Search Results (306)

Magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) are widely applied in biomedicine, including bioimaging, drug delivery, and cell tracking. As central mediators of immune surveillance, macrophages phagocytize foreign substances, rendering their interactions with MNPs particularly consequential. During MNP uptake, macrophages undergo cytoplasmic remodeling that can lead to morphological alterations. Although prior studies have predominantly focused on MNP uptake efficiency and cytotoxicity, systematic quantitative assessments of macrophage morphological alterations following MNP treatment remain scarce. In this study, phase-contrast microscopy images of macrophages before and after MNP treatment were analyzed using unsupervised variational autoencoder (VAE)-based frameworks. Specifically, the β-VAE, β-total correlation VAE, and multi-encoder VAE frameworks were employed to extract latent representations of cellular morphology. The analysis revealed that MNP-treated macrophages exhibited pronounced structural alterations, including membrane expansion, central density shifts, and shape distortions. These findings were further substantiated through quantitative evaluations, including effect size analysis, kernel density estimation, latent traversal, and difference mapping. Collectively, these results demonstrate that VAE-based unsupervised learning provides a robust framework for detecting subtle morphological responses of macrophages to nanoparticle exposure and highlights its broader applicability across varied cell types, treatment conditions, and imaging platforms. Full article

Microrobots are emerging as transformative tools in minimally invasive medicine, with applications in non-invasive therapy, real-time diagnosis, and targeted drug delivery. Effective use of these systems critically depends on accurate detection and tracking of microrobots within the body. Among commonly used imaging modalities, including MRI, CT, and optical imaging, ultrasound (US) offers an advantageous balance of portability, low cost, non-ionizing safety, and high temporal resolution, making it particularly suitable for real-time microrobot monitoring. This study reviews current detection strategies and presents a comparative evaluation of six advanced AI-based multi-object detectors, including ConvNeXt, Res2NeXt-101, ResNeSt-269, U-Net, and the latest YOLO variants (v11, v12), being applied to microrobot detection in US imaging. Performance is assessed using standard metrics (AP50–95, precision, recall, F1-score) and robustness to four visual perturbations: blur, brightness variation, occlusion, and speckle noise. Additionally, feature-level sensitivity analyses are conducted to identify the contributions of different visual cues. Computational efficiency is also measured to assess suitability for real-time deployment. Results show that ResNeSt-269 achieved the highest detection accuracy, followed by Res2NeXt-101 and ConvNeXt, while YOLO-based detectors provided superior computational efficiency. These findings offer actionable insights for developing robust and efficient microrobot tracking systems with strong potential in diagnostic and therapeutic healthcare applications. Full article

Active propelled micro robots (MRs) represent a transformative shift in biomedical engineering, engineered to navigate physiological environments by converting chemical, acoustic, or magnetic energy into mechanical propulsion. Unlike passive delivery systems limited by diffusion and systemic clearance, MRs offer autonomous mobility, enabling precise penetration and retention in hard-to-reach tissues. This review provides comprehensive analysis of MR technologies within urology, a field uniquely suited for microrobotic intervention due to the urinary tract’s anatomical accessibility and fluid-filled nature. We explore how MRs address critical therapeutic limitations, including the high recurrence of kidney stones and the rapid washout of intravesical bladder cancer therapies. The review categorizes propulsion mechanisms optimized for the urinary environment, such as urea-fueled nanomotors and magnetic swarms. Furthermore, we detail emerging applications, including bioresorbable acoustic robots for tumor ablation and magnetic grippers for minimally invasive biopsies. Finally, we critically assess the path toward clinical translation, focusing on challenges in biocompatibility, real-time tracking (MRI, MPI, photoacoustic imaging), and the regulatory landscape for these advanced combination products. Full article

Magnetic microrobots have emerged as a promising platform for drug delivery in recent years. By enabling remotely controlled motion and precise navigation under external magnetic fields, these systems offer new solutions to overcome the limitations of traditional drug delivery nanocarriers, such as inadequate tissue penetration and heterogeneous biodistribution. Over the past few years, significant advancements have been made in the structural design of magnetic microrobots, as well as in drug loading techniques and stimuli-responsive drug release mechanisms, thereby demonstrating distinct advantages in enhancing therapeutic efficacy and targeting precision. This review provides a comprehensive overview of magnetic drug delivery microrobots, which are categorised into biomimetic structural, bio-templated and advanced material-based types, and introduces their differences in propulsion efficiency and biocompatibility. Additionally, drug loading and release strategies are summarised, including physical adsorption, covalent coupling, encapsulation, and multistimuli-responsive mechanisms such as pH, enzyme activity and thermal triggers. Overall, these advancements highlight the significant potential of magnetic microrobots in targeted drug delivery and emphasise the key challenges in their clinical translation, such as biological safety, large-scale production and precise targeted navigation within complex biological environments. Full article

