CUHK Develops Microrobots To Speed Up Medical Test

Experts at Chinese University have developed a new test using microscopic robots that they say can diagnose people suffering from a deadly type of gastrointestinal infection known as Clostridium Difficile, in a fraction of the time that current tests take.

C difficile infections are very common – especially among elderly patients and the chronically ill – and can prove fatal in extreme cases. Patients typically have symptoms such as diarrhoea and fever, and doctors need to identify whether patients are in fact infected with this particular type of bacteria before they can start treatment.

The problem is, patients have to undergo two sets of tests that can take as long as two days – a delay that doctors say is not ideal.

But experts at Chinese University say microrobots smaller than a red blood cell, made from plant spores, can cut that time down to 15 minutes.

The microrobots have carbon dots on them, that are fluorescent. But if they're mixed in with stool samples that contain toxins produced by C difficile, their fluorescence declines.

Professor Joseph Sung from the university's faculty of medicine said this new test isn't just quick, it is more accurate.

"The advantage of this test is that it can skip the two-step approach that we currently use for the diagnosis of C difficile diarrhoea," Sung said.

The Faculty of Engineering's Professor Zhang Li, who developed the microrobots, said they could be used to identify other pathogens in future.

The university said it will conduct more clinical trials this year before deciding when to officially introduce the new test.