Bioinspired Heterogeneous Spheres with Tunable Helical Structure for Accurate and Efficient Control of Sugar Blood Level

Oral antidiabetic drugs remain the primary therapeutic strategy for type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) due to its convenience, cost-effectiveness, and non-invasive, while achieving glycemic control in >60% of patients. However, compromised bioavailability of oral antidiabetic drugs frequently leads to drug-induced hypoglycemia (sulfonylureas like glibenclamide), posing significant clinical risks. To address this issue, microstirring oral pills are designed but various challenges remain, including uncontrollable release and low biocompatibility. Here, inspired by the morphology and helical motion of Phacus helicoides, millimeter-sized spheres with an inner helical structure are designed. Owing to their inner spiral structure, helical spheres (HSs) can simultaneously self-rotate and move circularly, giving them excellent and controllable mixing capacity via an external magnetic field. Moreover, HSs can imitate metabolic processes, including the adsorption, catalysis, and release capacity of Phacus helicoides, which can effectively reduce postprandial blood glucose levels (<2 h) in rats with type 2 diabetes. Additionally, these novel microstirring oral spheres with inner helical structure can reduce the incidence of hypoglycemia (14.2-18.6%) of the traditional sulfanilamide drug (glibenclamide) to 3.8%. Thus, it is anticipated that HSs have a potential for drug delivery as microstrring oral pills to improve bioavailability and avoid the drug-induced hypoglycemia of T2DM patients.