May 3 2010
PositiveID and RECEPTORS who is PositiveID’s development partner, have reached a major stage towards the development of a RFID microchip that is capable of sensing the in vivo glucose levels in the body.
This microchip is presently in Phase II of the development stage. The aim of this stage is the optimization of the sensing system so that the system is capable of responding to the presence of glucose in the blood. The system will also be responsive to the interstitial fluid matrix parts. It will show the integration of these parts in a reproducible and stable glucose sensor.
Both companies have synthesized a novel chemical building block that will be a base for furthering the development of the state-of-the-art Combinatorial Artificial Receptor (CARA) surfaces. The CARA surfaces will be the implantable glucose sensor’s sensing system component.
The Design Discovery Platform’s Receptors' CARA Affinity can facilitate the determination and application for the binding environments for any target. The CARA Affinity must be able to sensitively and specifically identify the right target glucose molecule in the interstitial fluid and complex vivo blood matrices. The success of the Phase I proof of principle study made the design and development of this innovative building block possible . The Phase I CARA technology will be used along with this block for generating an extended library of surfaces customized to matrix sensitive and selective glucose binding. This development facilitates an increased control range on the sensitivity and specificity parameters of in vivo glucose.
Receptors’ Chief Science Officer and President Robert E. Carlson informed that a comprehensive plan has to be carried out to develop a commercially viable in vivo glucose sensor. This plan must take into consideration the crucial nature of every component of the system and their incorporation in a functional system. He explained that the proof of concept for the glucose sensing system was established in Phase II. Phase II further builds on this base and achieve three crucial goals such as the creation of a second generation sensing system for glucose developed from the anchor technology , evaluation of the sensing solution to the signal transduction/electronics interface techniques that match the company’s vital criteria for dynamic range and signal stability and initiating a model system for in vivo biocompatibility based analysis of the critical components of the system. He summarized that the anchor building block’s production forms the base for subsequent development initiatives.
Scott R. Silverman, PositiveID’s CEO and Chairman, informed that the in vivo glucose sensing microchip’s Phase II development is on schedule and will be ready in mid-2010. He revealed that the anchor will reinforce the glucose binding capability in the sensor and will therefore result in a more effective and better product that will be useful to the 23 million plus diabetics in the U.S. to help them manage their disease.
The University of Chicago researchers had published their November 2009 study in the journal Diabetes Care. The study informs that the U.S. currently has 23.7 million diabetes patients with this number predicted to double in 25 years. As a result, the annual expense for treating these patients is likely to triple to $336 billion.
Source: http://www.PositiveIDCorp.com