A new micro-robot (nanobot) can navigate between different cells and identify their state. It can transport healthy or dying cells, whichever is desired, for genetic analysis.
New Hybrid Micro-Robot Developed
Researchers at Tel Aviv University have developed a hybrid micro-robot of about 10 microns long. It can be controlled in two ways - electric and magnetic.
The micro-robot can navigate between cells, identify the healthy and dying cells and transport them for genetic analysis.
Prof. Gilad Yossifon of Tel Aviv University's School of Mechanical Engineering and Department of Biomedical Engineering, along with his team of Dr. Yue Wu, a postdoctoral researcher, and student Sivan Yakov, developed the ground-breaking technology in conjunction with Dr. Afu Fu, a postdoctoral researcher from the Technion, Israel Institute of Technology.
According to Prof. Gilad Yossifon, micro-robots are tiny synthetic particles the size of a biological cell that can move around and carry out various tasks (for example, collecting synthetic or biological cargo) autonomously or under the external control of an operator. They are also referred to as micro-motors or active particles.
Biological micro-swimmers, including bacteria and sperm cells, inspired the micro-robot's capacity for autonomous movement. This cutting-edge field of study is growing quickly, with a wide range of applications in areas including medicine, the environment, and research tools.
Micro-Robot Demonstration
In order to demonstrate the micro-robot's capabilities, the researchers used it to capture single blood and cancer cells as well as a single bacterium. It showed that the micro-robot could distinguish between cells of varying viability, such as healthy cells, cells damaged by drugs, cells that are dying, and cells that are dying in a natural "suicide" process (such a distinction may be significant, for example, when developing anti-cancer drugs).
The micro-robot located the desired cell, caught it, and transferred the cell to a location where it could be examined further. The capacity of the micro-robot to recognize target cells that are not tagged is another significant advancement; the micro-robot determines the type of cell and its condition (such as degree of health) with its built-in sensing mechanism based on the cell's unique electrical properties.
New Development and Applications
The new development significantly improves the technology in two main aspects: hybrid propulsion and navigation by electric and magnetic mechanisms.
The researchers explain that the micro-robot's hybrid propulsion mechanism is fundamental in physiological environments, such as those found in liquid biopsies. The micro-robots that have worked until now based on an electrical guiding mechanism were ineffective in situations characterized by relatively high electrical conductivity, such as a physiological environment where the electric drive is less effective. This is where the complementary magnetic mechanism comes into play, which is very efficient regardless of the electrical conductivity of the environment.
Additionally, the micro-robot has an improved ability to identify and capture a single cell without the need for tagging, local testing or retrieval, and transport to an external instrument. The researchers want to build micro-robots that work inside the body as effective drug carriers that can navigate to precise targets.
The technology will enable, among other things, single-cell medical diagnosis, genetic editing, introducing of drugs or genes into cells, transporting drugs inside the body, clearing the environment of polluting particles, drug development, and building a "laboratory on a particle" -a microscopic lab made to perform diagnostics in spaces only accessible to micro-particles.
The study was published in Advanced Science.
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