Tech Briefs Magazine - September 2022 - 30

Sensors
Future Wearable Health Tech Could Measure Gases
Released from Skin
New research points the way to monitoring metabolic diseases.
The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH
S
cientists have taken the first step to creating
the next generation of wearable
health monitors.
Most research on measuring human
biomarkers, which are measures of a
body's health, rely on electrical signals to
sense the chemicals excreted in sweat.
But sensors that rely on perspiration often
require huge amounts of it just to get
a reading.
A new study suggests that a wearable
sensor may be able to monitor the
body's health by instead detecting the
gases released from a person's skin.
" It is completely noninvasive, and
completely passive on the behalf of the
user, " said Anthony Annerino, lead author
of the study.
Some wearable devices, like smartwatches
or fitness trackers, are already
capable of measuring pulse rates or temperatures,
but this team's method would
allow the technology to sense biomarkers
related to metabolic disorders, like
heart disease or diabetes.
" Discerning health issues through the
skin is really the ultimate frontier, " said
study co-author Pelagia-Iren Gouma.
" The project still has a couple of years to
go. But in six months, we should have
proof of concept and in a year, we'd like to
have it tested in people, " said Gouma.
The final product of the team's research
would be a small device a person could
wear on low- sweat body locations, like behind
the ear or on the nails, she said. And
as more people become familiar with using
wearable devices in their everyday lives,
Gouma expects technology and medicine
to become even more intertwined.
Scientists, including Gouma, have a
long history of measuring the concentration
of organic compounds in our breath,
a type of gas, as indicators of health. One
example would be blowing into a breathalyzer,
a device that can measure the
amount of alcohol in a person's blood or
be used to detect viruses.
But such a gadget requires " active intent "
and only provides a " momentary
30
The study suggests future health sensors could work by detecting chemicals released from the skin.
(Image: Getty Images)
snapshot " of the body, Annerino said.
Compared to the amount of chemicals
we release when we breathe, he said, this
team's sensors can operate on much
smaller amounts of gaseous acetone released
from the skin.
Acetone is one of the substances secreted
from the skin that can tell researchers a
lot about the inner workings of the human
body. Concentrations of acetone in the
breath have also been shown to be related
to blood sugar levels and fat-burning rates.
To test whether their sensors could detect
varying amounts of these enlightening
chemicals (which would signal the presence
of the gaseous molecules), the researchers
created a film material made
from derivatives of plant cellulose and
electroactive polymers. This film can bend
dramatically in response to how much of
the acetone is detected in its environment.
The team then placed the film over
solutions containing ethanol, acetone,
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and water to gauge its sensitivity, selectivity,
and repeatability.
" We found significant bias toward
bending more upon exposure to certain
chemicals over others, " said Annerino.
This bending happens in milliseconds,
and the researchers used machine
learning and complex computational
algorithms to accurately record and
track the film's bending response to the
different chemical solutions.
Their findings showed that the films
are sensitive enough to track long-term
changes in the body. While focusing on a
metabolic rate sensor, another possible
use would be to track ethanol, which, in
the body, can spell signs of liver disease.
More work needs to be done on how the
films used in this study would work as actual
sensors worn on the body, the researchers
said.
For more information, contact Tatyana
Woodall at woodal.52@osu.edu.
Tech Briefs, September 2022

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Tech Briefs Magazine - September 2022

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