Edible robots and cancer cure.

Researchers from the Polytechnique Montréal, The University of Montreal and McGill University, have made a breakthrough in cancer research, by developing tiny 'robots' that can travel through the bloodstream to administer a drug with precision by targeting the active cancerous cells of tumors. This method blasts a tumor with medication while avoiding jeopardising the integrity of organs and surrounding healthy tissue, meaning a lower dosage of toxic drugs is suitable for treatment.At present, it has only been tested in mice but the nanobots successfully targeted colorectal tumours. The nanorobotic agents are actually composed of more than 100 million flagellated bacteria - and therefore self-propelled - and loaded with drugs that moved by taking the most direct path between the drug's injection point and the area of the body to cure. The drug's propelling force was enough to travel efficiently and enter deep inside the tumors. When in contact with a tumor, the nanorobot-like bacteria can detect oxygen-depleted tumor areas, known as hypoxic zones and deliver a drug to them, without human intervention. The hypoxic zone is created by the substantial consumption of oxygen by tumor cells and are known to be resistant to most therapies, including radiotherapy, meaning the futuristic treatment could save more lives. The bacteria used in the experiment move in the direction of a magnetic field, while a sensor measuring oxygen concentration enables them to reach and remain in the tumor's active regions. By exposing them to a computer-controlled magnetic field, the researchers showed the bacteria could perfectly replicate artificial nanorobots of the future designed for this kind of task. The innovative use of nanotransporters will have an impact not only on creating more advanced engineering concepts and original intervention methods, but it also throws the door wide open to the synthesis of new vehicles for therapeutic, imaging and diagnostic agents. culled from wired.co.uk.