Patch with octopus-like suckers helps drugs penetrate the skin

A material covered with octopus-like suckers could provide a simple, needle-free way to deliver drugs or other treatments through the skin.

To develop a less painful alternative to the hypodermic needle, Jihyun Lee at Sungkyunkwan University in South Korea and her colleagues designed a rectangular patch made of soft, stretchy and transparent rubber a few centimetres long and wide. One side is smooth, and the other is coated with suction cups, each about 3 millimetres across. Lee says…