Puffball-inspired microrobotic systems with robust payload, strong protection, and targeted locomotion for on-demand drug delivery
Puffball-inspired microrobotic systems with robust payload, strong protection, and targeted locomotion for on-demand drug delivery
Microrobots are recognized as transformative solutions for drug delivery systems (DDSs) because they can navigate through the body to specific locations and enable targeted drug release. However, their realization is substantially limited by insufficient payload capacity, unavoidable drug leakage/deactivation, and strict modification/stability criteria for drugs. Natural puffballs possess fascinating features that are highly desirable for DDSs, including a large fruitbody for storing spores, a flexible protective cap, and environmentally triggered release mechanisms. This report presents a puffball-inspired microrobotic system which incorporates an internal chamber for loading large drug quantities and spatial drug separation, and a near-infrared-responsive top-sealing layer offering strong drug protection and on-demand release. These puffball-inspired microrobots (PIMs) display tunable loading capacities up to high concentrations and enhanced drug protection with minimal drug leakage. Upon near-infrared laser irradiation, on-demand drug delivery with rapid release efficiency is achieved. The PIMs also demonstrate translational motion velocities, switchable motion modes, and precise locomotion under a rotating magnetic field. This work provides strong proof-of-concept for a DDS that combines the superior locomotion capability of microrobots with the unique characteristics of puffballs, thereby illustrating a versatile avenue for development of a new generation of microrobots for targeted drug delivery.
bioinspired systems, controlled release, intelligent microrobots, magnetic actuation, targeted therapy
Song, Xin
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Sun, Rujie
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Wang, Richard
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Zhou, Kun
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Xie, Ruoxiao
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Lin, Junliang
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Georgiev, Dimitar
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Paraschiv, Andrei Alexandru
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Zhao, Ruibo
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Stevens, Molly M.
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26 October 2022
Song, Xin
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Sun, Rujie
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Wang, Richard
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Zhou, Kun
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Xie, Ruoxiao
e345a1aa-6613-4a23-b5e1-2dbfe9019bac
Lin, Junliang
53741690-8c04-4803-b4f6-4f3eed167f8e
Georgiev, Dimitar
b6493976-99d9-4e3f-88d0-84655cc326ab
Paraschiv, Andrei Alexandru
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Zhao, Ruibo
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Stevens, Molly M.
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Song, Xin, Sun, Rujie, Wang, Richard, Zhou, Kun, Xie, Ruoxiao, Lin, Junliang, Georgiev, Dimitar, Paraschiv, Andrei Alexandru, Zhao, Ruibo and Stevens, Molly M.
(2022)
Puffball-inspired microrobotic systems with robust payload, strong protection, and targeted locomotion for on-demand drug delivery.
Advanced Materials, 34 (43), [2204791].
(doi:10.1002/adma.202204791).
Abstract
Microrobots are recognized as transformative solutions for drug delivery systems (DDSs) because they can navigate through the body to specific locations and enable targeted drug release. However, their realization is substantially limited by insufficient payload capacity, unavoidable drug leakage/deactivation, and strict modification/stability criteria for drugs. Natural puffballs possess fascinating features that are highly desirable for DDSs, including a large fruitbody for storing spores, a flexible protective cap, and environmentally triggered release mechanisms. This report presents a puffball-inspired microrobotic system which incorporates an internal chamber for loading large drug quantities and spatial drug separation, and a near-infrared-responsive top-sealing layer offering strong drug protection and on-demand release. These puffball-inspired microrobots (PIMs) display tunable loading capacities up to high concentrations and enhanced drug protection with minimal drug leakage. Upon near-infrared laser irradiation, on-demand drug delivery with rapid release efficiency is achieved. The PIMs also demonstrate translational motion velocities, switchable motion modes, and precise locomotion under a rotating magnetic field. This work provides strong proof-of-concept for a DDS that combines the superior locomotion capability of microrobots with the unique characteristics of puffballs, thereby illustrating a versatile avenue for development of a new generation of microrobots for targeted drug delivery.
Text
Advanced Materials - 2022 - Song - Puffball‐Inspired Microrobotic Systems with Robust Payload Strong Protection and
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More information
Accepted/In Press date: 6 September 2022
e-pub ahead of print date: 27 September 2022
Published date: 26 October 2022
Additional Information:
Funding information:
X.S. and R.Z. acknowledge support from the China Scholarship Council. R.W. acknowledges funding from the Rosetrees Trust under the Young Enterprise Fellowship agreement (A2741/M873). D.G. was supported by UK Research and Innovation Centre for Doctoral Training in AI for Healthcare (EP/S023283/1). M.M.S. acknowledges support from the Royal Academy of Engineering Chair in Emerging Technologies award (CiET2021∖94) and the Rosetrees Trust. The authors would like to thank Dr. Ravi Desai, Dr. Nuala Del Piccolo, and Dr. David Peeler for manuscript proofreading, and Dr. Akemi Nogiwa Valdez for extensive manuscript and data management support. The authors acknowledge access to SEM facilities at the Harvey Flower Electron Microscopy Suite (Department of Materials, Imperial College London), and confocal microscopy facilities at the Department of Bioengineering (Imperial College London). The authors acknowledge support from the Henry Royce Institute made through EPSRC grant EP/P02520X/1. The authors thank Dr. Bruno Rente for his expertise and support with setting up and running the physical vapor deposition of this study. The authors acknowledge the Biological Imaging Centre (BIC) at Imperial College London for providing access to the FMT. The FMT equipment was purchased by an infrastructure grant from the British Heart Foundation. The authors thank Mr. Samuel Owen (Vascular Science, NHLI) and Dr. Nicoleta Baxan for their support and expertise with setting up and running the FMT experiments of this study. The authors would also like to acknowledge access to X-ray imaging supported by the technical team from the Bioengineering Core Facilities, Imperial College London and a special thanks to Ms. Adriana Lobosco and Mr. Sharad Patel for all the support and advice during imaging.
Keywords:
bioinspired systems, controlled release, intelligent microrobots, magnetic actuation, targeted therapy
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 486773
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/486773
ISSN: 1521-4095
PURE UUID: c6bbe816-efef-47e5-af24-4c5a914b4bc6
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Date deposited: 06 Feb 2024 17:33
Last modified: 17 Mar 2024 07:24
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Contributors
Author:
Xin Song
Author:
Rujie Sun
Author:
Richard Wang
Author:
Kun Zhou
Author:
Ruoxiao Xie
Author:
Junliang Lin
Author:
Dimitar Georgiev
Author:
Andrei Alexandru Paraschiv
Author:
Ruibo Zhao
Author:
Molly M. Stevens
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