Nano-robot drive technology is expected to achieve efficient operation in molecular factories

Researchers at the Technical University of Munich, Germany, have developed a new nano-robot electric drive technology that enables nanobots to operate at a molecular plant like a pipeline at a sufficiently fast speed, 100,000 times faster than the biochemical processes used so far. This new research has been published as a cover article in the 19th issue of the journal Science. Currently, all developed countries are racing to develop new technologies for future nano-factory and hope that one day they will use molecular machines to analyze biological samples or produce drugs like pipeline operations, but traditional methods need to add enzymes, DNA chains or light The function activates the module. With this biochemical switch, the nanobot performs certain tasks, such as ingesting and transporting molecules, which may take several minutes as fast as it takes several hours. The research team led by Professor Friedrich Simer, head of the Institute of Synthetic Biological Systems at the Technical University of Munich, Munich, successfully applied the electric field for the first time to realize the electronically controlled nanobots. The new drive technology is 100,000 times faster than the previous method. Simmel introduced that the principle of the new drive technology is simple: DNA molecules carry a negative charge, and by applying an electric field, biomolecules can move. In this innovative study, Munich University of Technology also cooperated with the University of Munich. The latter used coloring molecules to mark the tip of the nano robotic arm so that its motion can be tracked by a fluorescence microscope. The researchers used computer control to change the direction of the electric field, adjust the arm's direction, and set the motion process. Simmel said that the electronic control allows nanobots to move at millisecond intervals, which is 100,000 times faster than previous biochemical drives. The new control technology is not only suitable for moving colored nanoparticles back and forth, but the micro-robot arm can also exert forces on the molecules. Such interactions can be used for medical diagnostics and drug development. Simmel emphasized: "Since the nanobots are small and inexpensive, millions of nanobots can work simultaneously, just like on the assembly line, gradually discovering specific substances in chemical reagents or synthesizing complex molecules."