When it dies, the contents of the cell are released, and the pigment particles are eaten by another white blood cell doing the rounds. However, unlike bacteria, pigment particles cannot be broken down and digested, and the white blood cell keeps them inside unchanged. These white blood cells are part of our immune system, and generally eat, then digest anything they find suspicious, like bacteria. Incidentally, this permanency arises from never-ending digestive issues: when the pigment particles are injected into the skin, they are promptly eaten by white blood cells that have taken residence in the area. Wearable skin patches that measure components in the sweat have been developed, but sweat is not representative of the contents of the blood: sensor tattoo inks have the advantage of being in close contact with a fluid that closely reflects the contents of the blood.Īnother advantage of having these sensors tattooed is that, of course, tattoos are permanent. For example, if there is an abundance of glucose in the blood, the fluid around skin cells will also have high levels of glucose. Because this fluid that surrounds skin cells is in very close contact with our blood, its contents will reflect those of blood. Skin cells are immersed in a fluid that constantly exchanges nutrients and other materials with our blood: that’s how cells get fed and then dump their waste products. This would be very useful, for example, in patients with diabetes, who need to check their glucose levels but are also at increased risk of acidosis (too much acid in their blood).īut how do tattoos know what’s happening in your blood? When you get a tattoo, a pigment is injected through the outer layer of your skin into the dermis, an elastic tissue that acts as a sort of scaffold, which your skin cells sit on. Because a tattoo can have many colours, different sensor inks that monitor the levels of different compounds could be tattooed together, allowing for monitoring the levels of multiple compounds at the same time. However, by tattooing permanent pigments into the skin, real-time monitoring of the levels of different compounds would be available for the first time, without the need for constant finger pricks or blood tests. Now, by replacing conventional tattoo ink with special inks that act as sensors, your tattoo could still look cool while telling you a lot about your health.ĭyes that change colour in response to changes in pH or glucose levels are widely known, especially in strips that doctors use for a quick snapshot urine test, for example. Even the early cavemen used tattoos for therapeutic purposes,” says Yetisen. Tattoos may seem like a relatively recent fad, but humans have been decorating their bodies for thousands of years. “In our research, we replace traditional tattoo inks with functional materials, which can sense substances in the body,” says Dr Ali Yetisen, associate professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering at Imperial College London. In print and online, we will be offering encouragement and inspiration to help us all improve our physical and mental health in 2023.īut what if the technology was on your skin? And what if it was fashionable as well? We all know about wearable technology, and how those little watch-like thingies can tell you all about your heart rate, sleep patterns and the number of steps you take.
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