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MRI Powered Pill-Sized Robot Swims Through Intestines
kkleiner writes "Researchers from Tel Aviv University in Israel and Brigham & Women's Hospital in Boston have collaborated to create a robot that can swim through the intestines. The size of a large pill, the 'microswimmer' is powered by the strong magnetic fields generated by an MRI machine. A tail measuring 20mm x 5mm made of copper and flexible polymer vibrates due to the magnets and propels the little microrobot through the gut."
In other news, the TSA has announced a new screening process involving rubber gloves and an intestinal robot. Americans should be very familiar with the procedure, as one merely has to bend over and take it.
I'm no MRI tech, but the hope is that there would be a low-power non-diagnostic routine to accommodate the little swimmer. The technology is only hype anyway, the article states that they tested it in a fish tank and haven't even tested it in a human. I doubt they'll have much success with it meandering successfully through the gut, and of course it will stop dead in its tracks when it hits that big wall of shit*.
*People who are active tend to defecate only once a day, with either hard pellets or spectacular stool length and thickness depending on how much fiber and coffee they consume.
As someone with a rather severe form of Crohns Disease, this is a godsend (and I'm saying that as an atheist!). I can assure you that anyone with a similarly debilitating intestinal disorder that inevitably leads to cancer feels the same for reasons I will spare you.
The many "score whatever funnies" that will certainly follow this story will be shamefully ignorant.
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Okay, so... going against every warning label on the side of an MRI machine, we're going to stick something that is metallic, magnetized, and decently sized... and put it in a person, and then put that person in the machine?
Er, ok.
The summery stated it was copper, not iron. Aluminum is commonly used for MRI safe equipment all the time. There is copper in the coils already anyhow. As long as it's nonferrous it should be fine. My question is, how long does this procedure take? MRI time is expensive, and using it mainly as a power source will have accountants heads exploding. Unless they plan to do this at night during off peak, or times when the magnet is unused. That would make perfect sense as you are paying to keep the scanner cool 24/7 anyhow.
The article says "A swallowed pill is essentially at the mercy of the movements of the GI tract. Not so with the microswimmer." Another Googled article informs me that the colon undergoes "Segmentation contractions which chop and mix the ingesta; antiperistaltic contractions propagate toward the ileum, and giant migrating contractions... a very intense and prolonged peristaltic contraction which strips an area of large intestine clear of contents." So among other things this little gadget is swimming downstream when the colon is trying to push things upstream. What does it feel like? Tickling? Gas pains?
When you have a colonoscopy, they give you a sedative (often Midazolam), a pain-killer (often Fentanyl), and sometimes general anesthesia. Of course that's a lot more invasive, but it probably doesn't take as long because the colon is a lot shorter than your whole GI tract. Sometimes the doctor has a little trouble getting a colonscope around a tight corner. Does this thing ever get stuck and how do they deal with it?
"How to Do Nothing," kids activities, back in print!
Having had to design surgical instruments to operate in in MRI imaging field (not just the magnetic field, but in the patient during a scan), I can answer this.
The warning on the machine is overly cautious. Almost any material can be put in in MRI, but should be tested. 99% would probably fail (and 99% of those can be predicted to fail). And who wants to test every friggin' thing someone wants to bring into an MRI room. Best just to say "NONE!"
But for stuff designed for the MRI, it's a different story.
There are 2 levels of compatibility: MRI safe and MRI compatible.
MRI safe means it won't hurt anyone. Don't use large pieces of ferro or paramagnetic materials, or the magnet will apply significant force. In other words, just don't use steel (plus a few other exotic alloys). And don't use long, thing wires, or you can create some induction heating from the radio waves (the R stands for resonance ... radio frequency resonance).
MRI compatible means that the material won't disrupt the imaging field. Either by warping the magnetic field, messing with the radio waves, or creating discontinuities (the FFT algorithms create artifacts from abrupt hydrogen density changes. Air/interface is enough sometimes).
Turns out polymers are ideal, followed by ceramics. But a small group of diamagnetic metals work pretty well too (but still have dimension and geometry constraints). Gold, silver, lead, and copper work great. BeCu alloys can be used and replace steel.
A small item (20 mm x 5 mm dia) made of copper should be MRI safe. MRI compatible is something that has to be tested, but copper/polymer objects might not screw with the image too badly if designed well. And it makes great sense to tap the radio field for a little bit of power.
The world is made by those who show up for the job.
I think that is already a solved problem for colonoscopies - 24 hours of nothing but clear liquids and jello plus aggressive laxatives, clears you right out.
According to my butt doctor, I was "squeaky clean" when I had my colonoscopy. The previous day and a half was unpleasant, but I am grateful I went through with it.
The weirdest part of having 100% empty intestines was my lack of hunger. I had zero food or "processed food" in my guts, but I felt content like I had just eaten a decent meal but was not stuffed. Then, when I ate my first meal, I was extremely hungry despite having just eaten.
24 beers in a case, 24 hours in a day. Coincidence? I think not!
Only if it has a mustache.
Robots get all the shitty jobs!
Most of the cost of an MRI is in making the magnetic fields precise enough to be used for imaging. Take away that requirement and I reckon you take away 90% of the price. Whats left is a powerful, controlable magnetic field generator.
You could have all sorts of fun with that.
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