Project description
Targeted brain cancer therapy with microrobots
Treating brain diseases often requires tools that can navigate delicate tissue without causing damage. The advent of microrobots – tiny devices capable of delivering treatments directly inside a tumour – offers a promising solution for aggressive cancers such as glioblastoma. With the support of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions programme, the HyBOT project aims to develop a microrobot designed to gently penetrate brain tissue. The work is inspired by parasites found in nature. Researchers will build a hybrid microrobot that mimics the behaviour of the creatures in order to penetrate brain tissue, and then optimise its locomotion through advanced modelling. Tests in hydrogels and ex vivo biological tissues will help pave the way for future minimally invasive therapies for otherwise inaccessible brain cancers.
Objective
Biological soft tissues, such as brain tissues, present a major challenge for wireless biomedical microdevices to penetrate, due to the complex anatomy and viscoelastic mechanical properties. Parasitic organisms can penetrate plant roots using a hardened stylet while navigating with the soft body undulation. The combination of the rigid and soft biological morphology allows these parasites to fracture, anchor to, and extract nutrients from the plant cells. Inspired by these parasites, I propose a novel microrobot with a stiff head and a flexible body designed to penetrate brain tissue, enabling the treatment of hard-to-treat brain cancers, such as glioblastoma. These cancer regions are often inaccessible to large surgical tools due to their critical functional importance. In this project, the microrobot will be fabricated using two-photon lithography to achieve precise micro-scale features. Theoretical modeling and finite element analysis will be employed to explore the robot-tissue interactions, optimizing the design and actuation parameters. The propulsion will be validated in hydrogel models and ex vivo animal experiments. This research aims to develop new microrobots for glioblastoma treatment, paving the way for innovative minimally-invasive medical procedures.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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HORIZON.1.2 - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
MAIN PROGRAMME
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) HORIZON-MSCA-2024-PF-01
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
69120 Heidelberg
Germany
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.