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Micromachines
Special Issues
Flexible Sensors and Actuators for Biomedicine
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Flexible Sensors and Actuators for Biomedicine

A special issue of Micromachines (ISSN 2072-666X). This special issue belongs to the section "E：Engineering and Technology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 September 2022) | Viewed by 25305

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Mengdi Han

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Biomedical Engineering, College of Future Technology, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
Interests: bioelectronics; flexible electronics; energy harvester; microrobotics

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Sensors and actuators have powerful capabilities in acquiring information and performing tasks, but their rigid, planar configurations are insufficient in interacting and communicating with biological systems that are soft and three-dimensional. Recent developments in manufacturing approaches have enabled a diverse set of flexible sensors and actuators that can mitigate the mechanical mismatch between rigid electronics and soft biological tissues. These flexible devices establish the basis for biomedical tools that are relevant to early diagnosis, automated surgical processes, smart intervention, advanced rehabilitation, etc. One common goal of the flexible sensors and actuators is in improving human health, either through direct in vivo diagnosis and therapy, or through indirect in vitro or ex vivo assessment. Representative examples include, but are not limited to, wireless wearable sensors for continuous monitoring, flexible implants for multimodal modulation, and soft robotic systems for advanced surgery. Accordingly, this Special Issue seeks to showcase research papers, communications, and review articles that focus on the latest results and findings in flexible sensors/actuators and their applications in biomedical engineering.

We look forward to receiving your submissions!

Dr. Mengdi Han
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Micromachines is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • soft electronics
  • bioelectronics
  • wearable technology
  • implantable devices
  • flexible strain/pressure sensors
  • flexible microelectrode array
  • self-powered sensors
  • soft robotics
  • biorobotics
  • prosthetics

Published Papers (6 papers)

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Editorial

Jump to: Research, Review

4 pages, 195 KiB  
Editorial
Editorial for the Special Issue on Flexible Sensors and Actuators for Biomedicine
by Jingyan Zhang and Mengdi Han
Micromachines 2023, 14(12), 2184; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi14122184 - 30 Nov 2023
Viewed by 708
Abstract
Flexible sensors and actuators typically rely on functional materials with low Young’s moduli or ultrathin geometries [...] Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Flexible Sensors and Actuators for Biomedicine)

Research

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13 pages, 2815 KiB  
Article
A Novel Inchworm-Inspired Soft Robotic Colonoscope Based on a Rubber Bellows
by Jinyan Chen, Jianlin Yang, Feng Qian, Qing Lu, Yu Guo, Zhijun Sun and Chao Chen
Micromachines 2022, 13(4), 635; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi13040635 - 17 Apr 2022
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 2610
Abstract
Colorectal cancer is a serious threat to human health. Colonoscopy is the most effective procedure for the inspection of colorectal cancer. However, traditional colonoscopy may cause pain, which can lead to the patient’s fear of colonoscopy. The use of active-motion colonoscopy robots is [...] Read more.
Colorectal cancer is a serious threat to human health. Colonoscopy is the most effective procedure for the inspection of colorectal cancer. However, traditional colonoscopy may cause pain, which can lead to the patient’s fear of colonoscopy. The use of active-motion colonoscopy robots is expected to replace traditional colonoscopy procedures for colorectal cancer screening, without causing pain to patients. This paper proposes an inchworm-like soft colonoscopy robot based on a rubber spring. The motion mechanism of the robot consists of two anchoring units and an elongation unit. The elongation unit of the robot is driven by 3 cables during contraction and by its inherent elasticity during extension. The balloon is selected as the anchoring mechanism of the robot. It has soft contact with the colon and will not damage the colon wall, which means no discomfort is caused. The elastic force test of the rubber spring shows that the elongation unit of the robot has sufficient restorative force to drive the robot to move forward and backward. The influence of the balloon’s expansion size on the dexterity of the robot head is analyzed, and the functions of the balloons are expounded. The balloon can not only assist the robot in its locomotion but also assist the robot to perform a better inspection. The robot can move successfully in a horizontal, straight, and inclined isolated pig colon, showing great clinical application potential. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Flexible Sensors and Actuators for Biomedicine)
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11 pages, 2196 KiB  
Article
A Simple and Ultrasensitive Colorimetric Biosensor for Anatoxin-a Based on Aptamer and Gold Nanoparticles
by Duy-Khiem Nguyen and Chang-Hyun Jang
Micromachines 2021, 12(12), 1526; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi12121526 - 08 Dec 2021
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 2805
Abstract
Here, we designed a simple, rapid, and ultrasensitive colorimetric aptasensor for detecting anatoxin-a (ATX-a). The sensor employs a DNA aptamer as the sensing element and gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) as probes. Adsorption of the aptamer onto the AuNP surface can protect AuNPs from aggregation [...] Read more.
Here, we designed a simple, rapid, and ultrasensitive colorimetric aptasensor for detecting anatoxin-a (ATX-a). The sensor employs a DNA aptamer as the sensing element and gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) as probes. Adsorption of the aptamer onto the AuNP surface can protect AuNPs from aggregation in NaCl solution, thus maintaining their dispersion state. In the presence of ATX-a, the specific binding of the aptamer with ATX-a results in a conformational change in the aptamer, which facilitates AuNP aggregation and, consequently, a color change of AuNPs from red to blue in NaCl solution. This color variation is directly associated with ATX-a concentration and can be easily measured using a UV/Vis spectrophotometer. The absorbance variation is linearly proportional to ATX-a concentration across the concentration range of 10 pM to 200 nM, with a detection limit of 4.45 pM and high selectivity against other interferents. This strategy was successfully applied to the detection of ATX-a in lake water samples. Thus, the present aptasensor is a promising alternative method for the rapid detection of ATX-a in the environment. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Flexible Sensors and Actuators for Biomedicine)
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10 pages, 3265 KiB  
Article
P-Doped Carbon Quantum Dots with Antibacterial Activity
by Shuiqin Chai, Lijia Zhou, Shuchen Pei, Zhiyuan Zhu and Bin Chen
Micromachines 2021, 12(9), 1116; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi12091116 - 16 Sep 2021
Cited by 28 | Viewed by 4125
Abstract
It is a major challenge to effectively inhibit microbial pathogens in the treatment of infectious diseases. Research on the application of nanomaterials as antibacterial agents has evidenced their great potential for the remedy of infectious disease. Among these nanomaterials, carbon quantum dots (CQDs) [...] Read more.
It is a major challenge to effectively inhibit microbial pathogens in the treatment of infectious diseases. Research on the application of nanomaterials as antibacterial agents has evidenced their great potential for the remedy of infectious disease. Among these nanomaterials, carbon quantum dots (CQDs) have attracted much attention owing to their unique optical properties and high biosafety. In this work, P-doped CQDs were prepared by simple hydrothermal treatment of m-aminophenol and phosphoric acid with fluorescence emission at 501 nm when excited at 429 nm. The P-doped CQDs showed effective antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli (E. coli) and Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus). The minimal inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of P-doped CQD were 1.23 mg/mL for E. coli and 1.44 mg/mL for S. aureus. Furthermore, the morphologies of E. coli cells were damaged and S. aureus became irregular when treated with the P-doped CQDs. The results of zeta potential analysis demonstrated that the P-doped CQDs inhibit antibacterial activity and destroy the structure of bacteria by electronic interaction. In combination, the results of this study indicate that the as-prepared P-doped CQDs can be a promising candidate for the treatment of bacterial infections. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Flexible Sensors and Actuators for Biomedicine)
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Review

