SBIR Phase I: Wirelessly Operated Implantable Micropump for On-demand Drug Administration in Laboratory Animals

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project focuses on technical feasibility of a remotely-controlled implantable drug infusion pump miniaturized to a standard pill form factor. Technical challenges include the development of a low-power inductively-powered pump actuator, ten-fold pump miniaturization to an unprecedented small form factor for minimally invasive implantation, and implementation of remote programmable control of a large number of implanted pumps. The research strategy and competitive edge lies in the innovation of novel microtechnology-based pump components and wireless inductive power and control technologies. Successful demonstration of the remotely-controlled implantable infusion pump system with external hardware/software controller modules will enable new dosing schemes, provide precise temporally controlled dosing for more reproducible results from acute and chronic studies, and enable new approaches to drug therapy that would not otherwise be possible. Remotely-controlled dosing following a programmable drug regimen would dramatically simplify and expedite experimental studies. These novel pumps can also be adapted or scaled up to treat human disease, especially for advanced drug regimens not available with current commercial pumps. The broader impact/commercial potential of this project will uniquely facilitate drug development by improving outcomes in scientific and drug discovery, thereby reducing costs early in the development process. The system includes several significant first-to-market capabilities including chronic dosing studies in freely-moving, tether-free animals in naturalistic environments and rapid evaluation of many new drugs at once which are enabled by automation. Importantly, the pump system enables studies that are performed in a manner that will facilitate translation of therapies from animal to human. Our technology will first be deployed to meet critical needs of preclinical pharmaceutical, medical and animal research markets followed by animal care providers in the veterinary market. The long term goal is to apply this technology to implantable drug infusion for clinical use, a rapidly growing market estimated to reach $16B by 2013. The suite of software and hardware technologies is applicable to multiple markets and has the potential to impact healthcare in multiple areas.