Microrobots made of algae carry chemo directly to lung tumors, improving cancer treatment [Video]

Tumors that travel to the lungs, or lung metastases, pose a formidable challenge in the realm of cancer treatment. Conventional chemotherapy often falls short because it’s inefficient. It doesn’t directly target the lungs and accumulate in a high enough concentration to kill tumors.

My colleagues and I from the Wang lab and Zhang Research Group at the University of California, San Diego have spent the past five years developing biohybrid microrobots, tiny objects made of both natural and synthetic materials, that can be used in medicine.

In our newly published research, we made a green microalgae-based biohybrid microrobot that can deliver chemotherapy directly to the lung and treat lung metastases.

Algae drug delivery

Synthetic microrobots are typically made of rigid metallic or polymeric structures that are difficult to manufacture. They’re unable to access certain organs and tissues, and they can be toxic to humans.

Microalgae overcome these concerns. For …