Adaptive biohybrid pumping machine with flow loop feedback

Abstract

Tissue-engineered living machines is an emerging discipline that employs complex interactions between living cells and engineered scaffolds to self-assemble biohybrid systems for diverse scientific research and technological applications. Here, we report an adaptive, autonomous biohybrid pumping machine with flow loop feedback powered by engineered living muscles. The tissue is made from skeletal muscle cells (C2C12) and collagen  /Matrigel matrix, which self-assembles into a ring that compresses a soft tube connected at both ends to a rigid fluidic platform. The muscle ring contracts in a cyclic fashion autonomously, squeezing the tube forming an impedance pump. The resulting flow is circulated back to the muscle ring forming a feedback loop, which allows the pump to respond to the cues received from the flow it generates and adaptively manage its pumping performances based on the feedback. The developed biohybrid pumping system may have broad utility and impact in health, medicine and bioengineering.

Ethics and responsibility in biohybrid robotics research

“…For example, sensors based on recording electrical signals from sensory cells or isolated insect antennae have been demonstrated to improve chemical sensing in complex environments ( 12 – 14 ). Furthermore, biohybrid robots or actuators that harness living muscle as small-scale compliant actuators have been developed that are capable of crawling ( 15 – 21 ), swimming ( 22 – 29 ), gripping ( 27 , 30 ), pumping ( 25 , 31 – 34 ), and sensing ( 12 – 14 , 35 – 40 ). Living neurons can even be used to control mobile robot platforms ( 41 , 42 ).…”

Biohybrid Soft Robots Powered by Myocyte: Current Progress and Future Perspectives

“…The resulting flow circulated back to the muscle ring, forming a feedback loop that allowed the pump to respond to the flow it generated and adaptively manage its pumping performance based on the feedback. Its static flow rate was 13.62 μL/min [ 69 ]. However, the muscle-driven pump robot had some problems during practical application, such as increasing the flow rate, stability, and long-term use, which need further improvement.…”

“…Third, we review the control methods applied to myocyte-driven robots, including electrical stimulation, optical stimulation, and chemical stimulation, and the advantages and disadvantages of each of them. Then, the functions and applications of myocyte-driven robots are summarized according to their different modes of locomotion, including swimmers [ 41 , 44 , 63 ], walkers [ 64 , 65 , 66 ], grippers [ 52 , 67 , 68 ], and pump-bots [ 69 , 70 , 71 ], and we describe their performance and development process. Finally, we discuss and summarize potential applications and future challenges for research into myocyte-driven robotics.…”

Biohybrid robots: recent progress, challenges, and perspectives

“…Cardiomyocytes respond to patterning from surface geometry and protein patterns, allowing desired tissue patterns to be engineered in monolayer cultures [83,89]. Using this approach, biohybrid cardiomyocyte robots have been created for swimming [25,26,83,84,[89][90][91], pumping (figure 3(C)) [92][93][94][95][96][97], crawling [88,92,98], and as models for biological studies on the role of cell orientation in tissue formation and function. Additionally, explanted cardiac tissues can be interfaced with soft robotic structures to create crawling [99] and gripping [100] robots.…”

“…(C) A biohybrid micropump for valveless pumping. Reproduced from [97]. © IOP Publishing Ltd. All rights reserved.…”