14 DAY TRIAL // It might sound like fiction to some, but to Sylvain Martel of the NanoRobotics Laboratory at Ecole Polytechnique de Montreal it is anything but. By using an MRI machine and specially designed software, Martel proved that it is possible to propel and control nanorobots inside the bloodstream of a living pig, bringing advancements into an area of science that until now was purely theoretical. The experiment could open the way to developing non-invasive cures for a series of diseases, such as cancer.
"This is really what we are doing, except that we don't send tiny humans of course. We are using the magnetic fields of nanoparticles to track them through the bloodstream," said Martel about the experiments conducted along with his team.
"This could lead to a revolution in interventional radiology. We have proven that it is possible to deliver anti-cancer drugs to precise areas of the body, and thus reduce side effects of treatments to the whole body," said Gilles Soulez, part of Martel's research team.
Interventional radiology is a medical branch that makes use of tiny devices introduced in the body through small incisions and then guided with different non-invasive imaging techniques to diagnose and treat various diseases. However, the propulsion system developed by Martel still needs additional testing before it is put to use. What makes his technique viable is the fact that MRI machines can be found in just about any hospital, they are also non-invasive, and can be easily adapted to carry out the task of propelling nanorobots through the bloodstream of living beings without requiring massive investments.
"You can put our program on a 35-cent CD, and implement it in each hospital," said Martel. For now however, further study must be focused on finding the right materials to create the nanorobots. "There is a catalogue of particles that we can use depending on different types of applications. If we were to send the nanorobots to the brain, we would use a different material and design than for the liver."
Jean-Christophe Leroux, another researcher working with Martel, argues that biodegradable polymer materials would offer the best solution. Experiments have demonstrated that they can be easily controlled with the help of MRI machines, although some tweaking still needs to be done before they can become useful.