric Colombel, MD, Professor of Medicine (Gastroenterology) and Co-Director, The Helmsley Inflammatory Bowel Disease Center, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, and Co-Principal Investigator, ORIGIN. “ORIGIN is the realization of that dream. By studying the blood of service members years before they get sick, we can map the molecular road to disease and ultimately develop tools to change course. This is medicine at its most proactive, and it could benefit not just military families, but every American.”

For more than a decade, Dr. Colombel has partnered with USU researchers to study inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) in military personnel using the Department of Defense Serum Repository (DoDSR), which contains millions of longitudinal blood samples. Their research identified molecular signals in the blood years before IBD was diagnosed.

ORIGIN dramatically expands that model. Where the earlier effort focused on one disease, ORIGIN will study more than 25 conditions simultaneously, including rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, multiple sclerosis, Crohn’s disease, neurodegenerative disease, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), colon cancer, lung cancer, and heart failure. The effort is powered by the Precision Immunology Institute at Mount Sinai (PrIISM), whose cross-disciplinary model is specifically designed to break down the walls that traditionally separate medical specialties—enabling cardiologists, immunologists, neurologists, oncologists, and environmental and data scientists to work as one team.

Why the Military? A Unique Window Into Human Health

U.S. military service members receive comprehensive, routine health monitoring from the moment they enlist, creating an extraordinary long-term medical record that is unlike anything available in the civilian world. The DoDSR holds serial blood samples from millions of service members, many collected a decade or more before any illness emerged. For researchers, this is a scientific treasure.

ORIGIN will use this resource to answer questions that have never been answerable before, including:

• What is happening in the body five years before someone is diagnosed with lupus?
• What molecular changes precede early-onset colon cancer—a disease on the rise in younger adults—by three years?
• How do military-specific environmental exposures like burn pits and per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS, aka “forever chemicals,” which are found at more than 700 U.S. military sites) alter the body’s biology and raise disease risk?

USU’s data analysts will select and match cases and controls from the Military Health System Data Repository, coordinate with the Armed Forces Health Surveillance Division to deidentify all records, and ensure the proper governance and security of the data and serum before it is shared with the Mount Sinai research team for analysis.

“The men and women warfighters of this country deserve cutting-edge medical care,” said Daniel J. Adams, MD, Associate Professor of Pediatrics at USU and USU’s Principal Investigator for ORIGIN. “Our collaboration with Mount Sinai directly advances our USU mission to support the readiness, health, and well-being of our military community, using the unparalleled resource of the DoD Serum Repository to decode the early biology of chronic diseases. The insights from ORIGIN will help us protect service members today and advance medicine for decades to come.”

Breaking Medical Silos: The PrIISM Approach

One of the most exciting aspects of ORIGIN is the way it is structured. ORIGIN is designed to break from the traditional model of studying one disease at a time. Instead, 10 departments across Mount Sinai Health System are collaborating under PrIISM to look for shared biological pathways across different conditions.

Using advanced “omics” technologies, researchers will analyze proteins, metabolites, environmental exposures, and immune responses from blood samples, integrating these data through sophisticated computational modeling. By uncovering common molecular roots of disease, the team hopes to develop treatments and prevention strategies that work across multiple conditions—and ultimately reclassify illness based on molecular biology rather than the organ it affects.

“ORIGIN is exactly the kind of bold, boundary-breaking science that PrIISM was built to support,” said Miriam Merad, MD, PhD, Director, PrIISM, and Mount Sinai’s Co-Principal Investigator for ORIGIN. “By uniting 10 departments and bridging the worlds of military medicine and academic research, we are creating something entirely new—a molecular atlas of how disease begins. The potential to prevent illness before it starts, and to rewrite how we classify and treat dozens of conditions, is truly transformative for patients everywhere.”

A Study With Real-World Impact

The study timeline covers samples collected between October 2003 and September 2025, and the project is expected to run for at least 10 years—with findings that could reshape clinical guidelines, drug development, and public health policy for generations.

Diseases targeted by ORIGIN include conditions that are increasingly common among younger Americans, such as early-onset colon cancer, PTSD, and Crohn’s disease, making its findings urgently relevant far beyond the military community.

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About the Mount Sinai Health System 

Mount Sinai Health System is one of the largest academic medical systems in the New York metro area, with 48,000 employees working across seven hospitals, more than 400 outpatient practices, more than 600 research and clinical labs, a school of nursing, and a leading school of medicine and graduate education. Mount Sinai advances health for all people, everywhere, by taking on the most complex health care challenges of our time—discovering and applying new scientific learning and knowledge; developing safer, more effective treatments; educating the next generation of medical leaders and innovators; and supporting local communities by delivering high-quality care to all who need it. 

