The incidence of diabetes is increasing at an alarming rate, and regular glucose monitoring is critical in order to manage diabetes. Currently, glucose in the body is measured by an invasive method of blood sugar testing. Blood glucose (BG) monitoring devices measure the amount of sugar in a small sample of blood, usually drawn from pricking the fingertip, and placed on a disposable test strip. Therefore, there is a need for non-invasive continuous glucose monitoring, which is possible using a sweat sensor-based approach. As sweat sensors have garnered much interest in recent years, this study attempts to summarize recent developments in non-invasive continuous glucose monitoring using sweat sensors based on different approaches with an emphasis on the devices that can potentially be integrated into a wearable platform. Numerous research entities have been developing wearable sensors for continuous blood glucose monitoring, however, there are no commercially viable, non-invasive glucose monitors on the market at the moment. This review article provides the state-of-the-art in sweat glucose monitoring, particularly keeping in sight the prospect of its commercialization. The challenges relating to sweat collection, sweat sample degradation, person to person sweat amount variation, various detection methods, and their glucose detection sensitivity, and also the commercial viability are thoroughly covered.

The antilipidemic drug, probucol (PB), has demonstrated potential applications in Type 2 diabetes (T2D) through its protective effects on pancreatic β-cells. pB has poor solubility and bioavailability, and despite attempts to improve its oral delivery, none has shown dramatic improvements in absorption or antidiabetic effects. Preliminary data has shown potential benefits from bile acid co-encapsulation with PB. One bile acid has shown best potential improvement of PB oral delivery (ursodeoxycholic acid, UDCA). This study aimed to examine PB and UDCA microcapsules (with UDCA microcapsules serving as control) in terms of the microcapsules' morphology, biological effects ex vivo, and their hypoglycemic and antilipidemic and anti-inflammatory effects in vivo. PBUDCA and UDCA microcapsules were examined in vitro (formulation studies), ex vivo and in vivo. PBUDCA microcapsules exerted positive effects on β-cells viability at hyperglycemic state, and brought about hypoglycemic and antiinflammatory effects on the prediabetic mice. In conclusion, PBUDCA co-encapsulation have showed beneficial therapeutic impact of dual antioxidant-bile acid effects in diabetes treatment. Understanding the link between insulin-resistance, prediabetes and Type 2 diabetes (T2) is anticipated to facilitate better ability to design new interventions in order to control the fast growing epidemic of diabetes. The link encompasses multiple physiological disturbances including obesity. In a review by Qatanani, M. and Lazar, M.A, the authors have examined specific links between insulin resistance and visceral adiposity and excess fat accumulation in blood and tissues 1. They found that there is a direct correlation between the amounts of lipid represented by biomarkers such as total cholesterol, triglycerides and noneesterified fatty acids (NEFA), and the extent of insulin-resistance and rate of prediabetes development. One of the possible underlying mechanisms to insulin-resistance and prediabetes, has been hypothesized to be oxidative stress and inflammation 2-6. Oxidative stress and local and systemic inflammation have been shown to be contributing factors in development of insulin-resistance, prediabetes and eventually T2D. Oxidative stress and inflammation have also been linked to worsening of diabetic symptoms and long-term prognosis 7,8. In addition, diabetes-inflammation has been associated with lipid dysregulation, visceral adipose tissue accumulation and insulin-resistance. Karpe, F. et al.; have shown direct association between levels of inflammatory cytokines, with development of visceral fat

Background: EBUS guided trans-bronchial biopsy became routine in diagnosis of peripheral pulmonary lesions (PPL). Suction catheter-biopsy is a technique for obtaining a tissue sample from peripheral lung parenchyma. Aim of this study was to evaluate diagnostic efficiency, feasibility and safety of EBUS guided suction catheter-biopsy (SCB) in comparison to trans-bronchial biopsy (TBB) in diagnosis of PPL. The main intention was to demonstrate non-inferiority of the technique over trans-bronchial biopsy, especially when used under navigation of the EBUS.Methods: Radial EBUS probe (UM-3R, Olympus Co, Japan.) without guiding sheath was used to navigate suction catheter and TBB forceps to the PPL. The catheter was connected to the collection canister via vacuum pump. The SCB specimens were fixed with 10% buffered formalin.Results: There were 168 patients enrolled in this study; 69.9% males and 30.1% females. Main lesion diameter was 4.1±1.9 cm. Majority of patients, 131(77.9%) were diagnosed with lung cancer. Per-biopsy calculated sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV) for EBUS-SCB were 92.4%, 100%, 100% and 67.7%, respectively. Corresponding values for EBUS-TBB were 92.3%, 100%, 100% and 69.7%. Only the size of the lesion significantly influenced (p=0.005) diagnostic performance. Complications occurred in 2 patients; one pneumothorax and one excessive bleeding.Conclusion: EBUS guided SCB is efficient, feasible and safe in diagnosis of peripheral lung cancer. The technique is complementary to trans-bronchial biopsy.

