Using biofuel cells that allow electrical energy to be generated from metabolism, Evgeny Katz and his colleagues at Clarkson University have shown that this “biobattery” can be used on animals as small as snails. The implanted biofuel cells draw glucose and oxygen from the snail’s blood to create electricity. Despite having implanted electrodes hooked up to an external circuit, the snails appear otherwise healthy and unaffected by the addition. Katz hopes to transfer this technology to larger animals since the size of the biological organism means a high metabolism and therefore more battery power.
