Release date: 2018-02-27
Finger blood sampling by instrument to monitor blood glucose levels is a routine task in the daily life of diabetic patients. However, repeated finger sticks reduce the compliance of diabetic patients. Now, a research team in South Korea has come up with a solution: a new smart contact lens that is very convenient to detect blood sugar levels in tears.
In fact, this concept is not the first to be proposed. As early as 2014, Google announced that it is developing a glucose detection contact lens, but until now, it has not yet completed development.
The latest breakthrough was completed by Prof. Jang-ung Park of the School of Materials Science and Engineering at UNSTAT and Professor Franklin Bien of the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering at UNIST in collaboration with Professor Jung Heon Lee of the School of Advanced Materials Science and Engineering at the University of the University of Tokyo.
To address the problem of contact lens discomfort, Professor Park and his team have introduced a new type of smart contact lens that uses electrodes made of highly stretchable and transparent materials. This clear and flexible "lens" also includes a glucose sensor that sends electrical signals to the LEDs. With this sensor, patients can transmit health information in real time using the embedded wireless antenna in the glasses.
According to the research team, this innovative smart contact lens is soft and flexible with only a few small rigid parts to make the wearer as comfortable as possible.
“These smart contact lenses are made of transparent nanomaterials and therefore do not interfere with the wearer's view,†said the first author, Professor Jihun Park. “The components inside the contact lenses are arranged around the edges, away from the pupils. They consist of a glucose sensor, a The small green LED facing outwards, consisting of an antenna and a rectifier, are all connected by ultra-fine flexible. The antenna and rectifier receive the RF signal from the transmitter and convert it into a small amount of power required for the glucose monitor and LED power supply. So smart contact lens sensors do not require a separate power supply."
As shown in the figure above, the power source and glucose sensor that activate the LED pixels are wirelessly transmitted to the glasses through the antenna. After the glucose concentration above the threshold is detected in the tears, the LED pixels are turned off. Source: Usage Restrictions
Currently, the research team has successfully passed non-invasive in vivo testing on live rabbits. The rabbit did not show any abnormal behavior when repeatedly blinking, and when the glucose concentration exceeded the threshold, the LED pixels were turned off. In addition, this smart contact lens can still maintain the temperature of the eye stably during wireless operation without the need for additional heating.
Although the device has not been tested in humans. The research team said: "The results of in vivo testing of smart contact lenses in living rabbits provide a substantial commitment to future non-invasive health monitoring in the human eye." The results were published in the January 25 issue of Science Advances.
"Our smart contact lenses provide a platform for wireless, continuous and non-invasive monitoring of physiological conditions, as well as platforms for detecting biomarkers associated with the eye and other diseases," said Professor Park. “It also offers the potential to expand applicability in other areas, such as smart devices for drug delivery.â€
John L. Smith, the former chief scientist of Johnson & Johnson's Glucose Monitoring Division, was not too optimistic about this. He said that building circuits on flexible contact lenses is impressive, but the glucose in the tears is not reliable enough to reflect blood sugar in the blood. Level. To prevent blood sugar from rising or falling to dangerous levels, people with diabetes must pay attention to their diet and sometimes insulin. This is why accurate blood glucose levels are critical. Therefore, blood glucose measurement must be done with extremely high reliability, otherwise it may cause people to be hurt.
The researchers said that although the application of this contact lens in humans may still have a way to go, the results of the study prove the feasibility of the concept.
Original title: measuring blood sugar without having to tie your fingers! In the blink of an eye, "get it in minutes" | Science Supplement
Reference material
The latest glucose-sensing smart contact lens still has a long way to go
New smart contact lens for diabetics introduced
Smart contact lens helps diabetics monitor blood sugar levels
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