Electrical engineer puts sweat tech to the test

UCLASam Emaminejad has been working on a wearable sensor that can extract sweat by applying an electrical current to the skin and then analyzing its molecular components, such as chloride ions and glucose, to detect certain diseases.Sam Emaminejad, assistant professor of electrical engineering at UCLA, has demonstrated that a wearable biosensor can be used in the diagnosis of cystic fibrosis, diabetes and other diseases by measuring molecules present in an individual's sweat.Hedeveloped the biosensor with colleagueswhile he was a joint postdoctoral researcher at Stanford Medicine and UC Berkeley. Currently, he is completing his first year on the UCLA engineering faculty and is continuing this line of research in his lab.The key to the biosensor is it “activates” your sweat while you wear it and you don’t have to run up stairs or stay on a treadmill to the point where you break out in sweat. The research demonstrated for the first time that a wearable, non-invasive sensor can extract sweat at the skin’s surface and monitor in real time im portant biomarkers for patients.Emamnejad spoke recently to UCLA Engineering writer Matthew Chin about his research and teaching goals. What can sweat tell about what ’s going on inside us? And why hasn’t sweat been used much for patient monitoring and tracking?Sweat  is a rich source of physiological information and contains many biomarkers such as metabolites, electrolytes  and proteins that can inform us of our health status...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news