Methods And Devices for Continuous Analyte Sensing with Microporous Annealed Particle Gels
SUMMARY
UCLA researchers in the Department of Bioengineering have developed novel microporous annealed particle gels for long-term continuous monitoring of blood metabolites.
BACKGROUND
Continuous blood metabolite monitoring is one of the holy grails for chronic disease management. This is specifically needed for continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) for those that suffer from diabetes, one of the most chronic and current global heath disease epidemics we are currently facing. Typically, management of diabetes is carried out by normalizing blood glucose levels through diet, exercise and/or medication. Current medical practices require the use of external monitoring sensors requiring multiple finger pricks daily to provide blood samples. This modality can be burdensome and painful for patients and is generally not amenable to automated or artificial therapies (e.g. an artificial pancreas). CGM can play a significant role in closed-loop feedback systems in conjunction with insulin delivery systems for the normalization of blood glucose levels in patients with diabetes. However, current commercially available CGMs require frequent external calibration and weekly replacement. The development of a novel CGM that does not require frequent calibration and has a longer lifetime is of great need and would revolutionize diabetes care management.
INNOVATION
Prof. Dino Di Carlo and colleagues at UCLA have developed a long-lifetime microporous annealed particle (MAP) gel for blood analyte sensing, requiring fewer calibration events. This novel innovation can be delivered transdermally during a brief clinic visit and because of its porous nature allows endogenous vasculature to be integrated within the MAP sensor gel. Additionally, this invention is unlikely to induce a foreign body response, which promote longer device lifetime and prevents device fouling. Moreover, this system is insensitive to patient inhomogeneity in terms of skin tone, fat, and lag-time because of its transdermal delivery and microporous nature. The sensors are described for glucose sensing, though they hold potential to be used to sense any blood metabolite.
APPLICATIONS
This novel MAP gel would be used to monitor blood metabolites important for managing disease such as glucose levels for the treatment of diabetes.
ADVANTAGES
- Potentially longer device lifetime over current commercially available CGMs
- Insensitive to differences among patients, i.e. skin tone, fat composition, etc.
- Amenable to sensing many blood metabolites in addition to glucose, in a single or multiplexed fashion.
- Requires fewer calibration events
- Shorter/no lag time between readout and actual metabolite level
- Compatible with future closed-loop automated therapies
STATE OF DEVELOPMENT
This novel MAP gel for continuous blood metabolite sensing is in the conceptual stage of development.