Diabetics may soon have a painless and more convenient way to monitor their blood glucose levels — glucose-monitoring contact lenses.
The contact lenses change color in response to elevated blood glucose levels, alerting diabetic contact lens wearers to the need for medication. It is hoped that the lenses will help diabetics more effectively manage their disease and possibly avoid sight-threatening diabetic retinopathy and other complications of diabetes.
The special soft contact lenses are being developed by Chemical and Biochemical Engineering professor Jin Zhang at the University of Western Ontario (London, Ontario, Canada).
The non-invasive technology uses microscopic “nanoparticles” that can be embedded into hydrogel contact lenses. The tiny particles react with glucose molecules present in tears, and this chemical reaction changes their color, which then causes the contact lens to change color.
Professor Zhang recently received a grant from the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) to further develop this and other technologies using multifunctional nanocomposites (films embedded with reactive nanoparticles).
Other possible applications include nanocomposite films for the food packaging industry that can better prevent meat and other foods from spoiling and can make the packaging more biodegradable than regular plastic wrap, according to a press release issued today by the university.
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