Biointegrated Microdevices for Targeted and Responsive Therapy

Biointegrated microdevices are creating new opportunities for targeted and responsive therapy by combining miniaturised architectures, functional materials, and controllable interactions with biological environments. In this talk, I will present our recent work on soft and microrobotic microdevices designed to improve the spatial and temporal control of therapeutic delivery. These include fillable magnetic microrobots that protect therapeutic cargo and enable localised release, microfluidic loading and dip-sealing strategies for robust cargo encapsulation, and biodegradable two-photon-polymerisation printed microdevices for tuneable release kinetics. I will also discuss our recent development of multistage microrobots that integrate magnetic navigation, pH-responsive protection, and cell-membrane-coated nanoparticles to address hierarchical biological barriers in gastrointestinal drug delivery. Together, these studies demonstrate how bioinspired design, responsive materials, advanced microfabrication, and microrobotic navigation can be integrated to create next-generation therapeutic microdevices for localised, targeted, and programmable treatment.

Dr Rujie Sun is an Assistant Professor in the Digital Health & Biomedical Engineering (DHBE) Department within the School of Electronics and Computer Science (ECS) at the University of Southampton. His research focuses on developing soft bioelectronics and multiscale medical robotic systems for personalised healthcare. His group aims to create next-generation medical devices that integrate biosensing, actuation, therapeutic functions, and AI-assisted closed-loop control, with applications spanning wearable and implantable bioelectronics, cardiovascular interventions, and neurotechnology. His research has been published in leading journals, including Science Advances and Advanced Materials, and is supported by funding from ARIA, the Royal Society, UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), and other national funding agencies.