Intelligent Micro/nanorobots for Treatment of Inflammatory Bowel Disease: A Review

Abstract Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a category of diseases characterized by chronic and recurrent intestinal inflammation. Its complex pathological mechanism and biological barriers have limited the efficacy of existing drugs and nano drug delivery systems. In recent years, micro/nanorobots with autonomous movement, environmental responsiveness, and information processing capabilities have been proposed. As active delivery system, they can overcome key limitations of current therapeutic strategies, which mainly rely on passive diffusion during the delivery process, making it difficult to achieve autonomous mucosal penetration treatment at the lesion site, deep drug enrichment, and multi-functional synergy. This provides a strategy for IBD treatment by breaking through the intestinal barrier and achieving precise regulation. This article systematically reviews the design strategies, driving modalities, and functional integration models of micro/nanorobots, categorizing them into remote-controlled, programmed, hybrid-controlled, and environment-learning modes based on their information-processing capabilities. Their therapeutic advantages and underlying mechanisms in IBD treatment are further analyzed, drawing on application examples such as penetrating the mucus barrier, responding to inflammatory environments, regulating inflammatory cytokines, scavenging reactive oxygen species (ROS), repairing the intestinal barrier, and modulating the gut microbiota (Scheme 1). Finally, this article discusses the challenges and development directions in safety, controllability, large-scale preparation, and clinical translation, aiming to explore the potential of micro/nanorobots in the precise treatment of IBD to transition from passive delivery to active intelligent intervention.