HONG KONG – A research team from the University of Hong Kong has developed the world’s first light-guided nanorobot, with the potential to travel through the bloodstream to help remove tumours and block growth of cancer cells.
The tiny robot was developed over three years by an eight-member team led by Assistant Professor Tang Jinyao.
The device compares in size to a human blood cell, with a diameter of only 2 to 3mm. Injected, it can travel through the bloodstream.
Guided by light as dim as a table lamp, the nanorobot can move in different directions.
“The early model could be capable of delivering medications into cancer cells to block their growth without harming nearby cells,” Prof Tang said.
Previously, the only method to remotely control nanorobots was by incorporating a tiny magnetic field in the motor.
One of the breakthroughs by the team was to direct more precise orders to the device through light.
Light has more variances in colour, direction and focal points than a magnetic field.
pixabay, The Straits Times, Organo Gold
The Straits Times, Shutterstock.com, pixabay, Changi General Hospital
