Non-invasive Gut Permeability Measurement via Fluorescence
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for assessing gut permeability and gastric emptying rate are cumbersome, invasive, unreliable, and difficult to perform, especially in infants, limiting the understanding and diagnosis of gastrointestinal health disorders.
Innovation Solution
A non-invasive method using a fluorescent contrast agent that is absorbable by a healthy gut, irradiated with a light source, and detected by a transcutaneous sensing device to measure fluorescence intensity over time, allowing for normalization and calculation of gut permeability and gastric emptying rate without the need for multiple agents or invasive procedures.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If current techniques for assessing gut permeability and gastric emptying rate are used, then diagnostic information can be obtained, but the methods are cumbersome, invasive, expensive, and unreliable
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces invasive mechanical procedures (endoscopic biopsy, x-ray examinations) with a non-invasive optical detection system. A fluorescent contrast agent is administered orally, and its absorption through the gut wall is detected using fluorescence spectroscopy, eliminating the need for complex invasive equipment while improving reliability of gut permeability assessment.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a fluorescent contrast agent as an intermediary substance to mediate the measurement process. This agent serves as a marker that can be detected non-invasively, replacing direct invasive measurement methods and enabling reliable assessment of gut permeability and gastric emptying rate through external fluorescence detection.
2Measurement precision
If invasive methods such as endoscopic biopsy and x-ray examinations are used, then gut permeability can be assessed, but the procedures are highly invasive and difficult to perform in infants
Solution Approach 1:
The patent substitutes invasive mechanical procedures (endoscopic biopsy, x-ray) with non-invasive optical detection. The fluorescent contrast agent is safely administered orally and detected through the skin using fluorescence spectroscopy, eliminating harmful invasive effects while maintaining measurement precision for gut permeability assessment.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses a safe, biodegradable fluorescent contrast agent that can be administered orally and eliminated naturally. This disposable-like approach with a harmless marker substance replaces expensive, invasive diagnostic tools, making the procedure safe for infants and suitable for repeated measurements.
3Adaptability or versatility
If multiple fluorescent challenge molecules are used to assess gut function, then comprehensive gut function assessment is achieved, but the procedure becomes more complex and requires multiple agents
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a single fluorescent contrast agent that serves multiple functions: it assesses both gut permeability (through absorption detection) and gastric emptying rate (through timing of appearance in bloodstream). This universal agent replaces the need for multiple specialized challenge molecules, simplifying the procedure while maintaining comprehensive assessment capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent combines the assessment of gut permeability and gastric emptying rate into a single integrated measurement protocol using one fluorescent contrast agent. The same agent and detection system evaluate both physiological parameters, merging what would traditionally require separate tests into one unified procedure.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Provides a minimally invasive, reliable, and quantifiable assessment of gut permeability and gastric emptying rate, enabling early diagnosis and monitoring of gastrointestinal health, suitable for all individuals regardless of gut health status, and facilitating continuous measurements with a single fluorescent contrast agent.
Implementation Method 1
using a light source to irradiate a location on the skin on a body part of the subject using light radiation, such that the light radiation causes at least a portion of the solution which has leaked out of the gut of the subject into the bloodstream of the subject to fluoresce
Implementation Method 2
orally administering a solution comprising a fluorescent contrast agent that is absorbable by a healthy gut to the subject
Data Source
AI summary
A method for measuring gut permeability includes administering a solution including a fluorescent contrast agent to a subject; irradiating a location on the skin of the subject to cause a portion of the solution leaked into the bloodstream to fluoresce; obtaining fluorescence data of the intensity of the fluorescence as a function of time; normalising the fluorescence data to obtain normalised data of said intensity as a function of time; and analysing said normalised data to determine the gut permeability by calculating: (a) the first peak value of said intensity; (b) the integral of said intensity with respect to time; (c) the product of the first peak value of said intensity and the time at said peak value; (d) the time at which the first peak value of said intensity occurs; or (e) the first peak value of said intensity divided by the time at which said peak value occurs.