Clinically ready magnetic microrobots for targeted therapies
Systemic drug administration often causes off-target effects, limiting the efficacy of advanced therapies. Targeted drug delivery approaches increase local drug concentrations at the diseased site while minimizing systemic drug exposure. We present a magnetically guided microrobotic drug delivery platform capable of precise navigation under physiological conditions. This platform integrates a clinical electromagnetic navigation system, a custom-designed release catheter, and a dissolvable capsule for accurate therapeutic delivery. In vitro tests showed precise navigation in human vasculature models, and in vivo experiments confirmed tracking under fluoroscopy and successful navigation in large animal models. The microrobot balances magnetic material concentration, contrast agent loading, and therapeutic drug capacity, offering a promising solution for precise targeted drug delivery.
Authors
- Tessa Lühmann (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7552-6435)
- Miriam Weisskopf (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6012-3051)
- Ueli Moehrlen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6418-1136)
- Bradley J. Nelson (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9070-6987)
- Michael Mattmann (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6365-6336)
- Philipp Gruber (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8464-3051)
- Salvador Pané (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0147-8287)
- Lukas Hertle
- Oliver Brinkmann (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0006-3138-6526)
- Simone Gervasoni (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1907-5710)
- Kirstin Meiners (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0007-0667-0637)
- Christophe Chautems (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4951-067X)
- Tilman B. Schubert (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2373-5870)
- Xiangzhong Chen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2294-7487)
- Nicole Ochsenbein‐Kölble (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7691-965X)
- Quentin Boehler (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7573-3135)
- Zsolt Kulcsár (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6805-5150)
- Andreas D. Flouris (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9823-3915)
- Josep Puigmartí‐Luis (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7510-9815)
- Derick Sivakumaran (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3312-1004)
- Fabian C. Landers (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6935-9391)
- Semih Sevim (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1461-1606)
- Tiago Sotto Mayor (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8779-1033)
- Çağatay M. Oral (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5220-2104)
- Andrea Veciana (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0060-0949)
- Pedro G. Alves (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3203-6377)
- Valentin Gantenbein (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0004-8018-7326)
- Hao Ye (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3526-9627)
- Vitaly Pustovalov (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0000-2582-7678)
- Silas Riss (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0002-9820-6332)
- Pascal Theiler (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0006-7596-1086)
Institutions
- Institució Catalana de Recerca i Estudis Avançats (ES)
- Union Bank of Switzerland (CH)
- University of Thessaly (GR)
- Universidade do Porto (PT)
- University of Zurich (CH)
- University of Würzburg (DE)
- ETH Zurich (CH)
- University Hospital of Zurich (CH)
- Center for Pediatric Endocrinology Zurich (CH)
- University Children's Hospital Zurich (CH)
- Transport Research Centre (CZ)
- Intelligent Health (United Kingdom) (GB)
- Yiwu Science and Technology Research Institute (CN)
- Kantonsspital Aarau (CH)
- Universitat de Barcelona (ES)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Science
- Published
- 2025-11-13
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1126/science.adx1708
- Citations
- 25
- Primary Topic
- Micro and Nano Robotics
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 31.45