Your body vs. Implants - Kaitlyn Sadtler
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0:07 - 0:08Insulin pumps improve the lives
-
0:08 - 0:13of many of the 415 million people
with diabetes around the world -
0:13 - 0:16by monitoring blood sugar, delivering
insulin, -
0:16 - 0:20and preventing the need for constant
finger-pricking and blood testing. -
0:20 - 0:25These small machines include a pump and
a needle, which can sense glucose levels, -
0:25 - 0:27feed back to the pump,
-
0:27 - 0:30and then calculate how much insulin
to deliver through the needle. -
0:30 - 0:34But they have a catch: they’re temporary.
-
0:34 - 0:38Within a few days, glucose sensors have to
be moved and replaced. -
0:38 - 0:43And it’s not just glucose monitors and
insulin pumps that have this problem, -
0:43 - 0:46but all bodily implants,
at different time scales. -
0:46 - 0:51Plastic prosthetic knees have to be
replaced after about 20 years. -
0:51 - 0:54Other implants, such as those used for
cosmetic reasons, -
0:54 - 0:57can meet the same fate in about 10.
-
0:57 - 1:02That isn’t just a nuisance: it
can be expensive and risky. -
1:02 - 1:05This inconvenience happens because of
our bodies’ immune systems. -
1:05 - 1:09Honed by several hundred million
years of evolution, -
1:09 - 1:10these defensive fronts
-
1:10 - 1:14have become exceptionally good
at identifying foreign objects. -
1:14 - 1:16Our immune systems boast
-
1:16 - 1:20an impressive arsenal of tools to tackle,
intercept, and destroy -
1:20 - 1:23anything they believe shouldn’t be there.
-
1:23 - 1:26But the consequence of this constant
surveillance -
1:26 - 1:30is that our bodies treat helpful
implants, like insulin pumps, -
1:30 - 1:34with the same suspicion as they would
a harmful virus or bacteria. -
1:34 - 1:37As soon as the insulin pump has been
implanted in the skin, -
1:37 - 1:42its presence triggers what’s known as a
“foreign body response.” -
1:42 - 1:44This starts with free-floating proteins
-
1:44 - 1:47that stick themselves to the surface
of the implant. -
1:47 - 1:50Those proteins include antibodies,
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1:50 - 1:52which attempt to neutralize the new object
-
1:52 - 1:56and send out a signal that calls other
immune cells to the site -
1:56 - 1:58to strengthen the attack.
-
1:58 - 2:00Early-responding inflammatory cells,
-
2:00 - 2:03like neutrophils and macrophages,
-
2:03 - 2:05respond to the emergency call.
-
2:05 - 2:08Neutrophils release little granules filled
with enzymes -
2:08 - 2:12that try to break down the surface
of the insulin pump’s needle. -
2:12 - 2:14Macrophages secrete enzymes too,
-
2:14 - 2:17together with nitric oxide radicals,
-
2:17 - 2:21which create a chemical reaction that
degrades the object over time. -
2:21 - 2:26If the macrophages are unable to dispatch
the foreign body rapidly, -
2:26 - 2:31they fuse together, forming a mass of
cells called a “giant cell.” -
2:31 - 2:34At the same time, cells called fibroblasts
-
2:34 - 2:39travel to the site and begin to deposit
layers of dense connective tissue. -
2:39 - 2:43Those enclose the needle that the pump
uses to deliver insulin -
2:43 - 2:45and test for glucose levels.
-
2:45 - 2:48Over time this scaffolding builds up,
-
2:48 - 2:51forming a scar around the implant.
-
2:51 - 2:55The scar functions as an almost
impenetrable wall -
2:55 - 2:57that might start to block vital
interactions -
2:57 - 3:00between the body and the implant.
-
3:00 - 3:03For example, scarring around pacemakers
can interrupt -
3:03 - 3:07the electrical transmission that’s
crucial for their functioning. -
3:07 - 3:11Synthetic knee joints may give off
particles as they’re worn down, -
3:11 - 3:15causing immune cells to inflame
around these fragments. -
3:15 - 3:20Tragically, the immune system’s attack
can even be life-threatening. -
3:20 - 3:23However, researchers are finding ways
to trick the immune system -
3:23 - 3:28into accepting the new devices we
introduce into our bodily tissues. -
3:28 - 3:32We’ve discovered that coating implants
with certain chemicals and drugs -
3:32 - 3:34can dampen the immune response.
-
3:34 - 3:38Those basically make the implants
invisible to the immune system. -
3:38 - 3:41We’re also making more implants
out of natural materials -
3:41 - 3:44and in forms that directly mimic tissues,
-
3:44 - 3:47so that the body launches a weaker attack
-
3:47 - 3:51than it would if it came across a
completely artificial implant. -
3:51 - 3:53Some medical treatments involve implants
-
3:53 - 3:57designed to regenerate lost
or damaged tissues. -
3:57 - 4:00In those cases, we can design the implants
to contain ingredients -
4:00 - 4:03that will release specific signals,
-
4:03 - 4:07and carefully tailor our bodies’
immune reactions. -
4:07 - 4:11In the future, this way of working
alongside the immune system -
4:11 - 4:14could help us develop completely
artificial organs, -
4:14 - 4:16totally integrative prostheses,
-
4:16 - 4:19and self-healing wound therapies.
-
4:19 - 4:22These treatments might one day
revolutionize medicine– -
4:22 - 4:26and transform, forever,
the bodies we live in.
- Title:
- Your body vs. Implants - Kaitlyn Sadtler
- Speaker:
- Kaitlyn Sadtler
- Description:
-
View full lesson: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/your-body-vs-implants-kaitlyn-sadtler
Insulin pumps improve the lives of millions of people with diabetes around the world by monitoring blood sugar, delivering insulin, and preventing the need for constant finger-pricking. But there's a catch: they're temporary. And it's not only insulin pumps that have this problem, but all bodily implants. Why is that? Kaitlyn Sadtler details how our immune system reacts to foreign bodies.
Lesson by Kaitlyn Sadtler, directed by Andrew Foerster.
- Video Language:
- English
- Team:
- closed TED
- Project:
- TED-Ed
- Duration:
- 04:27
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