Researchers at Johns Hopkins University have developed microrobots capable of performing biopsies, delivering medication and dissolving inside the body without leaving a trace, offering a potentially less invasive alternative to endoscopies.
The devices are swallowed like a pill and are designed to fold and unfold inside the body, similar to small transformers, without causing discomfort to the patient. The advance was presented during Digestive Disease Week 2026 and is expected to reach areas of the digestive tract that conventional medical instruments cannot access. The first tests, carried out in mice, have produced promising results.
The researchers believe the technology could become a useful tool for treating digestive hemorrhages or various types of cancer, since it allows doctors to act without invasive procedures and enables more precise monitoring of how certain conditions progress. It could also improve treatment of chronic inflammatory diseases by delivering drugs directly to the affected area.
A new generation of medical microrobots
Previous developments in this field had focused on microrobots made from gels. Those devices had significant limitations, lacking the rigidity, autonomy and capacity needed to cut tissue or perform punctures.
The new technology marks a step forward by combining the strength of metal with materials designed to disappear once they have completed their task. Dr. Ling Li, a co-author of the study, said the microrobots combine the solidity needed to operate inside the body without sacrificing the safety of a biodegradable device.
How they disappear inside the body
One of the most striking features of the development is the microrobots' ability to break down without leaving residue in the body, the result of complex engineering work.
Wangqu Liu, the system's designer, said the amount of time the devices remain active can be adjusted by changing the thickness of the metal oxide layers that coat them. He said the process demands great precision, though it is always carried out within parameters that guarantee the safety of the body.
Beyond how the devices function, the advance also opens the door to new possibilities for future medicine. If the technology continues to develop, experts believe the time could come when certain treatments are administered through microrobots designed to act in a fully personalized way that is virtually imperceptible to the patient.
