Drawing on the past success of CGMs, there has been increasing attention on modifying and expanding their use. Researchers from Rice University embarked on an experimental journey to develop a “glucometer-based allosteric sensor to electrochemically sense specific biomarkers in blood and meet the miniaturization and signal amplification requirements for POC [point-of-care] use.” Their research was published in Nature Communications.
Examples of the hypothesized expanded therapeutic scope of CGM include preventing drug resistance and minimizing negative outcomes during chemotherapy. For preventing drug resistance, for example, frequent monitoring and rapid testing are critical. The researchers speculated that the potential role of CGM is limitless, with blood samples revealing a person’s individualized and comprehensive physiologic profile, including therapeutic progression or regression of disease, nutritional status, and metabolic state.
Caroline M. Ajo-Franklin, PhD, coauthor, bioscientist, cancer researcher, and director of the Rice Synthetic Biology Institute, stated, “The dream is to have technology similar to what’s available today for monitoring and treating variations in blood glucose, and have that be true for basically any drug. Millions of people use blood-glucose monitors every day. If we can use that same basic technology to monitor other drugs and biomarkers, we could move away from the one-size-fits-all dosing regimes that we’re stuck with today.”
Lead study author Rong Cai, a postdoctoral research associate, and colleagues tested more than 400 slightly modified versions of the electron-releasing protein and found a version that reacted with the experimental drug afimoxifene, reducing the current output from the glucose reaction in the blood. This allowed the team to detect the presence of that drug by comparing the currents produced by both the benchmark regular glucose test and that of the modified test.
“The glucometer is the part that’s so well-developed,” Ms. Cai said. “While our target is different, it’s just a matter of engineering and changing the protein on the inside. On the outside, everything will still be the same. You can still do the test with a strip or on your arm.” She commented further, “If your signal is electrical, you can read it in your phone, store its data in your phone, send it to the cloud, whatever. That’s the part, that marriage between electricity and biology, that is very attractive.”
Their study revealed two innovations that transform the conventional glucometer into a POC therapeutics sensor. The first is a departure from conventional dependence on modification of protein structure to trigger on/off signals. The team’s approach instead uses engineered protein and rate of glucose oxidation to establish signals that they subsequently decoded using an electrochemical algorithm that they developed. Secondly, they utilized the power generated from that glucose oxidation to supply energy to the detection and amplification circuits.
The authors concluded that “these sensors hold broad applications, ranging from doping controls in sports medicine to monitoring medication compliance.”
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