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London, November 5 (IANS) An international team of scientists has developed a helical nanorobot that, for the first time, can pierce dense tissue like in one eye.
Scientists, including those from the German Max Planck Institute, have applied to the nanoparticles a nonstick coating of a width of only 500 nm, small enough to pbad through the narrow molecular matrix of the gelatinous substance located in the vitreous of the eye.
The molecule-matrix is like a tight mesh of double-sided tape.
Drills are 200 times smaller than the diameter of a human hair, even smaller than the width of a bacterium.
Their shape and slippery coating allows the nanoparticles to move relatively easily through an eye, without damaging the sensitive biological tissue that surrounds them.
"We applied a layer of liquid found on the carnivore plant, which has a slippery surface on the peristome to capture insects," said lead author Zhiguang Wu, a postdoctoral fellow at the California Institute of Technology.
"It's like the Teflon coating of a frying pan. This slippery coating is crucial for the efficient propulsion of our robots in the eye, as it minimizes adhesion between the vitreous biological protein network and the surface of our nanobots. "
This is the first time that scientists have been able to direct nanobots through dense tissue, as has been demonstrated until now only in model systems or biological fluids.
These nano-propellants may one day be loaded with drugs or other therapeutic agents and direct them to a targeted area, where they can deliver the drug where it is needed.
"The principle of the propulsion of nanobots, their small size, as well as the slippery coating, will be useful, not only for the eyes, but also for the penetration of many tissues in the human body," said Tian Qiu, of the laboratory. Micro, Nano and Molecular Systems "from the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems.
-IANS
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