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About Topic In Short: |
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Who: Researchers at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Northwestern University, and other collaborating institutions; study co-leader Rashid Bashir and co-first author Zhengwei Li. |
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What: Creation of remotely controlled miniature biological robots made with living muscle and microelectronics, called "eBiobots". |
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How: Combination of soft materials, living muscle tissue, and microelectronics to create a biobot with freedom of movement, using tiny wireless microelectronics and battery-free micro-LEDs to remotely control it. |
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Introduction:
Recent advancements in biomedicine have led to the creation of
miniature biological robots, known as eBiobots, which combine living muscle and
microelectronics. These innovative machines have the potential to bring about a
revolution in the field of medicine by enabling minimum invasive surgeries and
detecting disease biomarkers within the human body.
Background:
The development of eBiobots is the result of a collaborative
effort between researchers from various institutions, including the University
of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and Northwestern University. eBiobots are the
first biological machines that combine soft materials, living muscle, and
microelectronics.
Process of Creation:
The process of creating eBiobots involved developing biobots,
which are small biological robots powered by mouse muscle tissue grown on a
3D-printed polymer skeleton. Researchers at the University of Illinois
Urbana-Champaign were the first to develop these biobots and demonstrated
walking biobots in 2012. In 2016, researchers at Northwestern University
integrated tiny wireless microelectronics and battery-free micro-LEDs, allowing
them to remotely control the eBiobots.
The researchers eliminated bulky batteries and tethering wires to
provide freedom of movement to the biobots. The eBiobots use a receiver coil to
harvest power and provide a regulated output voltage to power the micro-LEDs.
The micro-LEDs activate specific portions of muscle, making the eBiobot turn in
the desired direction.
Optimization of eBiobot design:
The researchers used computational modeling to optimize the
eBiobot design, integrating components for robustness, speed, and
maneuverability. The iterative design and additive 3D printing of the scaffolds
enabled rapid cycles of experiments and improvement in performance.
Applications:
eBiobots offer potential for future integration of additional
microelectronics, such as chemical and biological sensors, or 3D-printed
scaffold parts for functions like pushing or transporting things that the
biobots can encounter. Integration of electronic sensors or biological neurons
could allow eBiobots to sense and respond to biomarkers for disease, among
other possibilities. This opens up new possibilities for healthcare innovation,
such as in-situ biopsies, minimum invasive surgery or even cancer detection
within the human body.
Authors/Experts Opinion:
Rashid Bashir, an Illinois professor of bioengineering and dean of
the Grainger College of Engineering, stated that "Integrating
microelectronics allows the merger of the biological world and the electronics
world, both with many advantages of their own, to now produce these electronic
biobots and machines that could be useful for many medical, sensing, and
environmental applications in the future.”
Zhengwei Li, an assistant professor of biomedical engineering at
the University of Houston, commented that "In developing a first-ever
hybrid bioelectronic robot, we are opening the door for a new paradigm of
applications for healthcare innovation, such as in-situ biopsies and analysis,
minimum invasive surgery or even cancer detection within the human body.”
Conclusion:
eBiobots are an innovative creation that represents a new frontier
in the integration of biology and electronics. Living muscle and
microelectronics combine to provide potential applications in the field of
medicine, including minimum invasive surgery and cancer detection. Further
research in this area could lead to even more advanced applications of eBiobots
in the future.
Image
Gallery
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 Remotely controlled miniature biological robots have many potential applications in medicine, sensing and environmental monitoring. |
 Remote control steering allows the eBiobots to maneuver around obstacles, as shown in this composite image of a bipedal robot traversing a maze. |
 The eBiobots are the first wireless bio-hybrid machines, combining biological tissue, microelectronics and 3D-printed soft polymers. |
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All Images Credit: from References/Resources
sites [Internet] |
Hashtag/Keyword/Labels:
#biologicalrobots #microelectronics #livingmuscle
#medicalapplications #invasivesurgery #cancerdetection #biomarkers #sensors #neurons
#healthcareinnovation #bioengineering
References/Resources:
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…till next
post, bye-bye and take-care.
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