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Equipping E. coli with artificial ingredients to build biohybrid microrobots.In recent years, with the development of technical capabilities such as micro-machining technology, micro-sensors, and micro-actuators, micro-robots are playing an increasingly important role in the field of precision medicine. Microrobots are tiny, some as big as dragonflies or flies, or even smaller, so small that people can’t see them. High Quality Custom precision copper gasket
In the field of biomedicine, arranging, assembling and cultivating microgel structures containing cells into specific configurations and culturing into tissue structures with specific biological functions is of great importance for drug research and development, biosensing, and research on life-like robots. significance. The reason is that the operation of the robot is more stable, and the smaller volume is also convenient for entering human organs or blood vessels. The micro-robot can deliver drugs to the “virus zone”, and the trauma of the operation is relatively small.
Now, in a new study, researchers from Germany’s Max-Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems have combined robotics and biology to equip E. coli bacteria with artificial ingredients to build biohybrid microrobots, while The E. coli “robot” it developed has been shown to be useful in the fight against cancer. High Quality Custom precision copper gasket
In fact, as one of the most common microbial species, Escherichia coli can swim rapidly in a variety of media, in addition, they also have strong environmental awareness and can be attracted by a variety of environmental signals, such as chemical gradients, Low oxygen levels or high acidity—the latter two happen to be features of the microenvironment near tumor tissue.
Therefore, scientists have been trying to use it for tumor treatment, such as injecting bacteria near tumor tissue, as the bacteria flow and grow to where the tumor is, thereby activating the immune response in the tumor microenvironment to destroy the tumor. Based on this, scientists have been looking for ways to further enhance the ability of microorganisms to kill tumors. They have tried to add extra components to bacteria to help fight cancer, but this is not an easy task. High Quality Custom precision copper gasket
In this experiment, first, the researchers attached several nanoliposomes (NLs) and magnetic nanoparticles (mNPs) to each E. coli. On their periphery, these spherical carriers were wrapped with indole Indocyanine green (ICG), which melts when exposed to near-infrared light. Further down the middle, inside the aqueous core, these nanoliposomes encapsulate the water-soluble chemotherapeutic molecule doxorubicin (DOX). The ICG melts when exposed to near-infrared light. Under the action of magnetic field, mNPs can help bacteria to reach the target tissue. High Quality Custom precision copper gasket
The 3D matrix invasion experiments proved that bacterial microrobots can also penetrate and swim in a closed and porous biological microenvironment. Once these microrobots accumulate at the desired site (tumor spheroid), a near-infrared laser generates radiation at temperatures up to 55 degrees Celsius, which triggers the melting process of the nanoliposomes and releases the contained drug. Low pH or acidic environments can also cause the nanoliposomes to cleave, so the drug is automatically released near the tumor. That is, under external local stimulation conditions, bacterial microrobots can achieve on-demand drug delivery.
Obviously, the biggest advantage of micro-robots is that they can enter places that humans cannot reach to observe the environment, monitor risks, disinfect cancer cells and viruses, etc. In the future, the medical field will become an important application of micro-robots Scenes. High Quality Custom precision copper gasket
