A needle which mimics the mosquito’s unique “stinger”, making injections painless, has been developed by a team of Japanese microengineers.



Seiji Aoyagi at Kansai University in Osaka and his colleagues concluded that the initial bite is painless because the mosquito’s proboscis is highly serrated. Unlike the smooth surface of a syringe needle, which leaves a lot of metal in contact with skin tissue, the jagged edge of the proboscis leaves only small points in contact. This greatly reduces stimulation of the nerves, says Aoyagi, causing far less pain.