{"id":24788,"date":"2018-06-29T13:59:37","date_gmt":"2018-06-29T17:59:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/blog\/?p=24788"},"modified":"2022-03-16T10:47:54","modified_gmt":"2022-03-16T14:47:54","slug":"mosquitos-secret-to-painless-needles","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tun.com\/blog\/mosquitos-secret-to-painless-needles\/","title":{"rendered":"Mosquitos Hold the Secret to Painless Needles"},"content":{"rendered":"

Mosquitos, the pesky, little bugs responsible for spreading diseases and ruining summer barbecues, hold a clue to medical advancements. <\/span><\/p>\n

The needle-like probe that the insects use to suck up blood has inspired Ohio State University researchers to develop a <\/span>painless microneedle<\/span><\/a>. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cA mosquito can sit on skin for several minutes and suck blood painlessly,\u201d said <\/span>Bharat Bhushan<\/span><\/a>, professor of mechanical engineering at Ohio State and co-lead author of the study. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe can use what we have learned from mosquitoes as a starting point to create a better microneedle,\u201d he said in a statement. <\/span><\/p>\n

The study was co-led by <\/span>Navin Kumar<\/span><\/a>, an associate professor of mechanical engineering at the Indian Institute of Technology Ropar. <\/span><\/p>\n

Dev Gurera<\/span><\/a>, a doctoral student in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Ohio State, was a co-author. <\/span><\/p>\n

The paper<\/b><\/h2>\n

In the <\/span>paper<\/span><\/a>, the researchers describe their deep analysis of the proboscis, the mosquito\u2019s \u201cneedle.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Specifically, they evaluated the four key aspects that make a mosquito\u2019s bite painless. <\/span><\/p>\n

Mosquitoes pierce painlessly due to a numbing agent, a subtle vibration during the piercing, a combination of soft and hard parts of the proboscis, and the serrated design of the fascicle — the part of the proboscis that is used to draw blood. <\/span><\/p>\n

They also reviewed the work of entomologists, who had already conducted extensive research on mosquitos. <\/span><\/p>\n

Their engineering background, however, enabled them to analyze the bugs from an engineering point of viewpoint. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe can incorporate all of these elements into a microneedle design,\u201d Bhushan said in a statement. \u201cRight now, needles are very simple. There hasn\u2019t been much innovation and we think there\u2019s a way to try something different.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

They suggest that it would be possible to create a microneedle that contains two needles. The first would inject a numbing agent, and the second would be used to inject a drug or draw blood. <\/span><\/p>\n

The second needle would mock the serrated edge of a mosquito’s proboscis, be more flexible and soft, and vibrate when inserted. <\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Four keys to painless piercing<\/b><\/h2>\n

The numbing agent used by a mosquito comes from its saliva. When the bug inserts the proboscis. it releases saliva that contains a protein that reduces pain.<\/span><\/p>\n

The researchers used indentation, a technique used to measure the hardness of material, to determine that the outer cover of the proboscis was softest near the tip and edges and was more rigid closer to the base. <\/span><\/p>\n

They believe the soft tip may make the needle cause less pain because it doesn\u2019t deform the skin as much as a typical needle used in a hospital. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The serrated tip of the needle, while it might sound painful, makes insertion easier — working similarly to a fish hook. <\/span><\/p>\n

Finally, because the needle vibrates, less force is needed to puncture the skin. <\/span><\/p>\n