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Colorimetric Determination of Glucose in Sweat Using an Alginate-Based Biosystem
Sandra Garcia-Rey1,2, Eva Gil-Hernandez1,2, Lourdes Basabe-Desmonts2,3
1Microfluidics Cluster UPV/EHU, Analytical Microsystems & Materials for Lab-on-a-Chip (AMMa-LOAC) Group, Analytical Chemistry Department, University of the Basque Country UPV/EHU, 48940 Leioa, Spain.
Polymers
|March 11, 2023
Summary
Researchers developed an alginate-based biosystem for non-invasive glucose monitoring in sweat. This bead-like system offers a promising alternative to blood tests for clinical and sports diagnostics.
Area of Science:
- Biomedical Engineering
- Analytical Chemistry
- Materials Science
Background:
- Glucose monitoring is crucial in clinical and sports settings.
- Blood analysis is the standard, but non-invasive alternatives like sweat are highly sought after.
- Alginate hydrogels show potential as scaffolds for biosensing applications.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and validate an alginate-based bead biosystem for glucose determination in sweat.
- To explore colorimetric and RGB code analysis for glucose quantification.
- To demonstrate the feasibility of integrating this biosystem into microfluidic devices.
Main Methods:
- Fabrication of alginate-based bead-like biosystems.
- Integration of an enzymatic assay for glucose detection.
- Calibration and verification using artificial and real sweat samples.
- Colorimetric analysis using black and white and RGB color codes.
Main Results:
- A linear calibration range of 10-1000 µM for glucose in artificial sweat was achieved.
- Limits of detection and quantification were determined as 3.8 µM and 12.7 µM, respectively.
- Successful application of the biosystem with real sweat samples in a microfluidic device prototype.
Conclusions:
- Alginate hydrogels are effective scaffolds for creating robust biosystems.
- The developed biosystem demonstrates potential for non-invasive glucose monitoring in sweat.
- Sweat analysis using such biosystems can serve as a complementary diagnostic tool.
