Passive sweat collection and colorimetric analysis.

Pharmacology and optogenetics are widely used in neuroscience research to study the central and peripheral nervous systems. While both approaches allow for sophisticated studies of neural circuitry, continued advances are, in part, hampered by technology limitations associated with requirements for physical tethers that connect external equipment to rigid probes inserted into delicate regions of the brain. The results can lead to tissue damage and alterations in behavioral tasks and natural movements, with additional difficulties in use for studies that involve social interactions and/or motions in complex 3-dimensional environments. These disadvantages are particularly pronounced in research that demands combined optogenetic and pharmacological functions in a single experiment. Here, we present a lightweight, wireless, battery-free injectable microsystem that combines soft microfluidic and microscale inorganic light-emitting diode probes for programmable pharmacology and optogenetics, designed to offer the features of drug refillability and adjustable flow rates, together with programmable control over the temporal profiles. The technology has potential for large-scale manufacturing and broad distribution to the neuroscience community, with capabilities in targeting specific neuronal populations in freely moving animals. In addition, the same platform can easily be adapted for a wide range of other types of passive or active electronic functions, including electrical stimulation.

The rich composition of solutes and metabolites in sweat and its relative ease of collection upon excretion from skin pores make this class of biofluid an attractive candidate for point of care analysis. Wearable technologies that combine electrochemical sensors with conventional or emerging semiconductor device technologies offer valuable capabilities in sweat sensing, but they are limited to assays that support amperometric, potentiometric, and colorimetric analyses. Here, we present a complementary approach that exploits fluorometric sensing modalities integrated into a soft, skin-interfaced microfluidic system which, when paired with a simple smartphone-based imaging module, allows for in situ measurement of important biomarkers in sweat. A network array of microchannels and a collection of microreservoirs pre-filled with fluorescent probes that selectively react with target analytes in sweat (e.g. probes), enable quantitative, rapid analysis. Field studies on human subjects demonstrate the ability to measure the concentrations of chloride, sodium and zinc in sweat, with accuracy that matches that of conventional laboratory techniques. The results highlight the versatility of advanced fluorescent-based imaging modalities in body-worn sweat microfluidics platforms, and they suggest some practical potential for these ideas.