A team at Purdue University have designed a mobile microgripper (MMG) that can handle fragile cell spheroids with controlled force and high spatial precision. Spheroids have become integral to tissue engineering, as they can replicate biological interactions between cells and the surrounding matrix- but they are exceedingly fragile, meaning handling can be problematic. “Other techniques for cell spheroid bioassembly can affect the tissue construct and/or apply limited manipulation forces,” said Dr David Cappelleri, professor of mechanical engineering and biomedical engineering at Purdue. “The force-sensing MMG … addresses these current issues by allowing the safe bioassembly of different spheroids into a single construct,” he said. But in a new study, a team at Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana, have created a tiny robotic gripper, that can manipulate spheroids without causing tissue damage. The robot uses a magnetic microscopic claw mechanism The wireless mobile microrobot gripper consists of two articulated arms connected by a hinge, allowing controlled closure to grasp the spheroid cells with minimal force, operating under magnetic actuation. External magnetic fields enabled both movement of …