LONDON – Scientists in the U.K. are claiming a world first, after successfully reproducing the electrophysiology of biological neurons in silicon chips. It is said that artificial neurons respond to non-linear physiological feedback in real time, in exactly the same way as their biological counterparts. Crucially, in terms of their use in medical implants, the analogue chips have a power consumption 10⁹ times lower than equivalent digital microprocessors, which other attempts to make synthetic neurons have used.

HONG KONG – Matricelf Ltd., an Israeli medical 3D printing company based in Tel Aviv, has won a SEED AWARD and the ¥1 million (US$143,000) that goes with the prize. The Global Final of the SEED AWARD 2019 was held in Shenzhen, China. The organizer Seedland Group, China’s leading real estate company promoting technology innovation, said that Matricelf is working toward one day being able to manufacture the world’s first functional 3D printed human heart.

The mechanical removal of clots from the brain has become increasingly standard in ischemic stroke cases. Last year, the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association guidelines expanded the recommended window for its use up to 24 hours an event. Aspiration-based device stroke treatment startup Imperative Care Inc. has now raised an $85 million series C round to back the marketing of two recently cleared products on this front.

BEIJING – Chinese transcatheter heart valve developer Venus Medtech (Hangzhou) Inc. on Tuesday saw its share prices jump around 20% on its debut on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX), an excellent start for a prerevenue med-tech IPO.

Edwards Lifesciences Corp. added more than $20 billion so far this year to its market cap to exceed a $50 billion valuation. Executives worked to convince Wall Street that 2020 and beyond are lining up to be additional banner years for the cardiovascular med-tech giant at the company’s annual investor meeting. While the newly introduced guidance for next year from Edwards was largely in line or a bit better than analysts had anticipated, its share price remained relatively flat on the event.

The Watchman left atrial appendage device, distributed by Marlborough, Mass.-based Boston Scientific Corp., holds a unique place in the annals of med tech regulation, but 50-month data from two registries show a lower rate of hemorrhagic stroke than previously reported for the device.

Heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), also known as diastolic heart failure, accounts for roughly half of all heart failure cases worldwide. The condition, which occurs when the ventricles do not relax as they fill with blood following heart muscle contractions, is especially common in elderly women, striking up to 10% of those over 80 years old. Now stem cell biotech firm Novoheart Holdings Inc., of Vancouver, British Columbia, is partnering with Astrazeneca plc, of Cambridge, U.K., to co-develop a human-specific in vitro, functional model of HFpEF. The goal is to give drug researchers critical clues of a drug candidate’s efficacy before it is tested in patients.