Revolutionary cholesterol testing brought closer by BDI sensor research
-11 August 2010

Research being carried out at DCU's Biomedical Diagnostics Institute (BDI) aims to revolutionize the way blood tests, such as cholesterol, are performed, using the emerging technology of printed electronics.

The BDI, together with its industrial and research collaborators across Europe, has already received EUR3m under the European Union's Seventh Framework Programme.

Dr Tony Killard, Principal Investigator at the BDI, is coordinating the project which will combine the expertise of manufacturers such as Ntera, Unipath and Prelonic, who specialise in the production and integration of diagnostic sensor print technologies. Academic partners include VTT from Finland and the University of Liverpool.

The test involves pricking the finger to get a small blood sample and touching it to the end of a disposable sensor strip. When the blood 'hits' the sensor, the reading appears on the strip. The device will also be able to talk to a mobile phone to communicate the result to a doctor.

These devices have significant potential for people who live in isolated areas, or who do not have easy access to health care, particularly in the developing world.

According to Dr Killard, "These strips don't need their batteries to be changed or their meters serviced. You simply use the strip, get your result and dispose, or recycle. And because they can be printed in extremely large volumes, the cost will be low."

"This project will make Ireland a serious player in the emerging printed electronics industry which is estimated by some to be worth EUR300 billion globally by 2030", he said. "While the current prototype is being used to measure cholesterol, it has the potential to be used for any number of tests in the future".

Flexible or plastic electronics are already entering everyday life. The latest flat panel televisions are now manufactured using printed conducting plastics which are gradually replacing costly silicon electronics in many applications.

Dr Killard's team at the BDI have been developing printed biosensors and diagnostics for several years and see the potential of this technology to change the way blood tests are performed.

"If you think of someone who currently does a blood test, they need a little sensor strip and a meter to read the measurement. Now, all this will be combined onto a single piece of plastic", he said.