CapScan: an ingestible capsule that collects gut microbes and metabolites
Official title: Development and clinical evaluation of the CapScan gastrointestinal sampling device for metabolomics monitoring
Funded at Envivo Bio INC · NIH-11144319 · Data updated 2026-11-12
An ingestible capsule that collects small samples from different parts of the gut so doctors can learn about gut microbes and how they process food, tested in healthy volunteers and people with gut conditions.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Envivo Bio INC NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (San Carlos, United States) |
| Project start | April 1, 2022 |
| Project end | July 31, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $594,530 |
| NIH project number | 5R33CA260665-04 |
| Project ID | NIH-11144319 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates include healthy volunteers for the safety phase, people taking proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), and patients diagnosed with small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) who can safely swallow a capsule.
✕Less likely to help
People who cannot safely swallow capsules or who have intestinal strictures, obstructions, or other contraindications to ingestible devices may not be eligible or benefit.
What this research studies
This project will build and bench-test the CapScan capsule and check that it is safe, reproducible, and specific to different gut regions. You would swallow the capsule so it can collect tiny samples from parts of your gastrointestinal tract, and researchers will analyze microbes and metabolic by-products from those samples. The team will first test safety and regional specificity in healthy volunteers, then use CapScan to see how proton pump inhibitors affect the microbiome and to compare regions of the gut in patients with small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) before and after antibiotics. The investigators hope CapScan could eventually be used routinely to monitor gut health like a blood test.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, CapScan could allow clinicians to monitor gut microbiome and metabolic changes with a simple, noninvasive capsule.
How similar studies have gone: Capsule endoscopy and some ingestible sampling devices exist, but using a capsule specifically for regional microbiome and metabolome monitoring in clinical care is relatively new.
Where this research is happening
-
Envivo Bio INC
San Carlos, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Shalon, Tidhar Dari — Envivo Bio INC
- Study coordinator: Shalon, Tidhar Dari
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.