Point-of-Care Fluorescence Biosensing System for Rapid Multi-Allergen Screening.

With the steady increase in allergy prevalence worldwide, there is a strong need for novel diagnostic tools for precise, fast, and less invasive testing methods. Herein, a miniatured fluorescence-based biosensing system is developed for the rapid and quantitative detection of allergen-specific immunoglobulin-E. An antibody-based fluorescence assay in a microfluidic-patterned slide, combined with a custom-made portable fluorescence reader for image acquisition and user-friendly software for the data analysis, enables obtaining results for multiple allergens in just ~1 h with only 80 µL of blood serum. The multiplexed detection of common birch, timothy grass, cat epithelia, house dust mite, and dog epithelia shows quantitative IgE-mediated allergic responses to specific allergens in control serum samples with known total IgE concentration. The responses are verified with different control tests and measurements with a commercial fluorescence reader. These results open the door to point-of-care allergy screening for early diagnosis and broader access and for large-scale research in allergies.

[Sweat as an indicator of health]. / La sueur comme indicateur de la santé.

Sweat is a body fluid produced by the sweat glands and is mainly composed of water. Sweat has various functions, the two main ones being the evacuation of heat produced by the body, especially during exercise, and the maintenance of skin homeostasis. Its production is highly variable and depends on many individual and environmental factors. Various diseases or conditions affect its proper functioning. This article presents an overview of the characteristics, the main health issues, and the current and potential applications related to sweat.

La sueur est un fluide corporel produit par les glandes sudoripares et composé principalement d'eau. La transpiration remplit diverses fonctions, dont les principales sont l'évacuation de la chaleur produite par l'organisme, en particulier durant l'effort physique, et le maintien de l'homéostasie de la peau. Sa production est très variable quantitativement et qualitativement et dépend de multiples facteurs individuels et environnementaux. Différentes pathologies ou conditions altèrent son bon fonctionnement. Cet article présente un aperçu des caractéristiques, des principaux problèmes de santé et des applications actuelles et potentielles en lien avec la sueur.

Assessing the performance of a robust multiparametric wearable patch integrating silicon-based sensors for real-time continuous monitoring of sweat biomarkers.

The development of wearable devices for sweat analysis has experienced significant growth in the last two decades, being the main focus the monitoring of athletes health during workouts. One of the main challenges of these approaches has been to attain the continuous monitoring of sweat for time periods over 1 h. This is the main challenge addressed in this work by designing an analytical platform that combines the high performance of potentiometric sensors and a fluidic structure made of a plastic fabric into a multiplexed wearable device. The platform comprises Ion-Sensitive Field-Effect Transistors (ISFETs) manufactured on silicon, a tailor-made solid-state reference electrode, and a temperature sensor integrated into a patch-like polymeric substrate, together with the component that easily collects and drives samples under continuous capillary flow to the sensor areas. ISFET sensors for measuring pH, sodium, and potassium ions were fully characterized in artificial sweat solutions, providing reproducible and stable responses. Then, the real-time and continuous monitoring of the biomarkers in sweat with the wearable platform was assessed by comparing the ISFETs responses recorded during an 85-min continuous exercise session with the concentration values measured using commercial Ion-Selective Electrodes (ISEs) in samples collected at certain times during the session. The developed sensing platform enables the continuous monitoring of biomarkers and facilitates the study of the effects of various real working conditions, such as cycling power and skin temperature, on the target biomarker concentration levels.

Organic electrochemical transistors printed from degradable materials as disposable biochemical sensors.

Transient electronics hold promise in reducing electronic waste, especially in applications that require only a limited lifetime. While various degradable electronic and physical sensing devices have been proposed, there is growing interest in the development of degradable biochemical sensors. In this work, we present the development of an organic electrochemical transistor (OECT) with degradable electrodes, printed on an eco- and bioresorbable substrate. The influence of the design and materials for the contacts, channel and gate of the transducer, namely poly(3,4-ethylene dioxythiophene):polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS) and carbon, is systematically evaluated for the development of OECT-based transient biosensors. The sensing capabilities of the electrochemical transistors are demonstrated with ionic solutions as well as for the enzyme-based detection of glucose. The disposable OECTs show comparable performance to their non-degradable counterparts. Their integration with highly conductive degradable and printable zinc tracks is studied for the realization of interconnects. These eco-friendly OECTs may find applications as disposable and sustainable biochemical sensors, and constitute a step towards bioresorbable biosensors.

Multisensing Wearables for Real-Time Monitoring of Sweat Electrolyte Biomarkers During Exercise and Analysis on Their Correlation With Core Body Temperature.

Sweat secreted by the human eccrine sweat glands can provide valuable biomarker information during exercise. Real-time non-invasive biomarker recordings are therefore useful for evaluating the physiological conditions of an athlete such as their hydration status during endurance exercise. This work describes a wearable sweat biomonitoring patch incorporating printed electrochemical sensors into a plastic microfluidic sweat collector and data analysis that shows the real-time recorded sweat biomarkers can be used to predict a physiological biomarker. The system was placed on subjects carrying out an hour-long exercise session and results were compared to a wearable system using potentiometric robust silicon-based sensors and to commercially available HORIBA-LAQUAtwin devices. Both prototypes were applied to the real-time monitoring of sweat during cycling sessions and showed stable readings for around an hour. Analysis of the sweat biomarkers collected from the printed patch prototype shows that their real-time measurements correlate well (correlation coefficient ≥ 0.65) with other physiological biomarkers such as heart rate and regional sweat rate collected in the same session. We show for the first time, that the real-time sweat sodium and potassium concentration biomarker measurements from the printed sensors can be used to predict the core body temperature with root mean square error (RMSE) of 0.02 °C which is 71% lower compared to the use of only the physiological biomarkers. These results show that these wearable patch technologies are promising for real-time portable sweat monitoring analytical platforms, especially for athletes performing endurance exercise.

