A swarm of slippery micropropellers penetrates the vitreous body of the eye

TY - JOUR

T1 - A swarm of slippery micropropellers penetrates the vitreous body of the eye

AU - Wu, Zhiguang

AU - Troll, Jonas

AU - Jeong, Hyeon-Ho

AU - Wei, Qiang

AU - Stang, Marius

AU - Ziemssen, Focke

AU - Wang, Zegao

AU - Dong, Mingdong

AU - Schnichels, Sven

AU - Qiu, Tian

AU - Fischer, Peer

PY - 2018/11/2

Y1 - 2018/11/2

N2 - The intravitreal delivery of therapeutic agents promises major benefits in the field of ocular medicine. Traditional delivery methods rely on the random, passive diffusion of molecules, which do not allow for the rapid delivery of a concentrated cargo to a defined region at the posterior pole of the eye. The use of particles promises targeted delivery but faces the challenge that most tissues including the vitreous have a tight macromolecular matrix that acts as a barrier and prevents its penetration. Here, we demonstrate novel intravitreal delivery microvehicles-slippery micropropellers-that can be actively propelled through the vitreous humor to reach the retina. The propulsion is achieved by helical magnetic micropropellers that have a liquid layer coating to minimize adhesion to the surrounding biopolymeric network. The submicrometer diameter of the propellers enables the penetration of the biopolymeric network and the propulsion through the porcine vitreous body of the eye over centimeter distances. Clinical optical coherence tomography is used to monitor the movement of the propellers and confirm their arrival on the retina near the optic disc. Overcoming the adhesion forces and actively navigating a swarm of micropropellers in the dense vitreous humor promise practical applications in ophthalmology.

AB - The intravitreal delivery of therapeutic agents promises major benefits in the field of ocular medicine. Traditional delivery methods rely on the random, passive diffusion of molecules, which do not allow for the rapid delivery of a concentrated cargo to a defined region at the posterior pole of the eye. The use of particles promises targeted delivery but faces the challenge that most tissues including the vitreous have a tight macromolecular matrix that acts as a barrier and prevents its penetration. Here, we demonstrate novel intravitreal delivery microvehicles-slippery micropropellers-that can be actively propelled through the vitreous humor to reach the retina. The propulsion is achieved by helical magnetic micropropellers that have a liquid layer coating to minimize adhesion to the surrounding biopolymeric network. The submicrometer diameter of the propellers enables the penetration of the biopolymeric network and the propulsion through the porcine vitreous body of the eye over centimeter distances. Clinical optical coherence tomography is used to monitor the movement of the propellers and confirm their arrival on the retina near the optic disc. Overcoming the adhesion forces and actively navigating a swarm of micropropellers in the dense vitreous humor promise practical applications in ophthalmology.

KW - MICRORHEOLOGY

KW - NANOPARTICLES

KW - COMPOSITE

KW - DIFFUSION

KW - DELIVERY

KW - SURFACE

KW - BOVINE

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85056284283&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1126/sciadv.aat4388

DO - 10.1126/sciadv.aat4388

M3 - Journal article

C2 - 30406201

SN - 2375-2548

VL - 4

JO - Science Advances

JF - Science Advances

IS - 11

M1 - 4388

ER -