Who really likes needles? A brand-new episode of our Tech Briefs podcast series Here’s an Idea™ explores the emergence of micro-ones.

Learn all about how an array of microneedles can deliver drugs in a more precise way than the needle and syringes that we're used to. The Velcro-like micro option is less painful – and more effective, it turns out.

And the devices are especially valuable during a pandemic. (Listen to the brand-new episode below.)

Subscribe or listen via your preferred podcast provider here.

Episode Highlights:

  • (0:54) Professor Ryan F. Donnelly, from Queen's University Belfast, sets the stage and explains what a microneedle is exactly, and how microneedles are being used today.
  • (11:05) Stanford Professor Joseph DeSimone details his team's 3D-printed vaccine patch that provides greater protection than a typical vaccine shot.
  • (18:48) Sandia researcher Ronen Polsky discusses efforts to use microneedles to draw out interstitial fluid, which can offer early detection of diseases.

Additional Resources:

Ryan Donnelly talks about microarray patches and their role in precise, effective drug delivery. Watch the presentation below:

Watch a Tech Talk from Ronen Polsky:

Sandia National Laboratories materials scientist Ronen Polsky positions a prototype 3-D-printed microneedle holder on the arm of Sandia science writer Mollie Rappe. Rappe participated in a clinical trial to see the best length of needle to extract the interstitial fluid on the path to track the physiological condition of soldiers.
Sandia National Laboratories materials scientist Ronen Polsky positions a prototype 3D-printed microneedle holder on the arm of Sandia science writer Mollie Rappe. Rappe participated in a clinical trial to see the best length of needle to extract the interstitial fluid on the path to track the physiological condition of soldiers. (Credit: Sandia)

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