In a new study published in the recent Science Robot magazine, researchers from Bregan and Women's Hospital and Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the United States developed a drug capsule that may one day replace the way of injection. When the "robot cap" of the capsule reaches the small intestine, it will rotate and pass through the mucus barrier, so that the drug carried by the capsule can enter the cells in the intestine. The researchers said that by replacing mucus, the drug dispersion in local areas can be maximized, and the absorption of small molecules and macromolecules can be enhanced. They proved that this method can be used to deliver insulin and vancomycin, which is an antibacterial peptide that must be administered by injection at present. Oral administration is the most common and cost-effective treatment. However, many macromolecular protein drugs cannot pass through the mucus barrier in the digestive tract, so many drugs, including insulin, must be administered by other ways. To overcome these obstacles, the researchers hope to create a protective capsule that has a mechanism to penetrate mucus, just like a tunnel boring machine drilling into soil and rock. This new capsule, called "RoboCap", is about the size of a vitamin. One end of the capsule is filled with effective drugs in a container, and the surface is coated with gelatin, which can be adjusted to dissolve at a specific pH value. When the coating dissolves, the change of pH value will trigger a micro motor inside RoboCap capsule to start rotating, which helps the capsule enter the mucus and shift it. The capsule is also covered with small studs, which can brush away mucus like a toothbrush. Rotating movement also helps to erode the compartment carrying the drug, and the drug is gradually released into the digestive tract. The researchers said that RoboCap's role is to temporarily eliminate the initial mucus barrier, and then to enhance absorption by maximizing the local dispersion of drugs. In animal experiments, researchers used this kind of capsule to deliver insulin or vancomycin. Experiments showed that the drug that can be delivered is 20-40 times more than similar capsules without a "drill through" mechanism. Once the drug is released from the capsule, the capsule itself will automatically pass through the digestive tract, and there is no sign of inflammation or irritation of the digestive tract after passing. The capsule used in this study releases the payload in the small intestine, but it can also target the stomach or colon by changing the pH value of gelatin coating dissolution. In the future, it can also be used to deliver local drugs to help treat inflammation such as ulcerative colitis by maximizing the concentration of drugs in local tissues. (Outlook New Times)