The development of biohybrid micro-robots represents a groundbreaking advancement in targeted drug delivery for cancer therapy, offering unprecedented precision and reduced systemic toxicity. These microscale robots integrate synthetic materials with biological components such as bacteria, algae, red blood cells, or spermatozoa, capitalizing on the inherent motility, biocompatibility, and targeting capabilities of living organisms. This hybridization enables active navigation through complex biological environments, overcoming physiological barriers such as the blood–brain and endothelial junctions that impede traditional nanoparticle-based systems. In this study, we propose a multi-functional biohybrid micro-robotic platform composed of magnetically actuated synthetic chassis coated with doxorubicin-loaded lipid vesicles and tethered to Magnetospirillum magneticum for propulsion and tumor-homing capabilities. The results underscore the promise of biohybrid micro-robots as intelligent, minimally invasive agents for next-generation oncological therapies, capable of delivering chemotherapeutics with enhanced spatial and temporal accuracy. Future work will focus on clinical translation pathways, biosafety evaluations, and scalability of production under Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) standards. Full article

The present study explores the comparative influence of reduced graphene oxide (rGO), silver nanowires (AgNWs), and their hybrid rGO–AgNWs on the electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding performance of polyaniline (PANI)-based flexible films prepared using a polycaprolactone (PCL) matrix. The nanocomposites were synthesized through in situ oxidative polymerization of aniline in the presence of individual or hybrid fillers, followed by their dispersion in the PCL matrix and casting of the corresponding films. Morphological and structural characterization (SEM, Raman, and FTIR spectroscopy) confirmed a uniform PANI coating on both rGO sheets and AgNWs, forming hierarchical 3D conductive networks. Thermal (TGA) and thermomechanical (TMA) analyses revealed enhanced thermal stability and stiffness across all composite systems, driven by strong interfacial interactions and restricted polymer chain mobility. Tmax increased from 437.9 °C for neat PCL to 487.9 °C for PANI/PCL, 480.6 °C for PANI/rGO/PCL, 499.4 °C for PANI/AgNWs/PCL and 495.0 °C for the hybrid PANI/rGO–AgNWs/PCL film. The gradual decrease in contact angle following the order PANI/AgNWs/PCL < PANI/rGO–AgNWs/PCL < PANI/rGO/PCL < PANI/PCL < PCL clearly indicates a systematic increase in surface polarity and surface energy with the incorporation of conductive nanofillers. Electrical conductivity reached 60.8 S cm⁻¹ for PANI/rGO/PCL, gradually decreasing to 27.4 S cm⁻¹ for PANI/AgNWs/PCL and 22.1 S cm⁻¹ for the quaternary hybrid film. The EMI shielding effectiveness (SET) measurements in the X-band (8–12 GHz) demonstrated that the PANI/rGO/PCL film exhibited the highest attenuation (~7.2 dB). In contrast, the incorporation of AgNWs partially disrupted the conductive network, reducing SE to ~5–6 dB. The findings highlight the distinct and synergistic roles of 1D and 2D fillers in modulating the electrical, thermal, and mechanical properties of biodegradable polymer films, offering a sustainable route toward lightweight, flexible EMI shielding materials. Full article

The integration of artificial intelligence (AI) and micro/nanorobotics is fundamentally reshaping biosensing by enabling autonomous, adaptive, and high-resolution biological analysis. These miniaturized robotic systems fabricated using advanced techniques such as photolithography, soft lithography, nanoimprinting, 3D printing, and self-assembly can navigate complex biological environments to perform targeted sensing, diagnostics, and therapeutic delivery. AI-driven algorithms, mainly those in machine learning (ML) and deep learning (DL), act as the brains of the operation, allowing for sophisticated modeling, genuine real-time control, and complex signal interpretation. This review focuses recent advances in the design, fabrication, and functional integration of AI-enabled micro/nanorobots for biomedical sensing. Applications that demonstrate their potential range from quick point-of-care diagnostics and in vivo biosensing to next-generation organ-on-chip systems and truly personalized medicine. We also discuss key challenges in scalability, energy autonomy, data standardization, and closed-loop control. Collectively, these advancements are paving the way for intelligent, responsive, and clinically transformative biosensing systems. Full article

