Portable Instrument for Assessing Zinc Deficiency in Children and the Elderly

PROJECT DESCRIPTION OVERVIEWWe will build a portable instrument for diagnosing zinc deficiency by the use of a quickpainless fingernail reading taken in the fieldSequellae of zinc deficiency are a leading cause of death among toddlers throughout the worldUNICEF estimatesdeaths per yearZinc deficiency also causes stunted development of the brains and the bodies of aboutof all poor children in the USForty percentof US school children are so poor they are givenfree lunchand neither those free meals nor their habitual home meals containmuch of the foodsred meatshellfishin which zinc is abundantOne of the main reasons that zinc deficiency goes untreated is that noone can diagnose itTo be surethe signs of chronicsevere zinc deficiencycan be recognizedstunted physical and mental developmentopen soresloss of hairinfection pronenessfragile nailsand so onBut there is no gooddiagnostic test for early stagemoderatei etreatablezinc deficiencySerumzincin particularlike serum glucosefollows intake up and down in the shortFigureXRAY fluorescence termover hoursbut does not reflect zinc nutritional statusimage of zinc in a fingernail clipping shows the uniformity We have solved the diagnostic problemAbundant data indicate thatof the zinc across the lateral the zinc content of fingernails is a sensitive and reliable indicator of zincextent deficiencyFurthermorethough the zinc concentration of a nail will changealong the longitudinalproximo distaldimension if one makes lasting and substantial changes in zinc intakethe zinc concentration is relatively uniform in the lateral dimensionFIGand from one finger to the nextFIGOur proposed hand heldfield portablebattery powered instrument will give the diagnostic measurement of fingernail zinc inseconds with no inconvenience or discomfort to the subjectUsing our diagnostic instrumentcliniciansaid workersteachersand others can go from village to villageor school to schoolassessing the zinc nutritional status ofs of children every dayOur instrument uses a miniature laser to make a briefsparkon the nailthe light emissions from that spark reveal the percent of zinc in the nailThis methodlaser induced breakdown spectroscopyLIBSis used in many applicationsincluding theChem Camthat is mounted on the NASA Curiosity Rover on MarsBesides the electricity for each measurementthere are no consumablesSIGNIFICANCEThe W H OGates FoundationUNICEFand the Copenhagen Consensus have all noted that zinc deficiency isppm a leading cause of death and stunted mental and physicalppmppm development among toddlersworld wideThe Copenhagen Consensus have even identified dietary zinc supplementation as a leading cost effective step to improve world healthINNOVATIONThe use of LIBS to detect and quantify elements in solid media is not newbut the application of LIBS to nutritionalor toxicologicalscreening of people s tissues in situ is newpioneered and patentedpendingby NeuroBioTexWhile the concept is straightforwardthe biologyopticsphysicsand engineering are challengingFor exampleincorporation of dietary zinc occurs at the growth platewhich is under the skinbetween the cuticle and knuckleso after a large and lasting increase in zinc intakeit takes aboutdays before the nail with elevated zinc emerges from under the cuticleOn the positive sideFigureStability of zinc acrossfingers and thumb is illustrated by King Killilea atomic absorption laboratory dataThumb andth finger omitted because different lengths and thus different growth erashoweverby measuring zinc along the proximo distal length of the exposed nailone can scan anothermonths of a subject s past zinc intake historyRESEARCH STRATEGYWe are partnering with some of the best laser and LIBS scientists and engineers in the worldIn factwe are opening a small NeuroBioTex facility within the Buildings of Ocean OpticsIncOOiwhich is adjacent to the UCFlorida campusThis will insure that we can work closely with our UCF and OOi collaboratorsThe leaders in zinc nutritionJanet KingAnanda Prasadand Harold Sandstead will continue to guide the clinicalzinc deficiency diagnostic side of our research