Fig. 5: Imaging-guided navigation and precision drug delivery using the Helixoft-integrated microcatheter in the quaternary bronchus of a live pig. | Nature Communications

Fig. 5: Imaging-guided navigation and precision drug delivery using the Helixoft-integrated microcatheter in the quaternary bronchus of a live pig.

From: Magnetically controlled microrobotic system for programmable stiffness tuning and active steering of microcatheters

Fig. 5: Imaging-guided navigation and precision drug delivery using the Helixoft-integrated microcatheter in the quaternary bronchus of a live pig.The alternative text for this image may have been generated using AI.

a Surgery setup comprising a digital radiography (DR) imaging setup and a magnetic field generator mounted on a six-joint robotic arm. b Schematic (left) and photograph (right) of the Helixoft-integrated microcatheter equipped with a mini-camera for intraluminal imaging. c X-ray guided navigation of the microcatheter through bronchial bifurcations by multi-stage steering. d Precision drug injection into the quaternary bronchus by the microcatheter. The bottom left inset shows the enlarged X-ray image; the top right inset shows the corresponding live image captured by the onboard mini-camera. The blue trace indicates the microcatheter trajectory; the white dotted lines outline the bronchial contour. Scale bars: 4 mm for (b); 3 mm for (c and d).

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