Laboratory Equipment

Bioengineered Jellyfish is Made of Silicone, Heart Muscle

Using recent advances in marine biomechanics, materials science and tissue engineering, a team of researchers at Harvard Univ. and the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) have turned inanimate silicone and living cardiac muscle cells into a freely swimming “jellyfish.”

The finding serves as a proof of concept for reverse engineering a variety of muscular organs and simple life forms. It also suggests a broader definition of what counts as synthetic life in an emerging field that has primarily focused on replicating life’s building blocks.

Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news-Bioengineered-Jellyfish-is-Made-of-Silicone-Heart-Muscle-072312.aspx

Robotic Jellyfish Could Patrol, Clean Oil Spills

Virginia Tech College of Engineering researchers are working on a multi-university, nationwide project for the U.S. Navy that one day will put life-like autonomous robot jellyfish in waters around the world.

The main focus of the program is to understand the fundamentals of propulsion mechanisms utilized by nature, says Shashank Priya, associate professor of mechanical engineering and materials science and engineering at Virginia Tech, and lead researcher on the project. Future uses of the robot jellyfish could include conducting military surveillance, cleaning oil spills and monitoring the environment.

Read more: http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/news-Robotic-Jellyfish-Could-Patrol-Clean-Oil-Spills-053112.aspx

electricorchid:

The golden jelly (Mastigias papua etpisoni) lives in marine lakes in the southern Pacific, most famously Jellyfish Lake in Palau. In addition to obtaining nutrients from captured zooplankton, this jellyfish grows its own garden of photosynthetic microorganisms within its translucent tissues. | +