A research team at the Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education (Mexico), in collaboration with the University of Houston (Texas), has developed a device that pairs with a smartphone to detect a biological indicator of a possible risk of type II diabetes in saliva. The smartphone-enabled device gives results in a few seconds, avoiding the use of needles.
Project coordinator Dr. Marco Antonio Rite Palomares, director of the FEMSA Biotechnology Center at the Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education, explains that he and his team wanted to develop a device that emits fluorescence to identify the particular biomarker in saliva, allowing a smartphone camera to record it.
"While the idea is to make the patient's life easier, we also want to bring healthcare to the low-income population, helping to make an early detection before it can lead to more problems and take action to prevent high costs for the population and the government," Rite Palomares explains.
As part of the concluding phase of development, Rite Palomares and his team are seeking companies who may be interested in mass production of the device. The project is planned to be completed in two years.
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