A new National Science Foundation video shows off the incredible strides made by Illinois researchers when it comes to creating robots powered by living cells.
Qmed Staff
Scientists led by Rashid Bashir at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have created tiny living machines called biobots that utilize skeletal muscle cells. The biobots are controlled with electrical or optical signals.
Work has progressed since Qmed last reported on the technology in 2014. For now, the biobots kind of move like inchworms. But Bashir envisions a time when biobots might be made with neurons that would react to substances such as cancer cells. Other potential applications include drug screening, toxic cleanup, and tiny clot-busting bots to treat cardiovascular disease. Check out the National Science Foundation's video:
Learn more about cutting-edge medical devices at BIOMEDevice Boston, April 13-14, 2016. |
Chris Newmarker is senior editor of Qmed and MPMN. Follow him on Twitter at @newmarker.
Like what you're reading? Subscribe to our daily e-newsletter.
