A drug delivery patch can be time activated, and some of the more complex ones require batteries within to keep them running. Well, things run (pun not intended) a little bit differently with what a couple of Purdue University researchers have come up with – a small pump that is powered by fermentation. This technology could eventually snake its way into transdermal drug patches which are capable of delivering drugs from an internal reservoir in a controlled manner. The pump itself will rely on a combination of sugar and yeast alongside water to generate carbon dioxide, thanks to heat from the patient’s body. Accumulated CO2 will create pressure within, resulting in the required amount of energy for squeezing a drug sack that is located on top of the fermentation chamber.
Well, this certainly sounds like a medical development not to be trifled with. After all, who knows, you might actually be your very own walking beer factory if you have a large scale model of this hanging off your back. I jest here, but who knows the future, really?
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