Through the integration of its hospitals, labs, and schools, Mount Sinai offers comprehensive health care solutions from birth through geriatrics, leveraging innovative approaches such as artificial intelligence and informatics while keeping patients’ medical and emotional needs at the center of all treatment. The Health System includes approximately 9,000 primary and specialty care physicians and 10 free-standing joint-venture centers throughout the five boroughs of New York City, Westchester, Long Island, and Florida. Hospitals within the System are consistently ranked by Newsweek’s® “The World’s Best Smart Hospitals, Best in State Hospitals, World Best Hospitals and Best Specialty Hospitals” and by U.S. News & World Report's® “Best Hospitals” and “Best Children’s Hospitals.” The Mount Sinai Hospital is on the U.S. News & World Report® “Best Hospitals” Honor Roll for 2025-2026.  

For more information, visit https://www.mountsinai.org or find Mount Sinai on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, X, and YouTube. 

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Subject of Research

People

 

SwRI develops magnetostrictive probe for safer, more cost-effective storage tank inspections

Probe uses guided-wave technology to detect corrosion with exceptional accuracy

Southwest Research Institute

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Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) has created a magnetostrictive (MST) probe that uses guided wave technology to detect corrosion in storage tanks, creating a more cost-effective and efficient inspection method. SwRI’s probe attaches to the side of a storage tank and produces a highly detailed map of damaged areas inside.

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Credit: Southwest Research Institute

SAN ANTONIO — March 2, 2026 — Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) has created a magnetostrictive transducer (MST) probe that uses ultrasonic guided wave technology to detect corrosion in storage tanks, a process that normally requires emptying the tank and checking for corrosion manually. SwRI’s probe attaches to the outside of a storage tank, resulting in a more cost-effective and efficient method of corrosion detection.

The SwRI MST 8x8 is a flexible strip of eight ultrasonic sensors that generate acoustic waves along a structure. The technique identifies anomalies when the waves are reflected back to the sensor by corrosion and other flaws. Specifically, the probe uses shear horizontal guided waves, which are ideal for detecting defects because of their sensitivity and precision. SwRI is a leader in advanced inspection technologies, with considerable expertise in MSTs.

“Many industries require storage tanks to be inspected regularly,” said SwRI’s Dr. Sergey Vinogradov, author of a recent paper detailing the efficacy of the SwRI MST 8x8. “This can be a very expensive process, as it requires the tank to be emptied, cleaned and manually inspected. By allowing inspection without emptying the tank, our probe reduces expensive down time and improves inspection safety, by avoiding work in hazardous, confined spaces.”

SwRI performed rigorous field testing of the probe on a series of storage tanks, though the technology can also be applied to ship hulls, wind turbines, rocket bodies, pipelines and other structures. The probe’s array of eight sensors also allows it to collect data from multiple angles, increasing accuracy.

This setup supports full matrix capture, which gives the system the ability to create highly detailed 2D maps of the tanks.

“Data from the probe is processed with an advanced imaging algorithm, the total focusing method, that generates these maps,” Vinogradov said. “As a result, instead of just indicating the presence of an anomaly, it can create a high-resolution map of the structure, showing areas with potential corrosion. This helps users assess the extent of damage to decide when to schedule expensive, time-consuming tank repairs.”

The probe also works well with complex geometries, such as curved surfaces and attachments, which can interfere with traditional inspection methods.

The inspection technique supports a wide range of industries, including oil and gas, aerospace, manufacturing, shipping, water and municipal utilities. SwRI will offer the technology via equipment sales, licensing and technology transfer to inspection companies.

The study “Screening of Corrosion in Storage Tank Walls and Bottoms Using an Array of Guided Wave Magnetostrictive Transducers,” was published in MDPI Sensors and is accessible at https://doi.org/10.3390/s26041253.

For more information, visit https://www.swri.org/markets/chemistry-materials/materials/sensor-systems-nondestructive-evaluation-nde/magnetostrictive-sensor-based-guided-waves.

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Journal

Sensors

DOI

10.3390/s26041253 

Method of Research

Observational study

Subject of Research

Not applicable

Article Title

Screening of Corrosion in Storage Tank Walls and Bottoms Using an Array of Guided Wave Magnetostrictive Transducers

 SCI-FI-TEK 70 YRS IN THE MAKING

National report supports measurement innovation to aid commercial fusion energy and enable new plasma technologies

Princeton University

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To operate fusion systems safely and reliably, scientists need to monitor plasma fuel conditions and measure properties like temperature and density that can affect fusion reactions. Making these measurements requires specialized sensors known as diagnostics.

A new report sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) recommends increased investment in America’s fusion diagnostic capabilities, a critical new technology that could provide DOE and Congress with information to speed up the delivery of commercial fusion power plants.

