Many medical conditions require medications that is taken over a long period of time at specific quantities. This process is time consuming and current delivery techniques are not fully reliable. Researchers have created a small device that contains the drugs in a specially engineered membrane, embedded with nano-particles with minerals that have magnetic properties. When a magnetic field is turned on outside the body, the nano-particles heat up and causes the membrane to fall apart temporally, allowing drug particles to go through. Turning the magnetic field has the opposite effect and the membrane resumes stability. This technology has the potential to provide precise, repeated, long-term, on-demand delivery of drugs for a number of medical applications.
Reference:
Todd Hoare, Jesus Santamaria, Gerardo F. Goya, Silvia Irusta, Debora Lin, Samantha Lau, Robert Padera, Robert Langer, Daniel S. Kohane. A Magnetically Triggered Composite Membrane for On-Demand Drug Delivery. Nano Letters, 2009; DOI: 10.1021/nl9018935
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