Rapid Fire
Sensor for Parkinson’s Disease Management
- 29 Aug 2024
- 2 min read
Recently, the Scientists at the Institute of Advanced Study in Science and Technology (IASST), an autonomous institute of the Department of Science and Technology have developed an affordable, portable smartphone-based fluorescence turn-on sensor system to enhance Parkinson's disease management by accurately monitoring L-dopa levels.
- Parkinson’s disease is characterized by a continuous decrease in neuron cells, leading to a reduction in dopamine (neurotransmitter) levels in our body
- L-dopa is a chemical that converts to dopamine, acts as an anti-Parkinson's drug, helping compensate for the dopamine deficiency.
- However, the progressive nature of Parkinson's requires increasing L-dopa dosage, which can cause serious side effects, while insufficient dosage leads to the return of symptoms.
- The sensor is made by coating a layer of silk-fibroin protein, from silk cocoons, onto reduced graphene oxide nanoparticles.
- This combination helps the sensor glow when it detects L-dopa in blood, sweat, or urine.
- The researchers have designed a smartphone-based electronic device that connects to a 365nm Light Emitting Diodes (LED) via a 5V smartphone charger and is housed in a dark chamber to block external light.
- By shining the LED on the sensor and taking pictures with a smartphone, the device captures color changes.
- The RGB (red, green and blue) values from the images are used to evaluate L-dopa concentration using a mobile app, making it ideal for quick testing in remote areas.