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18 pages, 4351 KiB  
Review
Progress on Self-Powered Wearable and Implantable Systems Driven by Nanogenerators
by Lanxin Yang, Zhihao Ma, Yun Tian, Bo Meng and Zhengchun Peng
Micromachines 2021, 12(6), 666; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi12060666 - 07 Jun 2021
Cited by 21 | Viewed by 5186
Abstract
With the rapid development of the internet of things (IoT), sustainable self-powered wireless sensory systems and diverse wearable and implantable electronic devices have surged recently. Under such an opportunity, nanogenerators, which can convert continuous mechanical energy into usable electricity, have been regarded as [...] Read more.
With the rapid development of the internet of things (IoT), sustainable self-powered wireless sensory systems and diverse wearable and implantable electronic devices have surged recently. Under such an opportunity, nanogenerators, which can convert continuous mechanical energy into usable electricity, have been regarded as one of the critical technologies for self-powered systems, based on the high sensitivity, flexibility, and biocompatibility of piezoelectric nanogenerators (PENGs) and triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs). In this review, we have thoroughly analyzed the materials and structures of wearable and implantable PENGs and TENGs, aiming to make clear how to tailor a self-power system into specific applications. The advantages in TENG and PENG are taken to effectuate wearable and implantable human-oriented applications, such as self-charging power packages, physiological and kinematic monitoring, in vivo and in vitro healing, and electrical stimulation. This review comprehensively elucidates the recent advances and future outlook regarding the human body’s self-powered systems. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Flexible Sensors and Actuators for Biomedicine)
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15 pages, 2563 KiB  
Review
Wearable Sensors and Systems for Wound Healing-Related pH and Temperature Detection
by Ning Tang, Youbin Zheng, Xue Jiang, Cheng Zhou, Han Jin, Ke Jin, Weiwei Wu and Hossam Haick
Micromachines 2021, 12(4), 430; https://doi.org/10.3390/mi12040430 - 14 Apr 2021
Cited by 49 | Viewed by 8552
Abstract
Wound healing is a complex tissue regeneration process involving many changes in multiple physiological parameters. The pH and temperature of a wound site have long been recognized as important biomarkers for assessing wound healing status. For effective wound management, wound dressings integrated with [...] Read more.
Wound healing is a complex tissue regeneration process involving many changes in multiple physiological parameters. The pH and temperature of a wound site have long been recognized as important biomarkers for assessing wound healing status. For effective wound management, wound dressings integrated with wearable sensors and systems used for continuous monitoring of pH and temperature have received much attention in recent years. Herein, recent advances in the development of wearable pH and temperature sensors and systems based on different sensing mechanisms for wound status monitoring and treatment are comprehensively summarized. Challenges in the areas of sensing performance, infection identification threshold, large-area 3-dimensional detection, and long-term reliable monitoring in current wearable sensors/systems and emerging solutions are emphasized, providing critical insights into the development of wearable sensors and systems for wound healing monitoring and management. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Flexible Sensors and Actuators for Biomedicine)
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