医用“微导弹”,动物实验 z-bo 2020-08-19 585

　　For microcomputers, this is a very small and important step. For the first time, a micro engine shuttles living animals and delivers tested gold nanoparticles directly into the stomach of mice. Micromachines are expected to revolutionize the diagnosis and treatment of several diseases. For example, miniature "spiders" can repair blood vessels, while miniature robots can advance through the blood and build medical equipment in the affected area. However, to date, these devices have been tested with cell samples in laboratories rather than live animals.

　　Gao Wei of the University of California at Berkeley and his colleagues have changed everything. They put a chemically-driven microcomputer in the mouse. These mechanical energy chemically react with gastric acid to form small "torpedoes" that stay in the mucus of the stomach and deliver drugs there to treat peptic ulcer, gastritis or gastric cancer.

　　A tapered polymer tube with a length of 20 microns wrapped in zinc. Zinc chemically reacts in stomach acid to produce hydrogen bubbles. These bubbles are pushed through the wide end of the tube, pushing the tube into the stomach acid. Gao said: "So far, most self-propelled engines have been reported to rely on non-biocompatible chemical fuels, such as hydrogen peroxide." In contrast, galvanized polymers are non-toxic and more suitable for use in living organisms. animal. These engines pass through stomach acid at a speed of 60 microns per second. Gao's colleagues believe that this is enough to fix the micromachine in the mucus of the stomach wall and expel the medicine.