Event
M.S. Thesis Defense: Brian Holt
Wednesday, August 7, 2024
10:30 a.m.
JMP 2125A
Maria Hoo
301 405 3681
mch@umd.edu
ANNOUNCEMENT: M.S. Thesis Defense
Name: Brian Holt
Committee:
Professor Reza Ghodssi, Chair/Advisor
Professor Younggeon Jin
Professor Ryan Sochol
Date/Time: Wednesday, August 7th, 2024 at 10:30am
Location: JMP 2125A
Title: INGESTIBLE BIOIMPEDANCE SENSING DEVICE FOR GASTROINTESTINAL TRACT MONITORING
Abstract:
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a gastrointestinal (GI) disease resulting in dilated adherens and tight junctions in intestinal epithelial tissue, enhancing paracellular permeability. Epithelial permeability, or “leaky gut,” is an inflammatory biomarker shown to predict IBD onset in relatives of diagnosed patients by years, providing opportunities for early intervention. However, few monitoring strategies have been developed for in situ monitoring of local mucosal barrier integrity, and none are capable of localized, non-invasive measurement beyond the esophagus. Electrical resistance techniques are well-suited for quantifying mucosal ion permeability, but existing GI bioimpedance sensing technology cannot access the distal intestine, hindering its efficacy as a sensing modality in IBD diagnostics. Here, this technology gap is addressed through the development of a noise-resilient, flexible bioimpedance sensor integrated ingestible device containing electronics for low-power, four-wire impedance spectroscopy and Bluetooth-enabled wireless communication. Through a small animal trial, the developed capsule device successfully differentiated healthy and permeable mice colonic tissues ex vivo in accordance with established mucosal barrier evaluation equipment, marking significant progress towards continuous monitoring of “leaky gut” in the GI tract.
