PFI-TT: A Low-Cost Cortisol Sensor for Real-Time Stress Monitoring

这个PFI项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力是开发一种低成本的皮质醇传感技术，用于早期检测应激相关疾病。皮质醇是一种用于人体压力评估的生物标记物。皮质醇水平升高与压力相关疾病有关，包括慢性疲劳综合征、创伤后应激障碍，以及阿尔茨海默病和多发性硬化症等神经退行性疾病。因此，准确测量唾液和汗液中的皮质醇，对预测多种生理和精神疾病具有越来越重要的临床意义。虽然现有的实验室技术，如ELISA和FIA，可以提供精确的皮质醇测量，但它们通常太慢，需要快速反应或干预。所提出的技术克服了显著的限制，例如执行测试需要指定的样本量、总的测试时间和昂贵的光学检测单元。拟议技术的显著优势是在几分钟内产生皮质醇结果，并可以取代乏味的基于实验室的技术。这项技术将为临床高危人群创造个性化的行为干预，以调节皮质醇水平并防止与压力相关的健康问题。拟议的皮质醇传感技术将为医院、诊断实验室和制药行业提供解决方案，这些行业越来越依赖快速、灵敏、可重复和全自动化的技术。拟议的项目旨在将先前由美国国家科学基金会资助开发的传感器技术转化为低成本的手持传感设备，以监测护理点(POC)监测中的唾液皮质醇水平。FIU团队设计了皮质醇传感器的识别位置，使用抗体模拟、坚固和易于工业化扩展的电活性印迹聚合物，使设备能够以易于部署和便携的形式微型化。为了将传感器推向市场，该项目将合并为两个目标：(I)传感器的稳定性和测量重复性，以及(Ii)降低成本和尺寸。为了实现这些目标，FIU团队将1)开发使用新型电活性单体的高亲和力和无试剂的皮质醇MIP传感器，2)构建用于现场使用的低成本手持/便携式原型。拟议的皮质醇传感器将能够通过智能手机应用程序将实时数据从传感器发送到虚拟服务器。实时数据将在虚拟机上填充和处理，并由用户在其个人电脑或智能手机应用程序上存档。该项目将加强健康科学和工程领域之间的跨大学合作，从而为学生、博士后研究人员和教师提供跨学科的生物医学研究培训。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this PFI project is to develop a low-cost cortisol sensing technology for early detection of stress-related diseases. Cortisol is a biomarker used for stress evaluation in human subjects. Increased cortisol levels have been linked to stress-related diseases, including chronic fatigue syndrome, post-traumatic stress disorder, and neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer's disease, and multiple sclerosis. Therefore accurate measurement of cortisol in saliva, and sweat, is gaining increasing clinical significance to predict multiple physical and mental diseases. While existing laboratory techniques, such as ELISA and FIA, can provide precise cortisol measurements, they are generally too slow, where a rapid response or intervention is needed. The proposed technology overcomes significant limitations such as the necessity of having specified sample volume to perform a test, total testing time, and expensive optical detection unit. The substantial advantage of the proposed technology is to produce cortisol results within few minutes and can replace tedious laboratory-based techniques. This technology will create personalized behavioral intervention to regulate cortisol levels and prevent stress-related health problems for at-risk clinical populations. The proposed cortisol sensing technology will provide solutions to hospitals, diagnostic laboratories, and pharmaceutical industries, which increasingly rely on fast, sensitive, reproducible and fully automated technologies.The proposed project aims to translate a sensor technology, developed under a previously funded NSF grant, into a low-cost, handheld sensing device to monitor the salivary cortisol levels in point-of-care (POC) monitoring. The FIU team has engineered recognition site of cortisol sensor using antibody- mimic, robust and easily industrially scalable electroactive imprinted polymers that allow to miniaturize device in easily deployable and portable format. In order to translate the sensor into the market, the project will be consolidated into two goals: (i) sensor stability and measurement repeatability, and (ii) reducing cost and size. To accomplish these goals FIU team will 1) develop of high-affinity and reagent-less MIP sensor for Cortisol using novel electroactive monomers and 2) Constructing a low-cost handheld/portable prototype for field use. The proposed cortisol sensor will be capable of sending real-time data from the sensor to the virtual server via a smartphone app. The real-time data will be populated and processed on the virtual machines and will be archived by the user on their personal computer or smartphone app. The project will fortify a cross-university collaboration between the areas of health science and engineering; resulting in interdisciplinary biomedical research training for students, postdoctoral researchers, and faculty.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.