Game-changing robotic pill makes insulin injections obsolete

[Feb. 1, 2023: Anne Trafton, MIT]

A new drug capsule developed at MIT could help large proteins like insulin and small molecule drugs be absorbed into the digestive tract. (Credit: Felice Frankel)

One of the reasons it is so difficult to deliver large protein drugs orally is that these drugs cannot pass through the mucus barrier that lines the digestive tract. This means that insulin and most other “biologics”—drugs made from proteins or nucleic acids—need to be injected or administered in a hospital.

A new drug capsule developed at MIT could one day replace these injections. The capsule has a robotic lid that rotates and passes through the mucus barrier as it reaches the small intestine, allowing the drugs carried by the capsule to enter the cells lining the intestine.



“By expelling mucus, we can maximize drug dispersion in a local area and improve absorption of both small molecules and macromolecules,” says Giovanni Traverso, Carl van Tassel Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering at MIT and a gastroenterologist. at Brigham and Women’s Hospital.

In a study published today in Science Robotics, the researchers demonstrated that they can use this approach to deliver insulin as well as vancomycin, an antibiotic peptide that currently needs to be injected.


Similar stories:

  • Common diabetes medications may prevent glaucoma
  • New wireless diaper sensors powered by biofuel cells could help prevent diabetes
  • Smart cells promise to cure diabetes, cancer and other diseases

Shriya Srinivasan, Research Fellow, Institute for Integrative Cancer Research. Koch at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Associate Fellow of the Society of Fellows at Harvard University, is the lead author of the study.

Tunneling through

For several years, Traverso’s lab has been developing strategies for the oral delivery of protein drugs such as insulin. This is a difficult task because protein preparations tend to break down in the acidic environment of the digestive tract and also have difficulty penetrating the mucosal barrier that lines the tract.



To overcome these obstacles, Srinivasan came up with the idea of ​​creating a protective capsule that includes a mechanism that can tunnel through the slime, similar to how tunnel boring machines drill through soil and rocks.

RoboCap in a cup in the lab. (CREDIT: Shriya Srinivasan/MIT)

“I thought that if we could tunnel through the mucus, then we could apply the drug directly to the epithelium,” she says. “The idea is that you swallow this capsule and the outer layer dissolves in the digestive tract, exposing all these features that start to penetrate the mucus and clear it.”



The RoboCap capsule, about the size of a multivitamin, contains the drug in a small reservoir at one end and has tunneling properties in the main body and on the surface. The capsule is coated with gelatin that can be adjusted to dissolve at a specific pH.

A new drug capsule developed at MIT could help large proteins like insulin and small molecule drugs be absorbed into the digestive tract. (Credit: Felice Frankel)

As the coating dissolves, the change in pH starts the tiny motor inside the RoboCap that spins. This movement helps the capsule to penetrate the mucus and expel it. The capsule is also covered with small spikes that remove mucus like a toothbrush.



The rotational motion also helps break down the compartment containing the drug, which is gradually released in the digestive tract.

RoboCap compared to a penny in size. (TEACHER: Traverso Lab/MIT and BWH)

“RoboCap temporarily displaces the initial mucosal barrier and then enhances absorption by locally maximizing drug dispersion,” says Traverso. “By combining all of these elements, we maximize our ability to provide an optimal situation for drug absorption.”



Extended Delivery

In animal tests, researchers have used this capsule to deliver either insulin or vancomycin, a large peptide antibiotic that is used to treat a wide range of infections, including skin infections as well as infections affecting orthopedic implants. The researchers found that with the capsule, they could deliver 20 to 40 times more drug than a similar capsule without a tunnel mechanism.

Once the drug is released from the capsule, the capsule itself passes through the digestive tract on its own. The researchers found no signs of inflammation or irritation in the digestive tract after passing through the capsule, and also noticed that the mucus layer was restored within a few hours after the capsule had expelled it.

Another approach that some researchers have taken to improve the oral delivery of drugs is to give them along with additional drugs that help them pass through the intestinal tissues. However, these enhancers often only work with certain drugs. Since the MIT team’s new approach relies solely on mechanical disruption of the mucosal barrier, Traverso said it could potentially be applied to a wider range of drugs.

“Some chemical enhancers work preferentially with certain drug molecules,” he says. “The use of mechanical methods of administration could potentially allow for increased absorption of more drugs.”

Although the capsule used in this study released its payload in the small intestine, it can also be used to target the stomach or colon by changing the pH at which the gelatin coating dissolves.



The researchers also plan to explore the delivery of other protein-based drugs, such as the GLP1 receptor agonist, which is sometimes used to treat type 2 diabetes. Capsules can also be used for topical application of drugs for the treatment of ulcerative colitis and other inflammatory conditions by maximizing the local concentration of drugs in tissues for the treatment of inflammation.

Mechanism of action of RoboCap. The ingestion and activation process triggers the progressive dissolution of the pH-sensitive gelatin membranes, exposing surface features and completing the circuit to activate RoboCap in the appropriate area of ​​the gastrointestinal tract. (CREDIT: science)

The study was funded in part by the National Institutes of Health and the MIT Department of Mechanical Engineering.



Other contributors to the article include Amro Alsharif, Alexandria Hwang, Ziliang Kang, Johannes Kuosmanen, Keiko Ishida, Joshua Jenkins, Sabrina Liu, Wiam Abdalla Mohammed Madani, Jochen Lennertz, Alison Hayward, Josh Morimoto, Nina Fitzgerald, and Robert Langer.

To learn more about science and technology, visit our New Innovations section at The bright side of the news.


Note. Materials provided above by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Content can be edited for style and length.



Do you like such pleasant stories? Receive Brighter Side of News Newsletter.


Content Source

Dallas Press News – Latest News:
Dallas Local News || Fort Worth Local News | Texas State News || Crime and Safety News || National news || Business News || Health News

texasstandard.news contributed to this report.

Related Articles

Back to top button