Alginate Bead Biosystem for the Determination of Lactate in Sweat Using Image Analysis

Lactate is present in sweat at high concentrations, being a metabolite of high interest in sport science and medicine. Therefore, the potential to determine lactate concentrations in physiological fluids, at the point of need with minimal invasiveness, is very valuable. In this work, the synthesis and performance of an alginate bead biosystem was investigated. Artificial sweat with different lactate concentrations was used as a proof of concept. The lactate detection was based on a colorimetric assay and an image analysis method using lactate oxidase, horseradish peroxidase and tetramethyl benzidine as the reaction mix. Lactate in artificial sweat was detected with a R² = 0.9907 in a linear range from 10 mM to 100 mM, with a limit of detection of 6.4 mM and a limit of quantification of 21.2 mM. Real sweat samples were used as a proof of concept to test the performance of the biosystem, obtaining a lactate concentration of 48 ± 3 mM. This novel sensing configuration, using alginate beads, gives a fast and reliable method for lactate sensing, which could be integrated into more complex analytical systems.