Smart tattoos will help an unreasonable person

In recent months, several research companies and institutes from different countries have presented smart tattoos that, using microscopic non-invasive sensors, can monitor the health of their owner. Scientists hope that such gadgets will greatly simplify personal health monitoring. This will help prevent heart attacks, strokes, exacerbations of diabetes and other risks to human life.

From Istanbul to Texas

In the summer, scientists from two Istanbul universities reported about the development of nanopaint that can contactlessly transfer data from the human body. The biosensor, called the backscattering-based nanotattoo sensor (BNTS), was developed by Kristen Belcastro of Yeditepe University and Onur Ergen of Istanbul Technical University. The paint consists of two main components – ink based on zinc oxide and nanofibers with electrically conductive graphene airgel.

According to Professor Onur Ergen, the main function of the smart tattoo developed with his participation is electroencephalography and contactless data transfer.

In addition, Turkish researchers are exploring the possibility of obtaining information through sweat analysis – BNTS has this option.

The biosensor development project led by Professor Ergen has already received recognition in Europe. The European Research Council has awarded a €1.4 million grant to find the optimal power solution for such biosensors.

In April, your own version of a smart tattoo presented researchers from the University of Texas (Austin). “Many heart problems become noticeable only at a later stage. But the body suffers from such problems, even when they are barely noticeable for observation from the outside,” notes one of the authors of the project, professor of the Department of Engineering Mechanics Nanxiu Liu. “If we had the ability to constantly monitor the state of the cardiovascular system and transmit data contactlessly to the appropriate devices , even while at home (i.e. without a special visit to the doctor.— “Kommersant”), we would make significant progress in terms of early diagnosis, and could prevent up to 80% of cardiovascular diseases and complications.”

A smart tattoo, or, as US developers call it, “wireless electromechanical electronic tattoo,” is an ultra-thin film—200 microns—that can stretch with the skin.

The weight of such a film with installed sensors and a miniature battery is only 2.5 g. The film is placed on the chest area – like a temporary sticker tattoo – and takes readings for two main studies of the heart: electrocardiography (ECG) and seismocardiography (SCG).

ECG data can be transferred contactlessly to conventional mobile devices, such as a smartphone or smartwatch. For now, information on SCG can only be transmitted to special electronic stethoscopes. Scientists believe that continuous monitoring of the state of the cardiovascular system using ECG and SCG in combination with each other not only opens up new opportunities for the early diagnosis of potential risks, but also has the potential for broader analysis.

“Both of these measurements (ECG and SCG.— “Kommersant”) in combination with each other give a complete picture of what is happening to the heart,” emphasizes Professor Liu. “But there is much more data about the work of the heart that can be measured from two constantly and synchronously arriving signals transmitted using a microscopic non-invasive device.”

Skin as display

Analysts consider the market for wearable devices for medical monitoring to be very promising. By data Transparency Market Research, in 2023, the global market for wearable devices for monitoring the cardiovascular system is estimated at approximately $1.9 billion. Until the end of the decade, it will grow at an average of 12.5% ​​per year and will reach $5.8 billion in 2031.

Analysts consider the main market trends to be the constant growth of investments and the development of wearable device technologies in general – new materials, sensors, power supplies, etc.

This, in turn, is driving a smaller market for ultra-miniature wearable health monitoring devices. Experts consider such devices attractive to consumers, many of whom do not want to carry a bulky device or advertise their health problems.

Companies are also actively investing in the development of software for such devices and processing the data coming from them. This allows you not only to quickly transfer data to doctors without visiting a hospital or clinic, but also to independently monitor the information, which is presented in an accessible and visual form.

Ali Yetizen, a researcher at Imperial College London and a professor at the Department of Chemical Engineering, in an interview with CNN reported, that one of the promising areas is the development of special “functional materials” for smart tattoos. The idea is that the paint changes color depending on a significant change in key indicators – for example, blood sugar, blood pressure, dehydration, etc. Professor Yetizen is working on such materials as part of the project DermalAbyss together with researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MIT, and Harvard Medical School.

While some scientists are developing biosensors to track information from the body, others – like Professor Carson Bruns from the University of Colorado – are creating smart tattoos to perceive information from the outside.

Professor Bruns has developed a smart tattoo that monitors levels of ultraviolet solar radiation and radiation, which can cause skin cancer.

The professor himself (photo) got his first tattoo at the age of 19 and now “combines his love for this art and science.” In 2020, he introduced a light-sensitive tattoo in the form of a small dot that becomes brighter when a person spends a long time in the open sun. But if a person goes into the shade or applies sunscreen, the tattoo will fade.

In April, scientist received the prestigious Career Award from the American National Science Foundation, NSF, for his developments in the field of biosensors using the latest nanomaterials for skin of different pigmentations. “We hope that our research will significantly optimize the biocompatibility of smart tattoos with the skin of different pigments. In the future, we plan to obtain permission from regulators of the Federal Drug and Food Market Administration for the mass use of such smart tattoos in the United States,” says the scientist.

Evgeny Khvostik