In the future of medicine, "molecular doctors" constructed from a patient's own cells may find cancer, repair injured tissue, or even remove plaque from blood vessels. Recently, scientists from Tufts University in the United States and a research team from Harvard University have developed a new type of "miniature human cell robot" using human cells.
Source: CCTV Finance.
The "Human Cell Robot" was introduced.
The new "miniature human cell robots", called "anthrobots", are made up of human cells and are about 30 to 500 microns in diameter. It can self-assemble, move, and, when added to injured neurons, help them repair themselves, without genetic modification. The study was published Nov. 30 in the journal Advanced Science.
Michael Levin, a developmental biologist at Tufts University, led the study, having built his first "living robot" four years ago. He and his colleagues stitched together the embryonic heart and cells of the African clawed frog to create an organoid with cilia, tiny hairs that move back and forth to allow it to crawl and even swim. This "robot" is used to take away microplastics from the ocean or attack cancer cells.
On this basis, Levin's graduate student Gizem Gumuskaya created a "human cell robot" based on the cells in the trachea. Gumskaya explained that tracheal cells were chosen because they are relatively easy to obtain and help with lung diseases.
It is reported that each micro human cell robot is grown from a single cell, which also means that each micro human cell robot is unique, with different sizes or shapes and slightly different ways of moving. Some of these robots are completely covered with cilia, and some are irregularly covered with cilia. From the point of view of movement mode, some robots move in a straight line, while others move in circles. However, all of these robots survived in a laboratory environment for 60 days.
Source: CCTV Finance.
The study is in the early stages of study.
Levin and Gumskaya said the research is still in its early stages, and the goal of the research is to explore whether the robot can be used in the medical field. To achieve this goal, the researchers moved the robots in a petri dish containing scratched nerve cells, and were surprised to find that the robots actually promoted the growth of damaged nerve cells as they passed through them. However, the researchers admit that it is not clear why this is happening.
Regarding the safety and ethics of these robots, Levine said that these robots do not pose any safety and ethical issues. "These robots are not made from human embryos, and there is no genetic modification of any kind. Levine added that these robots also have a very limited living environment, and they cannot survive outside of a specific environment. In addition, these robots also have a natural lifespan and generally degrade on their own after a few weeks.
Researchers say Anthrobots could be used in personalized medicine in the future, promising to find cancer, repair damaged tissue, and even remove plaque from blood vessels.
The repair power of cell robots.
In 2020, a team of researchers in the United States used living cells obtained from Xenopus laevis embryos and assembled them into the world's first living robots (Xenobots).
It can repair itself, using ** and heart cells derived from the stem cells of frog embryos. What sets it apart from most robots is that it is not made of plastic or metal, but entirely of organic cellular materials.
Because the cells used are derived from the early embryos of Xenopus laevis, it is named "Xenobots" after Xenopus laevis. It has about 004 inches wide, less than a millimeter, small enough to move through the human body, can work, swim, walk, and even survive for weeks without food.
"Over time, traditional robots will degrade and may produce harmful ecology and health, which is more environmentally friendly and safer for human health than traditional robots, and is an effective way to solve the problem of robot degradation," the researchers said.
Trauma, birth defects, cancer, aging, and other problems that plague humans exist because we can't control the group behavior of our cells. And when scientists gain a deeper understanding of reconfigurable organisms like Xenobots, they may be able to control cellular behavior more precisely.
In the future, humans could be programmed to remove microplastics from water bodies, deliver targeted drugs to patients, and aid in vaccine development. These tiny "molecular doctors" may also be able to provide more direct, personalized medicines for trauma, birth defects, cancer, aging, and more**. Wang Xiaowei, an associate professor at the School of Philosophy at Chinese Minmin University, believes that these goals are "promising in the future", but the current research results still have a long way to go before they can be applied in practice.
China Xiaokang Network integrates China Science News, CCTV Finance and Economics, China Network, Red Star News, Yangcheng Evening News, etc.).
*: China Xiaokang Network.
Author: Fenghua.
Review: Gong Zimo.