Point-of-use sweat biosensor to track the endocrine-inflammation relationship for chronic disease monitoring

Abstract

Aim: The hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis is involved in maintaining homeostasis by engaging with the parasympathetic nervous system. During the process of disease affliction, this relationship is disturbed and there is an imbalance driven response observed. Materials & methods: By monitoring the two key components involved in these pathways, cortisol and TNF-α, the manifestations of chronic stress on the body's homeostasis can be evaluated in a comprehensive manner. This work highlights the development of an electrochemical detection system for the two biomarkers through human sweat. Results: Limit of detection and dynamic ranges are 1 ng/ml, 1-200 ng/ml for cortisol and 1 pg/ml, 1-1000 pg/ml for TNF-α. Conclusion: This wearable system is designed to be a point of use, chronic disease self-monitoring and management platform. When the body is under stress, a lot of physiological processes work toward bringing the body back to its normal state. Cortisol, a stress hormone and TNF-α, a protein related to inflammation, are direct products of these physiological processes. The goal of this work is demonstration of a biosensor that is capable of tracking these molecules in human sweat. The significance lies in simplifying disease diagnostics, in other words, to detect and monitor diseases. This system is designed to be a wearable that will track the levels of cortisol and TNF-α and use it as an indicator of the user's health status.