Tiny self-assembling cubes

Johns Hopkins

researchers have devised a self-assembling cube-shaped perforated container, no larger than a dust speck, that could serve as a delivery system for medications and cell therapy.

The relatively inexpensive microcontainers can be mass-produced through a process that mixes electronic chip-making techniques with basic chemistry. Because of their metallic nature, the cubic container's location in the body could easily be tracked by magnetic resonance imaging.

The method of making these self-assembling containers and the results of successful lab tests involving the cubes were reported in a paper published in the December 2005 issue of the journal Biomedical Microdevices. In the tests, the hollow cubes housed and then dispensed microbeads and live cells commonly used in medical treatment.

"Our group has developed a new process for fabricating three-dimensional micropatterned containers for cell encapsulation and drug delivery," said David H. Gracias, who led the lab team. "We're talking about an entirely new encapsulation and delivery device that could lead to a new generation of 'smart pills.' The long-term goal is to be able to implant a collection of these therapeutic containers directly at the site or an injury or an illness."