An epidermal wearable microfluidic patch for simultaneous sampling, storage, and analysis of biofluids with counterion monitoring.

Simultaneous access to different biofluids enables an accurate analysis of multiple analytes, leading to a precision diagnosis and appropriate medication. Additionally, establishing a relationship between various markers in different biofluids and their correlation to biomarkers in blood allows the development of an algorithmic approach, which aids non-invasive diagnosis through single parameter monitoring. However, the main bottleneck that exists in multiple biofluid analyses for its clinical implementation is the requirement of an advanced microfluidic coupled device design, which empowers simultaneous collection and monitoring. To tackle this challenge, an epidermal wearable bio-fluidic patch that facilitates simultaneous on-demand extraction, sampling, and storage of sweat and interstitial fluid (ISF) together with monitoring of their corresponding counterions is presented. The clean room free development of a biofluidic patch is realized through 3D integration of laser patterned optimized microfluidic structures, a low-cost screen-printed stimulation module, and a potentiometric chloride (Cl-) and calcium (Ca2+) ion sensing module for adequate dual biofluid sampling and analysis. The developed Cl- and Ca2+ ion-selective sensors exhibit good repeatability, selectivity, acceptable stability, and sensitivity. The proof-of-concept demonstration of the fabricated patch for simultaneous dual-sampling, storage, and monitoring of the sweat Cl- and ISF Ca2+ on a healthy volunteer during different periods of the day leverages its potential in real-time personalized healthcare clinical usages. Furthermore, the patch's electronic interface and use of wireless transmission facilitates a point-of-care non-invasive lab-on-skin application for monitoring the health status of individuals.

Antibody-Coated Wearable Organic Electrochemical Transistors for Cortisol Detection in Human Sweat.

The dysregulation of the hormone cortisol is related to several pathological states, and its monitoring could help prevent severe stress, fatigue, and mental diseases. While wearable antibody-based biosensors could allow real-time and simple monitoring of antigens, an accurate and low-cost antibody-based cortisol detection through electrochemical methods is considerably challenging due to its low concentration and the high ionic strength of real biofluids. Here, a label-free and fast sensor for cortisol detection is proposed based on antibody-coated organic electrochemical transistors. The developed devices show unprecedented high sensitivities of 50 µA/dec for cortisol sensing in high-ionic-strength solutions with effective cortisol detection demonstrated with real human sweat. The sensing mechanism is analyzed through impedance spectroscopy and confirmed with electrical models. Compared to existing methods requiring bulky and expensive laboratory equipment, these wearable devices enable point-of-care cortisol detection in 5 min with direct sweat collection for personalized well-being monitoring.

A Wearable Autonomous Colorimetric Sweat Induction System for Sweat Analysis.

The wearable biochemical sweat sensor's capability to provide insight into molecular information of health dynamics ignites sweat analysis as a promising noninvasive diagnosis scheme for precision medicine. Here, we demonstrate, for the first time, a colorimetric sweat induction microfluidic patch, which facilitates on-demand sweat glands activation by agonist coupled electrode and capillary action-based fluidics to collect microliter volumes (~5 µL) of sweat for monitoring its analytes by digital image analysis. The system's clinical utility demonstrated on a healthy volunteer for sweat pH monitoring flags the way towards other important sweat markers analysis for personalized healthcare.Clinical Relevance- Sweat analysis based on wearable technologies and its correlation with blood analytes pave the way towards non-invasive point-of-care monitoring, as an alternative to blood analysis.

Scalable Nanostructured Carbon Electrode Arrays for Enhanced Dopamine Detection.

Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that modulates arousal and motivation in humans and animals. It plays a central role in the brain "reward" system. Its dysregulation is involved in several debilitating disorders such as addiction, depression, Parkinson's disease, and schizophrenia. Dopamine neurotransmission and its reuptake in extracellular space takes place with millisecond temporal and nanometer spatial resolution. Novel nanoscale electrodes are needed with superior sensitivity and improved spatial resolution to gain an improved understanding of dopamine dysregulation. We report on a scalable fabrication of dopamine neurochemical probes of a nanostructured glassy carbon that is smaller than any existing dopamine sensor and arrays of more than 6000 nanorod probes. We also report on the electrochemical dopamine sensing of the glassy carbon nanorod electrode. Compared with a carbon fiber, the nanostructured glassy carbon nanorods provide about 2× higher sensitivity per unit area for dopamine sensing and more than 5× higher signal per unit area at low concentration of dopamine, with comparable LOD and time response. These glassy carbon nanorods were fabricated by pyrolysis of a lithographically defined polymeric nanostructure with an industry standard semiconductor fabrication infrastructure. The scalable fabrication strategy offers the potential to integrate these nanoscale carbon rods with an integrated circuit control system and with other complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) compatible sensors.