Editing Microbotics (section)

==Types and applications==
Due to their small size, microbots are potentially very cheap, and could be used in large numbers ([[swarm robotics]]) to explore environments which are too small or too dangerous for people or larger robots. It is expected that microbots will be useful in applications such as looking for survivors in collapsed buildings after an earthquake or crawling through the digestive tract. What microbots lack in brawn or computational power, they can make up for by using large numbers, as in swarms of microbots.  Bioinspired microrobots have emerged as a game-changing tool in the quest for precise drug delivery.<ref name=":5">{{Cite journal |last=Ghosh |first=Shampa |last2=Bhaskar |first2=Rakesh |last3=Mishra |first3=Richa |last4=Arockia Babu |first4=M. |last5=Abomughaid |first5=Mosleh Mohammad |last6=Jha |first6=Niraj Kumar |last7=Sinha |first7=Jitendra Kumar |date=September 2024 |title=Neurological insights into brain-targeted cancer therapy and bioinspired microrobots |url=https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39029869/ |journal=Drug Discovery Today |volume=29 |issue=9 |pages=104105 |doi=10.1016/j.drudis.2024.104105 |issn=1878-5832 |pmid=39029869}}</ref> These microscopic robots are designed to navigate the human body with a degree of precision previously unimaginable.<ref name=":5" />

Potential applications with demonstrated prototypes include:

===Medical microbots===
{{Excerpt|Biohybrid microswimmer|Biomedical applications|paragraphs=1}}
For example, there are biocompatible [[microalgae]]-based microrobots for [[Targeted drug delivery|active drug-delivery]] in the brain,<ref name=":5" /> lungs and the gastrointestinal tract,<ref>{{cite news |title=Algae micromotors join the ranks for targeted drug delivery |url=https://cen.acs.org/biological-chemistry/biotechnology/Algae-micromotors-join-ranks-targeted/100/web/2022/10 |access-date=19 October 2022 |work=Chemical & Engineering News |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Zhang |first1=Fangyu |last2=Zhuang |first2=Jia |last3=Li |first3=Zhengxing |last4=Gong |first4=Hua |last5=de Ávila |first5=Berta Esteban-Fernández |last6=Duan |first6=Yaou |last7=Zhang |first7=Qiangzhe |last8=Zhou |first8=Jiarong |last9=Yin |first9=Lu |last10=Karshalev |first10=Emil |last11=Gao |first11=Weiwei |last12=Nizet |first12=Victor |last13=Fang |first13=Ronnie H. |last14=Zhang |first14=Liangfang |last15=Wang |first15=Joseph |title=Nanoparticle-modified microrobots for in vivo antibiotic delivery to treat acute bacterial pneumonia |journal=Nature Materials |date=22 September 2022 |volume=21 |issue=11 |pages=1324–1332 |doi=10.1038/s41563-022-01360-9 |pmid=36138145 |pmc=9633541 |bibcode=2022NatMa..21.1324Z |language=en |issn=1476-4660}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Zhang |first1=Fangyu |last2=Li |first2=Zhengxing |last3=Duan |first3=Yaou |last4=Abbas |first4=Amal |last5=Mundaca-Uribe |first5=Rodolfo |last6=Yin |first6=Lu |last7=Luan |first7=Hao |last8=Gao |first8=Weiwei |last9=Fang |first9=Ronnie H. |last10=Zhang |first10=Liangfang |last11=Wang |first11=Joseph |title=Gastrointestinal tract drug delivery using algae motors embedded in a degradable capsule |journal=Science Robotics |date=28 September 2022 |volume=7 |issue=70 |pages=eabo4160 |doi=10.1126/scirobotics.abo4160 |pmid=36170380 |pmc=9884493 |s2cid=252598190 |language=en |issn=2470-9476}}</ref> and magnetically guided engineered bacterial microbots for <!--Targeted drug delivery-->'precision targeting'<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Schmidt |first1=Christine K. |last2=Medina-Sánchez |first2=Mariana |last3=Edmondson |first3=Richard J. |last4=Schmidt |first4=Oliver G. |title=Engineering microrobots for targeted cancer therapies from a medical perspective |journal=Nature Communications |date=5 November 2020 |volume=11 |issue=1 |pages=5618 |doi=10.1038/s41467-020-19322-7 |pmid=33154372 |pmc=7645678 |bibcode=2020NatCo..11.5618S |language=en |issn=2041-1723|doi-access=free}}</ref> for fighting [[cancer]]<ref>{{cite news |last1=Thompson |first1=Joanna |title=These tiny magnetic robots can infiltrate tumors — and maybe destroy cancer |url=https://www.inverse.com/innovation/bacteria-robotic-cancer-treatment |access-date=21 November 2022 |work=Inverse |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Gwisai |first1=T. |last2=Mirkhani |first2=N. |last3=Christiansen |first3=M. G. |last4=Nguyen |first4=T. T. |last5=Ling |first5=V. |last6=Schuerle |first6=S. |title=Magnetic torque–driven living microrobots for increased tumor infiltration |journal=Science Robotics |date=26 October 2022 |volume=7 |issue=71 |pages=eabo0665 |doi=10.1126/scirobotics.abo0665 |pmid=36288270 |language=en |issn=2470-9476|biorxiv=10.1101/2022.01.03.473989|s2cid=253160428 }}</ref> that all have been tested with mice.