A group of researchers from the American Chemical Society of the United States have developed several ultrasensitive nanometer-scale sensors that, in small-scale tests, detected a change very important in the chemistry of the breath of people with lung cancer. A historic milestone.
Apparently, experts have established that the decrease in an exhaled chemical, the isoprenecan indicate the presence of lung cancer. Yes, for very strange it seems and despite the controversy generated on social networks.
Definition
Now what is it? Well, it is an organic compound that is frequently used in industry. and, in very large quantities, it can be polluting and very toxic to the environment. It has an important biological value for its ability to form isoprenoid lipids, linear or cyclic molecules without fatty acids.
It is made naturally in animals and plants and is generally the most common hydride in the human body. The estimated production of isoprene in the body is 15 µmol/kg/h, approximately equivalent to 17 mg/day for a person of 70kg.
To take into account
Isoprene is also present in low concentrations in some foods.. However, to detect such small changes, a sensor would have to be very sensitivecapable of detecting isoprene levels in the parts per billion range (ppb).
It would also have to differentiate isoprene from other volatile chemicals and withstand the natural moisture of breath. Previous attempts to design gas sensors with features like these have focused on metal oxidesincluding a particularly promising compound made with indium oxide.
In experiments, they discovered that one type, which they called Pt@InNiO x because of the platinum (Pt), indium (In) and nickel (Ni) it contains, it was the one that had the most optimal performance. Isoprene levels as low as 2 ppb were detected in these Pt@InNiO x sensors.
Future
Unsurprisingly, this detection technology could be a breakthrough in non-invasive lung cancer detection and has the potential to improve results and even save livesas all the researchers conclude.
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