The report was produced as part of the DOE’s 2024 Basic Research Needs Workshop on Measurement Innovation, sponsored by the DOE’s Office of Science’s Fusion Energy Sciences (FES) program. It was chaired by Luis Delgado-Aparicio, head of advanced projects at the DOE’s Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL), and co-chaired by Sean Regan, a distinguished scientist and the director of the Experimental Division at the University of Rochester’s Laboratory for Laser Energetics.

The workshop gathered experts from academia, private industry and national laboratories like PPPL to identify the critical diagnostics and measurement technologies needed to advance U.S. leadership in fusion energy and plasma technologies. This workshop supported the goals outlined in the DOE’s Fusion Science & Technology Roadmap, which “targets actions and milestones out to the mid-2030s, providing the scientific and technological foundation to support a competitive U.S. fusion energy industry.”

“Measurement innovations have led and will continue to lead to scientific and engineering breakthroughs in plasma science and technology activities supported by the DOE’s FES, especially fusion energy sciences,” said Delgado-Aparicio. “This new report provides substantive findings across seven key areas of plasma and fusion science and technology. We believe it will impact both the public and private fusion communities in a meaningful way.”

“The findings in this report are a testament to the critical role of diagnostics in driving fusion energy science forward,” said Regan. “By investing in innovative measurement technologies, we can accelerate progress toward commercial fusion energy and strengthen America’s leadership in plasma science.”

The report summarizes findings from 70 researchers who analyzed seven plasma physics topics funded by the DOE’s FES program. These include:

• Low-temperature plasma.
• High-energy-density plasma.
• Plasma-material interaction.
• Burning plasma created through magnetic-confinement fusion (MCF).
• Burning plasma created through inertial-confinement fusion (ICF).
• Fusion pilot power plants based on MCF.
• Fusion power plants based on ICF.

The researchers identified ways in which the federal government could boost the capability of U.S. scientists to use diagnostics to measure plasma. Those priority research opportunities include creating diagnostics that can withstand the levels of radiation expected in future fusion power plants, inventing new measurement techniques that can measure the ultra-quick processes involved in ICF, using artificial intelligence (AI) to speed up the design processes for these innovations and supporting a robust pathway for scientists to enter into diagnostics research. These same capabilities underpin a broader plasma-technology ecosystem critical to U.S. economic leadership.

“Both Luis and I thank the members of the working groups and the broader community for their dedication and hard work in putting this report together,” Regan said. “Their expertise and collaboration have been instrumental in identifying the critical innovations needed to advance diagnostic technologies.”

Below is the list of major findings outlined in the report:

• Accelerate Innovation: The pace of progress for measurement innovations for the FES community, especially for realizing nuclear fusion energy, could be accelerated by validating and verifying design modeling codes, AI and machine learning, and the use of digital twins.
• Establish a National Network: Measurement innovation offers a critical cross-cutting thread within the FES community and could be better supported by a program modeled after LaserNetUS. Such a community could be called CalibrationNetUS.
• Form National Teams: National teams should be formed to transform ideas for measurement innovations into working diagnostics in an efficient and economical way.
• Standardize Calibrations: A more systematic approach to diagnostic calibrations would significantly benefit measurement innovations.
• Transfer Knowledge to the Private Sector: Transferring diagnostics and operational expertise from the public sector to private facilities offers synergistic benefits to the fusion energy science community.
• Invest in a Workforce Pipeline: The measurement innovations needed for fusion pilot plants require a momentous workforce development effort.
• Plan Now for Remote Operations: Measurement innovations needed for remote operation and maintenance of fusion pilot plants should be the topic of future workshops.

About the report

The full report is available online, along with an executive summary.

The report was produced under the leadership of Delgado-Aparicio and Regan, with guidance from Curt Bolton of FES. The working groups led the development of the chapters. The workshop was organized collaboratively with the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education team. Editorial and project management support was provided by PPPL’s Communications Department, including B. Rose Huber, Raphael Rosen and Kelly Lorraine Andrews. Michael Branigan of Sandbox Studio led art direction and design with illustrations by Ariel Davis.

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PPPL is mastering the art of using plasma — the fourth state of matter — to solve some of the world's toughest science and technology challenges. Nestled on Princeton University’s Forrestal Campus in Plainsboro, New Jersey, our research ignites innovation in a range of applications, including fusion energy, nanoscale fabrication, quantum materials and devices, and sustainability science. The University manages the Laboratory for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Science, which is the nation’s single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences. Feel the heat at https://energy.gov/science and http://www.pppl.gov.  

The University of Rochester’s Laboratory for Laser Energetics (LLE) is a premier research facility dedicated to advancing the science of fusion energy and high-energy-density physics. LLE’s Omega Laser Facility is the world’s largest laser system in academia and plays a pivotal role in developing diagnostics for ICF and other plasma technologies. Learn more at https://www.lle.rochester.edu.