World's first artificial stomach

This is an update.

British scientists have unveiled a new the world’s first artificial stomach. It is basically a shiny, high-tech box that physically simulates human digestion.

Wickham's patented artificial gut is a two-part model that is slightly larger than a desktop computer. The top half consists of a funnel in which food, stomach acids and digestive enzymes are mixed. Once this hydration process is finished, the food gets ground down in a silver metal tube encased in a dark, transparent box.

Software sets the parameters of the artificial gut - how long food remains in a particular part of the stomach, predicted hormone responses at various stages, and whether it is an infant or adult gut.

Unlike previous gut models, Wickham's model incorporates the physiological elements of digestion, including the stomach contractions that break up food and move it along the assembly line of human digestion.

With a capacity about half the size of an actual stomach, the artificial gut can "eat" roughly 24 ounces of food. To date, the most substantial meal it's enjoyed is vegetable soup.

"It's so realistic that it can even vomit," adds Wickham.

Link & Image: Myway


Update: Reader W. Grayston points out that Cloaca contains a photo gallery of much larger and more primitive artificial stomachs.

Thanks, W. Grayston !

Tags: Artificial Gut | Gut | Stomach | Technology | Tech