Handheld metabolite measuring diagnostic device for rapid disease diagnosis

Researchers at Glasgow University have developed a hand-held electronic device using a complementary metal oxide semiconductor chip which is divided into multiple reaction zones to detect, measure and monitor four metabolites at the same time from fluid samples from patients, allowing scientists to track the general heath of patients or the progression of specific diseases.
The device can be operated via any Android-based tablet or smartphone which provides data acquisition, computation, visualisation and power, and because it can rapidly detect and quantify multiple metabolite biomarkers at the same time, it could be used for quicker diagnosis of cancer, heart attacks and strokes, where rapid diagnosis is vital for effective treatment.
Dr Samadhan Patil, lead author on the paper, said: “We have been able to detect and measure multiple metabolites associated with myocardial infarction, or heart attack, and prostate cancer simultaneously using this device. This device has potential to track progression of the disease in its early phase and is ideally suited for the subsequent prognosis.”
Prof David Cumming, Principal Investigator on the project, said: “Handheld, inexpensive diagnostic devices capable of accurately measuring metabolites open up a wide range of applications for medicine, and with this latest development we’ve taken an important step closer to bringing such a device to market.”