http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22333518/

Quote :

"A tiny assembly line that powers the whip-like tail of sperm could be harnessed to send future nanobots or other tiny medical devices zooming around the human body, according to a preliminary research report. Borrowing a page from reproductive biology, the proof-of-principle study offers a peek at how nanotechnology might overcome the problem of supplying energy to the envisioned menagerie of nanobots, implants and “smart” probes aimed at releasing disease-fighting drugs, monitoring enzymes and performing other medical roles within a patient’s body. One potential answer has come from the tail, or flagellum, that propels human sperm at a rate of about 7 inches per hour. (In comparison, if a 6-foot man swam the equivalent number of body lengths in an hour, his tally of 3.7 miles would smash the American long-distance swimming record.) To supply the energy for its locomotion, a sperm cell’s tail is essentially studded with tiny assembly lines that produce a high-energy compound called ATP. Officially known as adenosine triphosphate, ATP has been called the universal energy “currency” of living cells because of its ability to store, transfer and release energy. When a power source is needed to run processes within a cell — say, bending and flexing a sperm’s flagellum — ATP releases its reserves through a process that results in its decay to a simpler chemical form. "

Sperm-powered robots on the hunt for fuel? Well, somehow I think the anime writes itself, don't you?

[Edited on January 2, 2008 at 11:47 PM. Reason : e]

1/2/2008 11:46:52 PM

Nice.

1/2/2008 11:48:51 PM

axoneme-dynein reaction, FTW!

(that's fancy science talk about how ATP hydrolysis causes flagellum rotation)

sounds like they're creating technology based on the ATPase actions in the sperm flagellum, rather than attaching nanobots to sperm. sperm are sensitive little buggers who couldn't travel through the body, but i like the mental image of sperm with little cameras swimming around in someone's body.

[Edited on January 2, 2008 at 11:58 PM. Reason : misspelled dynein]

1/2/2008 11:50:33 PM

^can i copy ur homework?

1/2/2008 11:53:12 PM

haha scrumps, you don't want my homework. or my thesis.

they've been working on this for a while now.
http://www.foresight.org/Conference/MNT6/Papers/Taylor/index.html

[Edited on January 3, 2008 at 12:03 AM. Reason : yay science links!]

1/2/2008 11:54:27 PM

hmm, i wonder if my high-powered, extra-potent, armor-piercing sperm might end up being a valuable commodity?

1/3/2008 2:55:21 AM

ivegotplentyidliketoputtogooduse...

1/3/2008 4:57:22 AM