Newly created nanobots can drill through eyeballs to deliver drugs

With frequent new innovations, scientists are trying to make tiny robots that deliver drugs inside human bodies a reality. In a new such innovation, scientists have created new nanobots that can drill through the eyes to deliver drugs.

A team of scientists have published a study in the journal Science Advances that describes about their propeller-shaped nanobot capable of delivering drugs to the body by drilling through eyeballs without damaging them.

As described by Futurism, the bot is very tiny – approximately 200 times smaller in diameter than a human hair. It has a non-stick coating that makes it easier for the bot to slip through dense tissue, like those found in eyeballs. Also, a magnetic material is also included in the bot to make it easier for steering with an external magnetic field.

‘Caterpillar robot’ capable of delivering drugs inside human body

In order to test the nanobots, the team injected tens of thousands of them into a dissected pig’s eye. With the help of magnetic field, researchers were able to direct the flock to the retina at the back of the animal’s eye.

For the future, the team believes that this technique will help them deliver drugs directly to the unreachable parts of human body, and not just to the eyeballs, according to Phys.org.

“That is our vision. We want to be able to use our nanopropellers as tools in the minimally-invasive treatment of all kinds of diseases, where the problematic area is hard to reach and surrounded by dense tissue. Not too far in the future, we will be able to load them with drugs,” said researcher Tian Qiu.