Biological Fuel Cells for Biomedical Applications

Department of Biomedical Sciences, Malmd University, Malmd, Sweden 

Department of Chemical and Nuclear Engineering and Center for Emerging Energy Technologies, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM, USA 

An implantable medical device (IMD) operates inside the body to monitor certain physiological parameters. Based on the power requirements of the device, IMDs are divided into two categories (i) active (the devices that need power) and (ii) passive (those that do not require power). Examples of passive IMDs are artificial joints and vascular grafts, whereas active IMDs may include cardiac defibrillators, cardiac pacemakers, neurostimulators, drug pumps, cochlear implants, and retinal implants. The need to broaden the assortment of effectively active IMDs is constantly increasing. 

Current IMDs require energy sources that can be either internal or external. External power can be provided from radio frequency pulses or external wiring from a 

The content of this chapter was previously published in ChemPhysChem and is reproduced here in its entirety Falk M, Narvaez Villarrubia CW, Babanova S, Atanassov P, Shleev S. Biological fuel cells for biomedical applications colonizing the animal kingdom. ChemPhysChem 2013 14(10) 2045-2058. Copyright 2013, Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH. Reproduced with permission. 

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Fuel cells based on unmediated electrocatalysis by heme-containing sugar dehydrogenases have not yet been tested in biological fluids, but may be useful for implantable applications, as they avoid the need for toxic or expensive mediators and have minimal design constraints. Realistically, the lifetime of biofuel cells is still insufficient for biomedical applications requiring surgical installation. 

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