Purdue researchers create fermentation powered drug-delivery patch

WEST LAFAYETTE, IN – Researchers from Purdue University have created a body heat-activated and fermentation-powered micropump that could be used in drug-delivery patches.

The micropump contains Baker’s yeast and sugar in a small chamber. Addition of water and placement of the patch on the skin causes fermentation of the yeast and sugar. This fermentation generates a small amount of carbon dioxide gas that pushes against a membrane and has been shown to continually pump for several hours.

The “microorganism-powered thermopneumatic pump,” developed by Babak Ziaie and Manuel Ochoa of Purdue University, is made out of layers of polydimethylsiloxane, a rubber-like polymer used commercially for diaphragms in pumps. The prototype is 1.5 cm long.