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MIT’s Deblina Sarkar unveils injectable brain chip for Parkinson’s
Sarkar, born in Kolkata, earned her undergraduate degree in electrical engineering from IIT Indian School of Mines in Dhanbad.
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Rwittika Chakraborty
- Sun, 14, Dec 2025
- 00:00 EST
- 18
Indian-origin MIT assistant professor Deblina Sarkar / LinkedIn/Deblina Sarkar
Indian-origin MIT assistant professor Deblina Sarkar has invented microscopic wireless chips that can be injected into the bloodstream, travel to the brain, cross the blood–brain barrier and implant themselves at diseased sites — all without surgery.
Sarkar outlined the concept, which she calls “Circulatronics,” in the journal Nano Letters. The approach uses sub-100-micrometer electronic devices small enough to pass through capillaries and hitch a ride with immune cells like neutrophils or monocytes, which naturally migrate toward inflammation or injury in the brain.
Once they arrive, the particles can anchor in tissue and perform sensing, electrical stimulation or targeted drug release, eliminating the need for a craniotomy. Early studies have shown proof-of-concept in vitro and in animal models, but human testing is still years away. Still, researchers see the work as a major shift in minimally invasive neuromodulation.
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If the technology matures, it could one day help treat Parkinson’s disease, epilepsy, depression or stroke damage by delivering therapies directly to the affected areas while avoiding surgical risk and device scarring.
Sarkar, born in Kolkata, earned her undergraduate degree in electrical engineering from IIT Indian School of Mines in Dhanbad. Her early research in nanoscale electronics led to a Ph.D. at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and later to MIT, where she founded the Nano Cybernetic Biotrek Lab. She has received the NIH Director’s New Innovator Award and was named one of Science News’ “10 Scientists to Watch.”
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