Landers FC, Hertle L, Pustovalov V, Sivakumaran D, Oral CM, Brinkmann O, Meiners K, Theiler P, Gantenbein V, Veciana A, Mattmann M, Riss S, Gervasoni S, Chautems C, Ye H, Sevim S, Flouris AD, Puigmartí-Luis J, Mayor TS, Alves P, Lühmann T, Chen X, Ochsenbein N, Moehrlen U, Schubert T, Kulcsar Z, Gruber P, Weisskopf M, Boehler Q, Pané S, Nelson BJ. Clinically ready magnetic microrobots for targeted therapies. Science. 2025 Nov 13;390(6774):710-715. doi: 10.1126/science.adx1708. Epub 2025 Nov 13. PMID: 41231973.
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.
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