By means of computer simulations, we have investigated the gas–solid phase separation of active Brownian particles (ABPs) under the confinement of two hard walls, distinct from the gas–liquid phase separation typically seen in bulk systems. Our results show that the distance (D) between the hard walls plays a crucial role. Increasing D may facilitate the formation of gas–solid phase separation perpendicular to the hard walls, while decreasing D may suppress such phase separation. Interestingly, when D is decreased further and the lateral system size is increased accordingly to maintain a constant volume, a new reoriented phase separation pattern in the system emerges, i.e., the gas–solid phase coexistence can be found in those layers parallel to the inner surfaces of two hard walls. These intriguing findings illustrate how ABPs can achieve simultaneous localization and crystallization under imposed boundary confinement, thereby fundamentally altering the pathway of phase separation. Also, such understanding may provide a valuable pathway for optimizing the design of systems full of active matters such as micro-robotics or targeted delivery platforms. Full article

Methodological fusion of materials chemistry, which enables us to create materials, with nanotechnology, which enables us to control nanostructures, could enable us to create advanced functional materials with well controlled nanostructures. Positioned as a post-nanotechnology concept, nanoarchitectonics will enable this purpose. This review paper highlights the broad scope of applications of the new concept of nanoarchitectonics, selecting and discussing recent papers that contain the term ‘nanoarchitectonics’ in their titles. Topics include controls of dopant atoms in solid electrolytes, transforming the framework of carbon materials, single-atom catalysts, nanorobots and microrobots, functional nanoparticles, nanotubular materials, 2D-organic nanosheets and MXene nanosheets, nanosheet assemblies, nitrogen-doped carbon, nanoporous and mesoporous materials, nanozymes, polymeric materials, covalent organic frameworks, vesicle structures from synthetic polymers, chirality- and topology-controlled structures, chiral helices, Langmuir monolayers, LB films, LbL assembly, nanocellulose, DNA, peptides bacterial cell components, biomimetic nanoparticles, lipid membranes of protocells, organization of living cells, and the encapsulation of living cells with exogenous substances. Not limited to these examples selected in this review article, the concept of nanoarchitectonics is applicable to diverse materials systems. Nanoarchitectonics represents a conceptual framework for creating materials at all levels and can be likened to a method for everything in materials science. Developing technology that can universally create materials with unexpected functions could represent the final frontier of materials science. Nanoarchitectonics will play a significant part in achieving this final frontier in materials science. Full article

Microrobot navigation in constrained environments requires path planning methods that ensure both efficiency and collision avoidance. Conventional approaches, which typically combine graph-based path finding with geometric path simplification, effectively reduce path complexity but often generate collision-prone paths because wall boundaries are not considered during simplification. Therefore, to overcome this limitation, we present Secure Angle-based Geometric Elimination (SAGE), a single-pass path-simplification algorithm that converts pixel-level shortest paths into low-complexity trajectories suitable for real-time collision-free navigation of microrobots. SAGE inspects consecutive triplets (p_i, p_i+1, p_i+2) and removes the middle point when the turning angle is smaller than threshold (∠p_ip_i+1p_i+2 ≤ θ_th) or the direct segment (p_i → p_i+2) is collision-free. Quantitative analysis shows that SAGE achieves approximately 5% shorter path length, 20% lower turning cost and 0% collision rate, while maintaining computation comparable to the Ramer–Douglas–Peucker algorithm. Integration with Dijkstra and RRT planners confirms scalability across complex maze and vascular environments. Experimental microrobot demonstrations show navigation with complete collision avoidance, establishing SAGE as an efficient and reliable framework for high-speed microrobot navigation and automation in lab-on-a-chip, chemical-reaction and molecular-diagnostic systems. Full article

Sepsis-induced acute lung injury (SALI) is characterized by dysregulated inflammation with limited therapeutic options. Although Anemoside B4 (AB4) exhibits anti-inflammatory properties, its clinical application is hindered by poor bioavailability. To address this limitation, we developed magnetically guided gelatin microrobots (MG-AB4) for targeted AB4 delivery. The MG-AB4 system consists of a Fe₃O₄-loaded gelatin shell for enabling precise magnetic navigation (velocity: 110 μm/s), an AB4 core for rapid drug release which is advantageous for acute inflammatory responses, and surface modifications to enhance cellular uptake. Compared with free AB4, MG-AB4 significantly suppressed key inflammatory cytokines (Interleukin-6 (IL-6), Interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β), Tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α); p < 0.01), inhibited NF-κB activation (p < 0.01), and improved cell viability in an inflammatory model (p < 0.05). This study demonstrates that magnetically guided AB4 delivery using rapidly releasing microrobots is a promising strategy for SALI treatment, wherein the synergy of targeted delivery and potent anti-inflammatory action may effectively mitigate disease progression. Full article

