Nanotechnology Tattoo May Help Diabetics Track Blood Sugar

Image courtesy of Christine Daniloff

People with type I diabetes must prick their fingers several times a day to test their blood sugar level. Though the pain is minor, the chore interferes with daily life. Researchers at MIT are now working on a new type of blood glucose monitor that could not only eliminate the need for finger pricks but also offer more accurate readings. Paul Barone, a postdoctoral researcher in MIT’s Department of Chemical Engineering and professor Michael Strano have developed a sensing system that consists of a “tattoo” of nanoparticles designed to detect glucose, injected below the skin. A device similar to a wristwatch would be worn over the tattoo, displaying the patient’s glucose levels.

The technology behind the MIT sensor, described in a December 2009 issue of ACS Nano (“Modulation of Single-Walled Carbon Nanotube Photoluminescence by Hydrogel Swelling”), is fundamentally different from existing sensors, says Strano. The sensor is based on carbon nanotubes wrapped in a polymer that is sensitive to glucose concentrations. When this sensor encounters glucose, the nanotubes fluoresce, which can be detected by shining near-infrared light on them. Measuring the amount of fluorescence reveals the concentration of glucose.

The researchers plan to create an “ink” of these nanoparticles suspended in a saline solution that could be injected under the skin like a tattoo. The “tattoo” would last for a specified length of time, probably six months, before needing to be refreshed. To get glucose readings, the patient would wear a monitor that shines near-infrared light on the tattoo and detects the resulting fluorescence. The researchers say that one advantage of this type of sensor is that, unlike some fluorescent molecules, carbon nanotubes aren’t destroyed by light exposure.

Barone and Strano are now working to improve the accuracy of their sensor. Any glucose monitor must pass a test known as the Clarke Error Grid, the gold standard for glucose-sensor accuracy. The test, which compares sensor results to results from a lab-based glucose meter, needs to be very stringent, since mistakes in glucose detection can be fatal.

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Tags: diabetes, glucose, MIT, Paul Barone, tattoo