Key points from article :
Tiny robots operate as nerve cell connectors.
These microscopic patches may grow networks of nerve cells and repair severed nerve cells in people.
Engineers first built 300 micrometers long rectangular robots.
Once laden with about 100 nerve cells, objective was to nestle between two separate islands of nerve cells.
Used a steadier magnetic field to align the bot between the two clusters of cells.
Nerve cells on the microrobot grew out toward clusters, while the cells in clusters grew onto the bot.
These new connections allowed to flow neural signals.
Might help researchers design better replicas of complex nerve cell networks in the brain.
Could also be useful in computing, allowing scientists to design and build biological computers with nerve cells.
Research by Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology published in Science Advances.
