Title |
Untethered magnetic millirobot for targeted drug delivery
|
---|---|
Published in |
Biomedical Microdevices, May 2015
|
DOI | 10.1007/s10544-015-9962-9 |
Pubmed ID | |
Authors |
Veronica Iacovacci, Gioia Lucarini, Leonardo Ricotti, Paolo Dario, Pierre E. Dupont, Arianna Menciassi |
Abstract |
This paper reports the design and development of a novel millimeter-sized robotic system for targeted therapy. The proposed medical robot is conceived to perform therapy in relatively small diameter body canals (spine, urinary system, ovary, etc.), and to release several kinds of therapeutics, depending on the pathology to be treated. The robot is a nearly-buoyant bi-component system consisting of a carrier, in which the therapeutic agent is embedded, and a piston. The piston, by exploiting magnetic effects, docks with the carrier and compresses a drug-loaded hydrogel, thus activating the release mechanism. External magnetic fields are exploited to propel the robot towards the target region, while intermagnetic forces are exploited to trigger drug release. After designing and fabricating the robot, the system has been tested in vitro with an anticancer drug (doxorubicin) embedded in the carrier. The efficiency of the drug release mechanism has been demonstrated by both quantifying the amount of drug released and by assessing the efficacy of this therapeutic procedure on human bladder cancer cells. |
Mendeley readers
Geographical breakdown
Country | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Japan | 1 | 1% |
Germany | 1 | 1% |
Unknown | 84 | 98% |
Demographic breakdown
Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Student > Ph. D. Student | 16 | 19% |
Student > Master | 15 | 17% |
Researcher | 10 | 12% |
Student > Bachelor | 6 | 7% |
Student > Doctoral Student | 5 | 6% |
Other | 10 | 12% |
Unknown | 24 | 28% |
Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Engineering | 38 | 44% |
Materials Science | 4 | 5% |
Chemical Engineering | 3 | 3% |
Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutical Science | 3 | 3% |
Agricultural and Biological Sciences | 2 | 2% |
Other | 9 | 10% |
Unknown | 27 | 31% |