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Abstract-Miniaturized electrochemical pH sensors are increasingly in demand for application such as online monitoring of water quality and health monitoring. The metal oxides are the best candidates for sensing electrodes of such sensors as they offer high chemical stability. In this work, we present a novel approach to obtain interdigitated conductimetric pH sensor using screen printing of TiO 2 thick film on an alumina substrate. The microstructural and crystalline properties of the TiO 2 sensitive film were examined with scanning electron microscopy and Raman spectroscopy. The impedance spectroscopic studies of the fabricated thick film sensor were carried out in the frequency range of 5-20 kHz for the test solutions in the pH range of 4-10 and it was observed that the impedance of the film distinctly dependent on pH. Using the measured impedance data, we have also proposed an equivalent RC network model for the fabricated pH sensor. The physical meaning of the model parameters was determined by electrochemical impedance spectroscopic (EIS) analysis, and through statistical analysis it was found that all parameters are distinctly pH-dependent.

International audienceThis paper presents a new design of a planar transformer. Over the surface of a flat core, meander-type design was engraved, so that symmetrically adjusted primary and secondary coils, of the same meander-type, can fit into the engraved design. Primary and secondary coils were covered with another flat core consequently forming a compact planar transformer. Windings of primary and secondary coils are printed on both sides of PCB. Conductive stripes of a winding from upper and bottom layer are connected by vias. The transformer was analyzed when the primary and secondary coils were without a core and with a core. High frequency parameters of the transformer were obtained by finite element modeling software and Impedance Analyzer HP4194A in the frequency range from 50 kHz to 1 MHz. The transformer is intended to be used in DC-DC converters (for switching frequency up to several hundred kHz)

This paper describes an innovative design of a wireless, passive LC sensor and its application for monitoring of water content in building materials. The sensor was embedded in test material samples so that the internal water content of the samples could be measured with an antenna by tracking the changes in the sensor’s resonant frequency. Since the dielectric constant of water was much higher compared with that of the test samples, the presence of water in the samples increased the capacitance of the LC circuit, thus decreasing the sensor’s resonant frequency. The sensor is made up of a printed circuit board in one metal layer and water content has been determined for clay brick and autoclaved aerated concrete block, both widely used construction materials. Measurements were conducted at room temperature using a HP-4194A Impedance/Gain-Phase Analyzer instrument.

Evolution of the structural and magnetic properties of ZnFe 1.95 Yb 0.05 O 4 nanoparticles, prepared via a high-energy ball milling route and exposed to further thermal annealing/heating, was assessed in detail and correlation of these properties explored. While as-prepared spinel nanoparticles possess a high degree of inversion, heating of the sample to ∼500 °C is found to rapidly alter the cation distribution from mixed to normal, in agreement with the known cation preferences. Under the same conditions the crystallite size only slowly grows. By further thermal treatment at higher temperatures, the crystallite size is changed more appreciably. An interrelationship among the lattice parameter, octahedral site occupancy, and crystallite size has been established. The observations are (a) both the site occupancy of Fe 3+ at octahedral 16d spinel sites (N 16d (Fe 3+ )) and the cubic lattice parameter rapidly increase with an initial increase of the crystallite size, (b) the lattice parameter increases with increasing occupancy, N 16d (Fe 3+ ), and (c) there appears to be a critical nanoparticle diameter (approximately 15 nm) above which both the site occupancy and lattice parameter values are saturated. The magnetic behavior of the annealed samples appears to be correlated to the evolution of both the cation distribution and crystallite size, as follows. As-prepared samples and those annealed at lower temperatures show superparamagnetic behavior at room temperature, presumably as a consequence of the Fe 3+ distribution and strong Fe 3+ (8a)−O−Fe 3+ (16d) superexchange interactions. Samples with a nanoparticle diameter greater than 12 nm and with almost normal distributions exhibit the paramagnetic state. The coercive field is found to decrease with an increase of the crystallite size. Partial Yb 3+ /Fe 3+ substitution is found to increase the inversion parameter and saturation magnetization. Detailed knowledge of the thermal evolution of structural/microstructural parameters allows control over the cation distribution and crystallite size and hence the magnetic properties of nanoferrites.