Body-heat driven Electrochemical pAtch for Continuous dOpamine moNitoring

Project Information

BEACON

Grant agreement ID: 101024191

DOI 10.3030/101024191

Start date 15 October 2021

End date 14 October 2023

Funded under

• EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions

Overall budget € 191 852,16

EU contribution € 191 852,16

Coordinated by

LINKOPINGS UNIVERSITET
Sweden

Project description

A non-invasive way to measure dopamine

Dopamine is a prescription medicine used to treat symptoms of low blood pressure and to improve blood flow to the kidneys. Dopamine agonists are also used to treat Parkinson’s disease and restless legs syndrome which is a common problem for people with Parkinson’s. In this context, the EU-funded BEACON project will develop a wearable patch for continuous dopamine sensing. Specifically, it will use biocompatible materials and additive manufacturing techniques that would enable around-the-clock monitoring of this hormone. This non-invasive device, which analyses dopamine concentration in human sweat, will be self-powered using the patient’s body heat as a source of energy.

Objective

The following proposal deals with the fabrication and validation of a wearable patch for continuous dopamine sensing, realized using biocompatible materials and additive manufacturing techniques, which would allow to monitor the evolution throughout the day of this hormone which is fundamental in the treatment of many neurological diseases. The candidate wants to provide a simple and non-invasive method which could potentially improve the quality of life of millions of patients and families affected by these diseases and reduce the growing social costs to treat them. The device is thought to be self-powered, using the patients’ body heat as energy source, and works by analysing the dopamine concentration in human sweat, therefore no surgical procedure is required. To detect dopamine concentration, organic electrochemical transistors are used, exploiting their amplification ability to obtain a highly sensitive monitoring device. The patch is also equipped with a radio-frequency antenna for data transmission to medical personnel monitoring real-time the dopamine evolution in the patients. Finally, the patch is designed to be conformable, lightweight and cheap to reduce the patients’ discomfort.

Fields of science

• medical and health sciences › clinical medicine › surgery › surgical procedures
• engineering and technology › mechanical engineering › manufacturing engineering › additive manufacturing
• engineering and technology › medical engineering › wearable medical technology

Programme(s)

• H2020-EU.1.3. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions Main Programme
• H2020-EU.1.3.2. - Nurturing excellence by means of cross-border and cross-sector mobility

Topic(s)

• MSCA-IF-2020 - Individual Fellowships

Call for proposal

H2020-MSCA-IF-2020

Funding Scheme

MSCA-IF-EF-ST - Standard EF

Coordinator

LINKOPINGS UNIVERSITET

• Net EU contribution: € 191 852,16
• Address: Campus valla ; 581 83 Linkoping ; Sweden
• Region: Östra Sverige › Östra Mellansverige Östergötlands län
• Activity type: Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
• Other funding: € 0,00