Cardiac Muscle Cell-based Actuator and Self-stabilizing Biorobot - Part 2

Area of Science:

• Biohybrid robotics
• Tissue engineering
• Biomechanical engineering

Background:

• Hybrid devices integrating living cells with synthetic structures, termed biorobots, are emerging as a promising alternative to traditional robots.
• These biorobots are powered by cellular contractile forces, offering unique advantages for various applications.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe the methods for seeding and characterizing biological actuators and biorobots.
• To detail the fabrication and functionalization of a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) based biorobot with a thin film cantilever.
• To assess the cellular activity and propulsion capabilities of the developed biorobots.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of PDMS base with a thin film cantilever, functionalized with fibronectin for cell attachment.
• Seeding of neonatal rat cardiomyocytes at high density to form a confluent cell sheet on the cantilever.
• Daily imaging and quantitative analysis of cantilever bending and biorobot movement to assess cellular stress and propulsion.

Main Results:

• Cardiomyocytes exerted increasing surface stress on the cantilever as they matured, evidenced by cantilever bending.
• The biorobots exhibited self-propulsion, with the PDMS cantilever acting as a fin.
• Various propulsion modes were observed, influenced by the fin's resting angle, with a maximum swim velocity of 142 µm/s recorded.

Conclusions:

• The study successfully demonstrates the procedure for creating and assessing cardiomyocyte-based biological actuators and biorobots.
• The findings highlight the potential of cellular forces to drive synthetic devices and control their motion.
• This work lays the foundation for developing advanced biohybrid robots powered entirely by living cells.