The effects of heterogeneity on the propulsion of neutrobots: a minimal model

Recent advances in drug delivery have used nanoparticles-driven gels as drug delivery systems [Zhang et al., Sci Robot. 6, 2021]. Referred as neutrobots because the controlled gels are phagocytized by neutrophils to evade immune attacks by the body's natural response, these systems have been successfully deployed in-vivo. Inspired by these advances, we propose a minimal model for the neutrobot that accounts for the heterogeneous environment in which it moves. We aim to determine the propulsion speed and other performance metrics for each of the components that make up the neutrobot, and analyze the system based on various configurations that may arise. In this talk, we report our findings regarding the dependence of the neutrobot's propulsion on the heterogeneity of the surrounding environment. We conclude with a discussion about future extensions to more accurately model the in-vivo dynamics of the neutrobots as well as suggestions for ways to design efficient micro-robots for drug delivery.