Rolling of soft microbots with tunable traction
Microbot (μbot)–based targeted drug delivery has attracted increasing attention due to its potential for avoiding side effects associated with systemic delivery. To date, most μbots are rigid. When rolling on surfaces, they exhibit substantial slip due to the liquid lubrication layer. Here, we intro...
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| Published in: | Science advances Vol. 9; no. 16; p. eadg0919 |
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| Main Authors: | , , , , |
| Format: | Journal Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
United States
American Association for the Advancement of Science
21.04.2023
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| Subjects: | |
| ISSN: | 2375-2548, 2375-2548 |
| Online Access: | Get full text |
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| Summary: | Microbot (μbot)–based targeted drug delivery has attracted increasing attention due to its potential for avoiding side effects associated with systemic delivery. To date, most μbots are rigid. When rolling on surfaces, they exhibit substantial slip due to the liquid lubrication layer. Here, we introduce magnetically controlled soft rollers based on Pickering emulsions that, because of their intrinsic deformability, fundamentally change the nature of the lubrication layer and roll like deflated tires. With a large contact area between μbot and wall, soft μbots exhibit tractions higher than their rigid counterparts, results that we support with both theory and simulation. Upon changing the external field, surface particles can be reconfigured, strongly influencing both the translation speed and traction. These μbots can also be destabilized upon pH changes and used to deliver their contents to a desired location, overcoming the limitations of low translation efficiency and drug loading capacity associated with rigid structures.
Soft microbots based on magnetic Pickering emulsions exhibit tractions higher than their rigid counterparts. |
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| Bibliography: | ObjectType-Article-1 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-2 content type line 23 |
| ISSN: | 2375-2548 2375-2548 |
| DOI: | 10.1126/sciadv.adg0919 |