Delivering fragile drugs to the gut: Oral delivery is the simplest and least invasive way to deliver many pharmaceuticals, but many drugs and medications, including insulin, cannot survive passage through the stomach or the gastrointestinal tract. Abramson et al. developed an ingestible delivery vehicle that could self-reorient from any starting position so as to attach to the gastric wall. Encapsulation of a spring in a sugar casing allowed for triggered actuation for the delivery of biomolecules. The approach successfully provided active insulin delivery in pigs. Science , this issue p. 611

Microsystems & Nanoengineering is an international open access journal, publishing original articles and reviews covering all aspects of microsystems and nanoengineering from fundamental to applied research.

Integrating two-dimensional (2D) materials into semiconductor manufacturing lines is essential to exploit their material properties in a wide range of application areas. However, current approaches are not compatible with high-volume manufacturing on wafer level. Here, we report a generic methodology for large-area integration of 2D materials by adhesive wafer bonding. Our approach avoids manual handling and uses equipment, processes, and materials that are readily available in large-scale semiconductor manufacturing lines. We demonstrate the transfer of CVD graphene from copper foils (100-mm diameter) and molybdenum disulfide (MoS₂) from SiO₂/Si chips (centimeter-sized) to silicon wafers (100-mm diameter). Furthermore, we stack graphene with CVD hexagonal boron nitride and MoS₂ layers to heterostructures, and fabricate encapsulated field-effect graphene devices, with high carrier mobilities of up to $$4520\;{\mathrm{cm}}^2{\mathrm{V}}^{ - 1}{\mathrm{s}}^{ - 1}$$4520 cm 2 V − 1 s − 1 . Thus, our approach is suited for backend of the line integration of 2D materials on top of integrated circuits, with potential to accelerate progress in electronics, photonics, and sensing.

Ingestible electronics have revolutionized the standard of care for a variety of health conditions. Extending the capacity and safety of these devices, and reducing the costs of powering them, could enable broad deployment of prolonged-monitoring systems for patients. Although previous biocompatible power-harvesting systems for in vivo use have demonstrated short (minute-long) bursts of power from the stomach, little is known about the potential for powering electronics in the longer term and throughout the gastrointestinal tract. Here, we report the design and operation of an energy-harvesting galvanic cell for continuous in vivo temperature sensing and wireless communication. The device delivered an average power of 0.23 μW mm⁻² of electrode area for an average of 6.1 days of temperature measurements in the gastrointestinal tract of pigs. This power-harvesting cell could provide power to the next generation of ingestible electronic devices for prolonged periods of time inside the gastrointestinal tract.

A new analytical all-solid-state platform for intradermal potentiometric detection of potassium in interstitial fluid is presented here. Solid microneedles are modified with different coatings and polymeric membranes to prepare both the potassium-selective electrode and reference electrode needed for the potentiometric readout. These microneedle-based electrodes are then fixed in an epidermal patch suitable for insertion into the skin. The analytical performances observed for the potentiometric cell (Nernstian slope, limit of detection of 10-4.9 potassium activity, linear range of 10-4.2 to 10-1.1, drift of 0.35 ± 0.28 mV h-1), together with a fast response time, adequate selectivity and excellent reproducibility and repeatability, are appropriate for potassium analysis in interstitial fluid within both clinical and harmful levels. The potentiometric response is maintained after several insertions into animal skin, confirming the resiliency of the microneedle-based sensor. Ex vivo tests based on the intradermal detection of potassium in chicken and porcine skin demonstrate that the microneedle patch is suitable for monitoring potassium changes inside the skin. In addition, the dimensions of the microneedles modified with the corresponding layers necessary to enhance robustness and provide sensing capabilities (1000 µm length, 45° tip angle, 15 µm thickness in the tip and 435 µm in the base) agree with the required ranges for a painless insertion into the skin. In vitro cytotoxicity experiments showed that the patch can be used for at least 24 h without any side effect for the skin cells. Overall, the developed concept constitutes important progress in the intradermal analysis of ions related to an electrolyte imbalance in humans, which is relevant for the control of certain types of diseases.