Background/Objectives: Thrombotic diseases, such as ischemic stroke, acute myocardial infarction, and venous thromboembolism, are leading causes of global morbidity and mortality. Traditional thrombolytic therapies like systemic tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) are limited by bleeding risks, poor targeting, and inconsistent efficacy. This review explores emerging non-pharmacological technologies aimed at overcoming these challenges through targeted, minimally invasive thrombolysis. Methods: A narrative synthesis of recent advancements was conducted, focusing on six innovative approaches: ultrasound-mediated thrombolysis (UMT), microrobots, electrothrombectomy, photothrombectomy, magnetic targeted thrombolysis, and nanotechnology. Preclinical and clinical studies were reviewed to assess mechanisms, efficacy, safety, and translational potential, prioritizing technologies with demonstrated success in animal or early human trials. Results: Technologies like microbubble-enhanced UMT, magnetically actuated microrobots, and fibrin-targeted nanoparticles showed promising results. UMT improved recanalization in ischemic stroke and pulmonary embolism, while electrothrombectomy demonstrated safe, effective clot extraction in human trials. However, challenges remain in scalability, biocompatibility, and clinical integration, with microrobots and photothrombectomy still in preclinical stages. Conclusions: Emerging thrombolysis technologies offer safer, more targeted alternatives to conventional treatments. Clinical adoption will depend on overcoming translational hurdles, including large-scale trials, miniaturization, and interdisciplinary collaboration, with a focus on hybrid approaches and real-time imaging integration. Full article

The remarkable growth of high-frequency electronic systems has raised concerns about electromagnetic interference (EMI), emphasizing the need for lightweight and efficient shielding materials. In this study, ternary composites based on polypyrrole (PPy), graphene oxide (GO), and silver nanowires (AgNWs) were synthesized through chemical oxidative polymerization of pyrrole monomer and embedded into polycaprolactone (PCL) matrices to create flexible films. Structural and morphological analyses confirmed the successful incorporation of all components, with scanning electron microscopy showing granular PPy, sheet-like GO, and fibrous AgNWs, while spectroscopic studies indicated strong interfacial interactions without damaging the PPy backbone. Thermomechanical analysis revealed that GO increased stiffness and defined the glass transition, whereas AgNWs improved toughness and energy dissipation; their combined use resulted in balanced properties. EMI shielding effectiveness (SE) was tested in the X-band (8–12 GHz). Pure PPy exhibited poor shielding ability, while the addition of GO and AgNWs significantly enhanced performance. The highest EMI SE values were observed in PPy/GO–AgNWs composites, with an average SE of 16.05 dB at 20 wt% of the composite in the PCL matrix, equivalent to about 84.4% attenuation of incident waves. These results demonstrate that the synergistic integration of GO and AgNWs into PPy matrices enables the creation of lightweight, flexible films with advanced EMI shielding properties, showing great potential for next-generation electronic and aerospace applications. Full article

Mechanical properties are critical for characterizing and fabricating advanced materials. While current characterization methods are well-established for the nanoscale and larger millimeter-scale, a significant gap exists in automated testing at the microscale. To address this, we propose an automated, rapid characterization method based on a microrobotic system. We first develop a 6-degree-of-freedom (DOF) microrobotic system for sample alignment and testing. An image processing method is then designed for real-time sample recognition, supplying essential feedback for both alignment and testing procedures. Furthermore, a soft force sensor is fabricated and calibrated to ensure precise force measurement. Experiments on copper wires and graphite films demonstrate the method’s high precision and reliability. This work provides a robust solution for microscale mechanical property characterization, offering significant potential for advanced material development. Full article

Electromagnetic interference (EMI) represents a growing challenge in the modern era, as electronic systems and wireless technologies become increasingly integrated into daily life. This review provides a comprehensive overview of EMI, beginning with its historical evolution over centuries, from early power transmission systems and industrial machinery to today’s complex environment shaped by IoT, 5G, smart devices, and autonomous technologies. The diverse sources of EMI and their wide-ranging effects are examined, including disruptions in electrical and medical devices, ecological impacts on wildlife, and potential risks to human health. Beyond its technical and societal implications, the economic dimension of EMI is explored, highlighting the rapid expansion of the global shielding materials market and its forecasted growth driven by telecommunications, automotive, aerospace, and healthcare sectors. Preventative strategies against EMI are discussed, with particular emphasis on the role of advanced materials. Carbon-based nanomaterials—such as graphene, carbon nanotubes, and carbon foams—are presented as promising solutions owing to their exceptional conductivity, mechanical strength, tunable structure, and environmental sustainability. By uniting perspectives on EMI’s origins, consequences, market dynamics, and mitigation strategies, this work underscores the urgent need for scalable, high-performance, and eco-friendly shielding approaches. Special attention is given to recent advances in carbon-based nanomaterials, which are poised to play a transformative role in ensuring the safety, reliability, and sustainability of future electronic technologies. Full article