Researchers at University of California San Diego have developed tiny micromotors that propel themselves around the stomach, neutralizing the acids within, eventually releasing a cargo of drugs once the pH is at a desired level. This approach can change how antibiotics and other pH sensitive drugs are delivered, as currently proton pump inhibitors have to be administered to reduce acidity before administering such drugs.
The micromotors have a magnesium center wrapped in titanium dioxide that reacts with stomach acids, producing hydrogen bubbles that propel the tiny devices to swim around the stomach. The central core has an antibiotic stuck to it and a coating of chitosan polymer that makes the micromotors stick to the walls of the stomach. The micromotors continue reacting with the surrounding gastric acids until a predetermined pH level is reached, at which point the antibiotic is allowed to pop off and safely begin targeting the bacteria it came to kill
The research team compared the new method against the traditional combination of antibiotic with proton pump inhibitors, showing that the micromotors were at least as effective at reducing Helicobacter pylori bacteria, that is responsible for ulcers, in laboratory mice.
Here’s a quick animation of the micromotors in action:
Open-access study in Nature Communications: Micromotor-enabled active drug delivery for in vivo treatment of stomach infection…
Via: UC San Diego…