Fully implantable and battery-free wireless optoelectronic system for modulable cancer therapy and real-time monitoring

Photodynamic therapy(PDT)is attracting attention as a next-generation cancer treatment that can selectively destroy malignant tissues,exhibit fewer side effects,and lack pain during treatments.Implantable PDT systems have recently been developed to resolve the issues of bulky and expensive conventional PDT systems and to implement continuous and repetitive treatment.Existing implantable PDT systems,however,are not able to perform multiple functions simultaneously,such as modulating light intensity,measuring,and transmitting tumor-related data,resulting in the complexity of cancer treatment.Here,we introduce a flexible and fully implantable wireless optoelectronic system capable of continuous and effective cancer treatment by fusing PDT and hyperthermia and enabling tumor size monitoring in real-time.This system exploits micro inorganic light-emitting diodes(μ-LED)that emit light with a wavelength of 624 nm,designed not to affect surrounding normal tissues by utilizing a fully programmable light intensity ofμ-LED and precisely monitoring the tumor size by Si phototransistor during a long-term implantation(2–3 weeks).The superiority of simultaneous cancer treatment and tumor size monitoring capabilities of our system operated by wireless power and data transmissions with a cell phone was confirmed through in vitro experiments,ray-tracing simulation results,and a tumor xenograft mouse model in vivo.This all-in-one single system for cancer treatment offers opportunities to not only enable effective treatment of tumors located deep in the tissue but also enable precise and continuous monitoring of tumor size in real-time.

Soft wearable flexible bioelectronics integrated with an anklefoot exoskeleton for estimation of metabolic costs and physical effort

Activities and physical effort have been commonly estimated using a metabolic rate through indirect calorimetry to capture breath information.The physical effort represents the work hardness used to optimize wearable robotic systems.Thus,personalization and rapid optimization of the effort are critical.Although respirometry is the gold standard for estimating metabolic costs,this method requires a heavy,bulky,and rigid system,limiting the system’s field deployability.Here,this paper reports a soft,flexible bioelectronic system that integrates a wearable ankle-foot exoskeleton,used to estimate metabolic costs and physical effort,demonstrating the potential for real-time wearable robot adjustments based on biofeedback.Data from a set of activities,including walking,running,and squatting with the biopatch and exoskeleton,determines the relationship between metabolic costs and heart rate variability root mean square of successive differences(HRV-RMSSD)(R=−0.758).Collectively,the exoskeleton-integrated wearable system shows potential to develop a field-deployable exoskeleton platform that can measure wireless real-time physiological signals.

Advances in sensor developments for cell culture monitoring

Cell culture encompasses procedures for extracting cells from their natural tissue and cultivating them under controlled artificial conditions. During this process, various factors, including cell physiological/morphological properties, culture environments, metabolites, and contaminants, have to be precisely controlled and monitored for the survival of cells and the pursuit of the desired properties of the cells. This review summarizes recent advances in sensor technologies and manufacturing strategies for various cell culture platforms using traditional plastics, microfluidic chips, and scalable bioreactors. We share the details of newly developed biological sensors, chemical sensors, optical sensors, electronic chip technologies, and material integration methods. The precise control of parameters based on the feedback by these sensors and electronics enhances cell culture quality and throughput.