Chinese and US scientists unveil battery-free pacemaker powered by the heartbeats of pigs

Research could pave the way for an ‘implant for life’ for humans suffering from heart defects, lead study author Zhou Li says

Self-powering technology could overcome issues with bulky pacemaker batteries that need to be replaced several times over device’s lifespan

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Pigs on a farm in the village of Gangzhong in China's eastern Zhejiang province in November 2013. Photo: AFP

Published: 3:37am, 24 Apr 2019Updated: 10:51pm, 24 Apr 2019

Scientists on Tuesday unveiled a battery-free pacemaker that generates its energy from the heartbeats of pigs in what could pave the way for an “implant for life” in humans suffering from heart defects.

Millions of patients rely on pacemakers – small electrical implants in the chest of abdomen – to help regulate their heartbeats after chronic or acute illness.

The device, as seen in a photo made available on Tuesday, is able to generate its own energy from heartbeats to power a cardiac pacemaker. Photo: Beijing Institute of Nanoenergy and Nanosystems, Chinese Academy of Sciences/Nature Press Service via AFP

Even with recent technological advances, pacemaker batteries can be rigid or bulky, and may need replacing several times over the lifespan of a device.

Energy harvesters, which generate electricity from pulses sent by the body, have shown to be effective in recent years, but only in small animals such as rats, as well as cell models with low energy demands.

Now researchers in China and the United States believe they have successfully tested a self-powered pacemaker in adult pigs – an animal remarkably physiologically similar to humans.