PSNIU scientists are developing an alternative to painful procedures
It will be possible to take tests and make injections of medicines without pain and psychological discomfort, the press service of the PSNIU reports. An alternative to the syringe can be a joint development of Perm and American scientists. Safe, easy-to-use, pain-free microneedle devices will be used to diagnose diseases and deliver drugs to cells.
An international research group led by Marina Aleksandrovna Zemlyanova, Professor of Perm University (PSNIU) and Professor of the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech, Atlanta, USA) The Prauznitsa brand is developing a technology for collecting and analyzing interstitial fluid using microneedle devices. The project is financed from two sources: the development program of the National Research University and the budget of the Perm Region.
Interstitial (intercellular, tissue, interstitial, subcutaneous) fluid is contained in the intercellular and near-cellular spaces of tissues and organs. Cells absorb the necessary nutrients from it and remove metabolic products into it. According to a number of indicators, interstitial fluid is similar to blood plasma and is also informative. During 2013, Perm University scientists conducted preclinical studies of blood serum and subcutaneous fluid, which showed that the content of glucose, urea, chlorides, sodium and albumins in these biological media are comparable.
Subcutaneous fluid research is actively conducted in the Netherlands and Japan, but the development of the Zemlyanova and Prauznitsa group has no analogues.
The unique micro-needle device is a polymer plate with a diameter of 0.5 cm (the size of a stationery button), on which 100 hollow polymer needles are located.
"To obtain 5 ml of subcutaneous fluid required for the analysis, it is enough to apply an applicator to the skin for 15 minutes. This procedure is painless, devoid of psychological discomfort, there are practically no traces left on the skin from punctures with microneedles," says Professor Zemlyanova. "Preclinical studies prove that the use of polymer microneedles does not cause complications."
The next stage of the work will be clinical studies of microneedle devices on volunteers. They will be held on the basis of the Perm Federal Scientific Center for Medical and Preventive Technologies of Public Health Risk Management.
"About 60 million blood tests are performed annually in Russia for the diagnosis of diseases, the growth rate of the laboratory research market in Russia is 15-18%. At the same time, the cost of disposing of one syringe is 2.5 times more than its price. Microneedle devices do not require recycling and can be used for fluid extraction for the purpose of diagnosing diseases, controlling sugar levels, in cosmetology and dentistry to relieve local edema. But, in addition, with the help of microneedle devices, substances can be delivered to cells. This means that they can and are already being used in the USA for vaccination," concludes Professor Zemlyanova.
Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru26.12.2013