'Na-Nose' is the name of an inexpensive 3D-printed breathalyzer that was created by a team of researchers to detect 17 types of diseases with 86% accuracy. Using gold nanoparticles that react to certain exhaled chemicals, the medical device is able to detect diseases like Parkinson’s and eight types of cancer.
The teams behind this impressive medical device come from the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology Wolfson Faculty of Chemical Engineering and Russell Berrie Nanotechnology Institute Haick, led by Pofessor Hossam Haick. So far, the device has been tested on roughly 1,400 patients and has proven itself to be an extremely effective innovation. This tool could be extremely useful for doctors who want to detect early signs of disease.
Originally, the disease-sniffing Na-Nose device was inspired by a dog's nose. Next up, the researchers have plans to develop Sniffphone for disease detection through a smartphone.
Disease-Detecting Breathalyzers
The Printed 'Na-Nose' Accurately Identifies 17 Types of Diseases
Trend Themes
1. Inexpensive Disease Detection - The Na-Nose breathalyzer demonstrates the potential for creating affordable and easily accessible devices for detecting a wide range of diseases.
2. Smartphone-based Disease Detection - The Sniffphone project shows promise for leveraging the widespread use of smartphones to enable convenient and non-invasive disease detection.
3. Biomimicry in Medical Technology - Taking inspiration from a dog's nose, the Na-Nose breathalyzer highlights the potential for mimicking natural sensing abilities to develop innovative medical devices.
Industry Implications
1. Medical Devices - The Na-Nose breathalyzer showcases opportunities for developing advanced medical devices that can effectively detect a wide range of diseases.
2. Digital Health - The Sniffphone concept illustrates the potential for integrating smartphone technology with healthcare to enable better and more personalized disease detection and monitoring.
3. Biotechnology - The use of gold nanoparticles and chemical reactions in the Na-Nose breathalyzer presents opportunities for leveraging biotechnology to create innovative disease detection solutions.