Bloodless analysis

The cholesterol level will be determined by the absorption of light by the palm

Anastasia Kuznetsova-Fantoni, N+1

Chinese researchers have developed a device for measuring cholesterol levels in the skin. After adding a cholesterol-binding reagent to the palm, the sensor of the device registers changes in light absorption. In a study on 121 patients, scientists proved that the amount of cholesterol in the skin correlates with the level of cholesterol in the blood. This method can be a good alternative to biochemical blood analysis in patients who need to be examined frequently. The work was published in the journal Lipids in Health and Disease (Lai et al., Non-invasive skin cholesterol testing: a potential proxy for LDL-C and apoB serum measurements).

Cholesterol is a part of cell membranes and stabilizes their structure, and in addition, it is needed for the synthesis of steroid hormones, bile acids and vitamin D. However, with excessive intake of cholesterol in the body, it is deposited in the walls of blood vessels — atherosclerosis occurs. Plaques narrow the lumen of the arteries and reduce blood flow in the heart and brain, and in addition, they can come off and clog the vessels.

People with heart disease need to regularly monitor the level of lipids in the blood in order to start taking medications on time and avoid severe atherosclerosis. Such patients are often forced to donate blood for biochemical analysis. This method is invasive and takes a relatively long time.

Chinese scientists led by Qingtong Wang from the Hefei Institute of Clinical Pharmacology have developed a non—invasive way to measure cholesterol levels - indicators are read from the patient's skin. First, a person's palm is wiped with alcohol and a plastic ring is applied to the skin. Then the patient places his hand on the scanning sensor so that the ring is in contact with the lens of the device. This is how doctors measure how the skin absorbs light without adding a reagent.

The reagent is added to the ring at the second measurement stage. It consists of a substrate and digitonin combined with horseradish peroxidase. Digitonin binds cholesterol on the skin, and peroxidase changes the color of the substrate. Its intensity depends on the amount of bound cholesterol. The sensor of the device measures the absorption of light on the treated area of the skin and calculates the cholesterol content by this parameter.

The device was tested on 121 patients with coronary heart disease. Patients were treated with statins for 12 weeks and cholesterol levels in the skin and blood were periodically measured. It turned out that these indicators correlate (p<0.001), which means that this method can be a good alternative to biochemical blood analysis in patients with heart diseases who need to be examined frequently.

Scientists from Lausanne has developed a diagnostic chip that will monitor not only cholesterol levels, but also glucose levels and drug concentrations. However, first it needs to be implanted under the skin.

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