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Oral ingestible robotic drug delivery device overcomes barriers of the gastrointestinal environment
Oral drug administration is the most common and cost-effective type of treatment. But drugs must pass through the harsh, acidic environment of the stomach, resist degradation by enzymes, penetrate the barrier of small intestinal mucus, and overcome many other obstacles before they can be absorbed. Because of these challenges, many pharmaceuticals; including common medications such as insulin; must be delivered by other means. Researchers at Brigham and Women's Hospital - a founding member of the Mass General Brigham Health System - and MIT have developed RoboCap, an oral, robotic drug delivery device that overcomes many of the challenges of the gastrointestinal environment in delivering its payload. The team …
Oral ingestible robotic drug delivery device overcomes barriers of the gastrointestinal environment
Oral drug administration is the most common and cost-effective type of treatment. But drugs must pass through the harsh, acidic environment of the stomach, resist degradation by enzymes, penetrate the barrier of small intestinal mucus, and overcome many other obstacles before they can be absorbed. Because of these challenges, many pharmaceuticals; including common medications such as insulin; must be delivered by other means.
Researchers at Brigham and Women's Hospital - a founding member of the Mass General Brigham Health System - and MIT have developed RoboCap, an oral, robotic drug delivery device that overcomes many of the challenges of the gastrointestinal environment in delivering its payload. The team tested the device in preclinical models using insulin and vancomycin, an antibiotic that is usually administered intravenously. When ingested, RoboCap's gelatinous coating dissolves in the stomach. The environment of the small intestine activates RoboCap, which vibrates and rotates to clear mucus, improve mixing, and deposit the drug load in the small intestine, where the drug is likely to be absorbed. In a porcine model, RoboCap increased drug permeability to both insulin and vancomycin by more than 10-fold.
Peptides and proteins are important drugs, but the degradative environment of the gastrointestinal tract and poor absorption have limited the ability to administer these drugs orally. RoboCap’s expectorant and churning movements are designed to overcome these barriers and help get medications where they are needed.”
C. Giovanni Traverso, MB, BChir, PhD, co-corresponding author, Department of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Endoscopy at Brigham and Department of Mechanical Engineering at MIT
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Reference:
Srinivasan, SS, et al. (2022) RoboCap: Robotic capsule for mucus removal for improved drug delivery in the gastrointestinal tract. Science Robotics. doi.org/10.1126/scirobotics.abp9066.