2019 – Regional and correlative sweat analysis using high-throughput microfluidic sensing patches toward decoding sweat

Authors: Hnin Yin Yin Nyein, Mallika Bariya, Liisa Kivimäki, Sanna Uusitalo, Tiffany Sun Liaw, Elina Jansson, Christine Heera Ahn, John A. Hangasky, Jiangqi Zhao, Yuanjing Lin, Tuomas Happonen, Minghan Chao, Christina Liedert, Yingbo Zhao, Li-Chia Tai, Jussi Hiltunen and Ali Javey
Date: 2019
Published: Science Advances, Volume 5, No. 8
Link: https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.aaw9906

Abstract

Recent technological advancements in wearable sensors have made it easier to detect sweat components, but our limited understanding of sweat restricts its application. A critical bottleneck for temporal and regional sweat analysis is achieving uniform, high-throughput fabrication of sweat sensor components, including microfluidic chip and sensing electrodes. To overcome this challenge, we introduce microfluidic sensing patches mass fabricated via roll-to-roll (R2R) processes. The patch allows sweat capture within a spiral microfluidic for real-time measurement of sweat parameters including [Na⁺], [K⁺], [glucose], and sweat rate in exercise and chemically induced sweat. The patch is demonstrated for investigating regional sweat composition, predicting whole-body fluid/electrolyte loss during exercise, uncovering relationships between sweat metrics, and tracking glucose dynamics to explore sweat-to-blood correlations in healthy and diabetic individuals. By enabling a comprehensive sweat analysis, the presented device is a crucial tool for advancing sweat testing beyond the research stage for point-of-care medical and athletic applications.