Biomarkers tagged posts

DNA can signal the presence of or predisposition to a slew of diseases, including cancer. The ability to flag down these clues, known as biomarkers, allows medical professionals to make critical early diagnoses and provide personalized treatments. The typical methods of screening can be laborious, expensive or limited in what they can uncover. A new biosensor chip that boasts an accurate and inexpensive design may increase accessibility to high-quality diagnostics.

The biosensor, developed by researchers at the ...

With the help of algorithms, researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden have identified markers that can differentiate between irritant eczema and contact allergy, two skin reactions that look similar but require different treatment. Their findings, which are published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), support the further development of an alternative to today’s diagnostic patch tests.

About 20 percent of the population of high-income countries are troubled by contact eczema, a disease often associated with exposure to chemicals in the working environment...

Real-time measurement of electrolytes and metabolites could be used to diagnose and monitor disease or track performance. Engineers at Tufts University have created a first-of-its-kind flexible electronic sensing patch that can be sewn into clothing to analyze your sweat for multiple markers. The patch could be used to to diagnose and monitor acute and chronic health conditions or to monitor health during athletic or workplace performance. The device, described today in the journal NPJ Flexible Electronics, consists of special sensing threads, electronic components and wireless connectivity for real time data acquisition, storage and processing.

Typical consumer health monitors can track heart rate, temperature, glucose, walking distan...

Researchers are developing a ground-breaking method that uses biomarkers to detect sepsis 2 to 3 days before the first clinical symptoms appear. This can significantly increase the chances of survival in cases of blood poisoning by bacteria or fungi.

Whether activating or silencing genes, breaking down defective cells or building new tissue, our body is constantly working to repair itself, even in cases of illness. To fight a disease, our body sends out signals, often long before we ourselves notice the disease...