Implantable medical devices (IMDs) are critically requested for the survival of patients subject to certain serious diseases such as bradycardia, fibrillation, diabetes, and disability, etc. Appropriate working of an active implantable medical device (IMD) heavily relies on the continuous supply of electricity. In this sense, longterm powering and recharging of an IMD via a highly safe, efficient and convenient way is, therefore, extremely important in clinics. Several conventional batteries, such as lithium cell, nuclear cell and bio-fuel cell, etc., have been developed to power IMDs. Meanwhile, the recharge of IMD from outside of the human body is also under investigation. In this paper, some of the most typical IMD batteries are reviewed. Their advantages and disadvantages are compared. In addition, several emerging innovations to recharge or directly drive the implanted batteries, including electromagnetic energy transmission, piezoelectric power generation, thermoelectric devices, ultrasonic power motors, radio frequency recharging and optical recharging methods, etc., are also discussed. Some fundamental and practical issues thus involved are summarized, and future prospects in this area are made.

Embedding a thermoelectric generator (TEG) in a biological body is a promising way to supply electronic power in the long term for an implantable medical device (IMD). The unique merit of this method lies in its direct utilization of the temperature difference intrinsically existing throughout the whole biological body. However, little is known about the practicability of such a power generation strategy up to now. This paper attempts to evaluate the energy generation capacity of an implanted TEG subject to various physiological or environmental thermal conditions. Through theoretical analysis, it was found that the highest temperature gradient occurs near the skin surface of the human body, which suggested a candidate site for implanting and positioning the TEG. In addition, numerical simulations were performed on three-dimensional bioheat transfer problems in human bodies embedded with TEGs at different implantation depths and configurations. To further enhance energy generation of an implanted TEG, several external technical approaches by intentionally cooling or heating the skin surface were proposed and evaluated. Conceptual experiments either in vitro or in vivo were implemented to preliminarily test the theoretical predictions. Given the fact that an IMD generally require very little working energy, the TEG could serve well as a potential long-term energy supplier for such medical practices.

Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) exhibits extensive protective actions in cardiovascular systems, such as anti-inflammatory and stimulating angiogenesis, but its therapeutic potential is severely discounted by the short half-life and the poorly controlled releasing behavior. Herein, we developed a macromolecular H2S prodrug by grafting 2-aminopyridine-5-thiocarboxamide (a small-molecule H2S donor) on partially oxidized alginate (ALG-CHO) to mimic the slow and continuous release of endogenous H2S. In addition, tetraaniline (a conductive oligomer) and adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs) were introduced to form a stem cell-loaded conductive H2S-releasing hydrogel through the Schiff base reaction between ALG-CHO and gelatin. The hydrogel exhibited adhesive property to ensure a stable anchoring to the wet and beating hearts. After myocardial injection, longer ADSCs retention period and elevated sulfide concentration in rat myocardium were demonstrated, accompanied by upregulation of cardiac-related mRNA (Cx43, α-SMA, and cTnT) and angiogenic factors (VEGFA and Ang-1) and downregulation of inflammatory factors (tumor necrosis factor-α). Echocardiography and histological analysis strongly demonstrated an increase in the ejection fraction value and smaller infarction size, suggesting a remarkable improvement of the cardiac functions of Sprague-Dawley rats. The ADSC-loaded conductive hydrogen sulfide-releasing hydrogel dramatically promoted the therapeutic effects, offering a promising therapeutic strategy for treating myocardial infarction.