Implantable Concanavlin a Based Sensors for Interstitial Fluid Glucose Sensing in Diabetics

Currently, 6.2% of the United States population has been diagnosed with diabetes1. Of the estimated 17 million diabetics, 90% of them are insulin resistant2. Diabetes is commonly split into two categories depending on the cause of the disease. Type 1 diabetes, traditionally termed juvenile, is marked by a failure of the B-cells in the endocrine portion of the pancreas to properly synthesize insulin resulting in improper control of blood glucose levels. Type 2 diabetes, traditionally classified as late onset, develops when organs and cells in the body become immune to native insulin resulting in dramatic oscillations in blood sugar2–4. Type 1 diabetics regulate their blood sugar by either consuming a glucose rich food, if blood sugar is low ( 150 mg/dL)1. Type 2 diabetics, being resistant to insulin therapy, must regulate their blood sugar through dietary control and through the aid of commercially available drug treatments1. All diabetics are recommended to monitor their blood sugar often to avoid immediate threats attributed to high or low blood sugar such as dizziness, coma, or even death5. New research has shown that continuous monitoring of blood sugar with tight blood glucose control (as close to normal as possible, 70–150 mg/dL) can substantially reduce the risk of developing afflictions associated with prolonged misregulation of blood sugar5. These afflictions include kidney, liver, and heart disease, amputations due to poor circulation and blindness due to retinopathy5.