(Invited) Continuous Molecular Monitoring in Interstitial Fluid Via Wearable Microneedle Aptamer-Based Sensors

Abstract

The ability to continuously monitor the concentration of specific molecules in the body is a long-sought goal of biomedical research. For this purpose, interstitial fluid (ISF) has been proposed as the ideal target biofluid because its composition can rapidly equilibrate with that of systemic blood, allowing the assessment of molecular concentrations that reflect full-body physiology. To tap into this measurement compartment, it is possible to use microneedle sensor arrays for continuous molecular monitoring. In this presentation, I will discuss our efforts to develop microneedle-supported electrochemical, aptamer-based (E-AB) sensors. This platform allows affinity-based monitoring of target concentrations in ISF, and takes advantage of the versatility of aptamers to selectively bind a large variety of molecular targets. I will discuss our current state of platform development, including fabrication challenges, in-vivo deployment in rodent models, and variability of pharmacokineitc profiles as a function of microneedle penetration depth in the skin.