All these couplings between electronic and biological mechanics still send shivers down your spine...
This is the creation of a team from the University of Illinois. A tiny flexible structure covered with cardiomyocytes was able to move forward thanks to the cells' natural contraction movements.
A FLEXIBLE RECTANGLE of seven millimeters on two supported on a foot, which advances all alone. It's the biological machine, or bio-bot, made by a team at the University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign, bringing together researchers in nanotechnology, bioengineering, computer and electrical engineering, mechanical sciences and in molecular biology.
The basic structure was created by 3D printing. It is a rectangle of hydrogel, called PEGDA, projected in successive layers. This flexible material was chosen "to mimic the elasticity of rat heart muscle", says the study, published online in the scientific reports of Nature. The object's surface was then coated with a layer of extracellular matrix proteins that helped attach heart cells. These were extracted from the hearts of newborn rats.
The researchers left the cardiomyocytes in culture for a few days, so that they grew in size and synchronized to the point of spontaneously observing a contraction-retraction movement. Suddenly, the polymer structure began to curve, driven by the movements of the cells.
American researchers made five such bio-bots based on hydrogel structures of different thicknesses. The aim was to compare the curves obtained and analyze the phenomenon.
The experiment then made it possible to identify which curvatures could lend themselves to a movement of locomotion. The rat-machine can indeed move on its own thanks to the rhythm of contraction of the layer of cells. The fastest recorded speed is one millimeter every four seconds.
The challenge ? Use in engineering the force of the cells by combining it not with rigid materials but with flexible materials. The device could also be used for chemical analyzes (in particular for testing drugs): by altering cells or making them react to external stimuli, we can study the consequences on the behavior of the bio-bot.
Arnaud Devillard
source: Science & Future
Additional information :
Crashdebug.fr: Cyborg tissue is made of half-living, half-electronic cells
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