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We examined the effect of aging on the integration of position and motion signals, which is essential for tracking visual objects, using the motion-induced position shift (MIPS) phenomenon. We first measured the MIPS and bias in speed perception at three eccentricities. Both young and older adults showed the increasing MIPS and decreasing perceived speed as the eccentricity increased, which is consistent with previous literature. More importantly, we found that the mean MIPS was 2.87 times larger in older adults, and the response variability in position tasks showed a larger difference between age groups compared with the difference in speed tasks. We then measured the MIPS across stimulus durations. Temporal changes in the MIPS showed similar patterns in young and older adults in that the MIPS initially peaked at around 60 ms and approached an asymptote. We further analyzed the changes in response variability across stimulus durations to estimate sensory noise and propagation noise separately and found that only sensory noise was significantly larger in older adults. The overall results suggest that the increased MIPS in older adults is due to the increased dependency on predictive motion signals to compensate for the relatively imprecise position signals, which in turn implies that older adults would depend more on the motion signals to track objects.

Standard clinical care in neonatal and pediatric intensive-care units (NICUs and PICUs, respectively) involves continuous monitoring of vital signs with hard-wired devices that adhere to the skin and, in certain instances, can involve catheter-based pressure sensors inserted into the arteries. These systems entail risks of causing iatrogenic skin injuries, complicating clinical care and impeding skin-to-skin contact between parent and child. Here we present a wireless, non-invasive technology that not only offers measurement equivalency to existing clinical standards for heart rate, respiration rate, temperature and blood oxygenation, but also provides a range of important additional features, as supported by data from pilot clinical studies in both the NICU and PICU. These new modalities include tracking movements and body orientation, quantifying the physiological benefits of skin-to-skin care, capturing acoustic signatures of cardiac activity, recording vocal biomarkers associated with tonality and temporal characteristics of crying and monitoring a reliable surrogate for systolic blood pressure. These platforms have the potential to substantially enhance the quality of neonatal and pediatric critical care. Soft electronic patches worn on the skin of infants or children in intensive-care units have a wide range of capabilities in aiding critical care, including monitoring of hemodynamic parameters, cardiac activity, movement and crying.

The fast-growing field of bioelectronic medicine aims to develop engineered systems that can relieve clinical conditions by stimulating the peripheral nervous system 1 – 5 . This type of technology relies largely on electrical stimulation to provide neuromodulation of organ function or pain. One example is sacral nerve stimulation to treat overactive bladder, urinary incontinence and interstitial cystitis (also known as bladder pain syndrome) 4 , 6 , 7 . Conventional, continuous stimulation protocols, however, can cause discomfort and pain, particularly when treating symptoms that can be intermittent (for example, sudden urinary urgency) 8 . Direct physical coupling of electrodes to the nerve can lead to injury and inflammation 9 – 11 . Furthermore, typical therapeutic stimulators target large nerve bundles that innervate multiple structures, resulting in a lack of organ specificity. Here we introduce a miniaturized bio-optoelectronic implant that avoids these limitations by using (1) an optical stimulation interface that exploits microscale inorganic light-emitting diodes to activate opsins; (2) a soft, high-precision biophysical sensor system that allows continuous measurements of organ function; and (3) a control module and data analytics approach that enables coordinated, closed-loop operation of the system to eliminate pathological behaviours as they occur in real-time. In the example reported here, a soft strain gauge yields real-time information on bladder function in a rat model. Data algorithms identify pathological behaviour, and automated, closed-loop optogenetic neuromodulation of bladder sensory afferents normalizes bladder function. This all-optical scheme for neuromodulation offers chronic stability and the potential to stimulate specific cell types. A closed-loop implantable bioelectronic device that can modulate peripheral neuronal activity is used to improve bladder function in a rat model of cystitis.

Standard of care management in neonatal and pediatric intensive care units (NICUs and PICUs) involve continuous monitoring of vital signs with hard-wired devices that adhere to the skin and, in certain instances, include catheter-loaded pressure sensors that insert into the arteries. These protocols involve risks for complications and impediments to clinical care and skin-to-skin contact between parent and child. Here we present a wireless, non-invasive technology that not only offers measurement equivalency to these management standards but also supports a range of important additional features (without limitations or shortcomings of existing approaches), supported by data from pilot clinical studies in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and pediatric ICU (PICU). The combined capabilities of these platforms extend beyond clinical quality measurements of vital signs (heart rate, respiration rate, temperature and blood oxygenation) to include novel modalities for (1) tracking movements and changes in body orientation, (2) quantifying the physiological benefits of skin-to-skin care (e.g. Kangaroo care) for neonates, (3) capturing acoustic signatures of cardiac activity by directly measuring mechanical vibrations generated through the skin on the chest, (4) recording vocal biomarkers associated with tonality and temporal characteristics of crying impervious to confounding ambient noise, and (5) monitoring a reliable surrogate for systolic blood pressure. The results have potential to significantly enhance the quality of neonatal and pediatric critical care.

Abstract Cultured meat represents an emerging technology with the potential to address global food security and sustainability challenges by producing animal-derived meat without slaughter. Unlike plant-based alternatives, it replicates the biological and sensory properties of conventional meat through controlled cell cultivation. This review provides an integrated overview of recent advances in cell line development, differentiation strategies, scaffold engineering, bioreactor design, and media optimisation for scalable cultured meat production. It also examines critical challenges related to cost reduction, automation, and process control, as well as consumer acceptance and regulatory readiness. By combining progress in stem cell biology, tissue engineering, and bioprocessing, this review highlights the translational pathway of cultured meat development—from the laboratory bench to the dining table—emphasising its multidisciplinary nature and potential for sustainable commercialisation. Graphical Abstract Graphical Abstract