Pricking your finger’s breadth for a blood glucose mental test will never , ever be fun . Thankfully , scientists have been hard at workplace on a blanched and needleless alternative : arub - on impermanent tattoothat , as unearthly as it vocalize , gently sucks glucose through the aerofoil of the skin .
The thin , flexible twist created by nanoengineers at UCSD is based on the much bulkierGlucoWatch , a now - discontinued wristband that worked through the same glucose - breastfeed principal . But the electric current GlucoWatch used to attract glucose to the surface of the cutis was too mellow , and wearer were not keen on the uncomfortableness . This temporary tattoo gets around the problem by using a gentler but still in force current .
It then detects glucose through an enzyme that breaks glucose down into O and hydrogen peroxide . The amount of hydrogen peroxide is a procurator for blood glocal levels .
Now , if you follow the glucose tattoo space intimately , you might know that apermanent glucose - sensing tattoohas been float as an idea before . But this is a different case of gimmick entirely . For one , it ’s not an actual tattoo that involves needle drive glucose - sensing ink into the hide . And for two , it ’s already been examine in human being . Aproof - of - concept studypublished in Analytical Chemistry found it precise at measuring origin sugar levels in seven healthy unpaid worker .
Of naturally , there ’s still plenty of workplace to be done to make it into a gimmick hoi polloi can use at house over the long terminal figure . But a exsanguinous line of descent sugar test will surely be welcome .
Imag credit : Jacobs School of Engineering / UC San Diego
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