Most phones can take photos and send texts. Now, researchers have developed one that can diagnose disease. Technology Review reports that the new “Cellscope” works like a microscope that straps onto cell phones to analyze spit or blood samples on slides. The contraption can use specialized software to diagnose the samples on the spot, or it can send the images off to specialized centers for further study. Experts believe the technology could prove helpful in remote parts of the world–where health infrastructure is lacking but cell phone coverage is improving–in helping to treat common diseases like tuberculosis and malaria.
Source:Technology Review
Image by David N. Breslauer et al., fromPLOS1.