Microrobot-packed Pill Shows Promise for Treating Inflammatory Bowel Disease in Mice

The microrobots are packed inside a liquid capsule with a pH-responsive coating. This coating remains intact in the acidic environment of the stomach acid, but dissolves upon reaching the neutral pH of the colon. This ensures that the microrobots are selectively released where they are needed most. “We can direct the microrobots to the diseased location without affecting other organs,” said Wang. “In this way, we can minimize toxicity.” The capsule keeps the functionalized algae in the liquid phase until their release.

The capsule was administered orally to mice afflicted with IBD. The treatment reduced fecal bleeding, improved stool consistency, reversed IBD-induced weight loss and reduced inflammation in the colon, all without apparent side effects.

The research team is now focusing on translating their microrobot treatment into clinical studies.

Paper: “Biohybrid microrobots regulate colonic cytokine levels and modulate epithelium barrier restoration in inflammatory bowel disease.” Co-authors include Zhengxing Li*, Yaou Duan*, Fangyu Zhang*, Hao Luan Wei-Ting Sheng, Yiyan Yu, Nianfei Xian, Zhongyuan Guo, Edward Zhang, Lu Yin, Ronnie H. Fang and Weiwei Gao.

*These authors contributed equally to this work.

This work is supported by the Defense Threat Reduction Agency Joint Science and Technology Office for Chemical and Biological Defense (HDTRA1-21-1-0010).