Controlled sweat generation via ultrasound stimulation integrated in a wearable device | Nature Communications

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Controlled sweat generation via ultrasound stimulation integrated in a wearable device

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Biophysical chemistry<br>Diagnostic markers

Abstract<br>Wearable sweat biosensors enable noninvasive molecular monitoring, but reliable and comfortable on-demand sweat induction remains challenging. We developed a soft, skin-conformal wearable device that integrates ultrasound-assisted sweat generation with electrochemical sensing. Low-frequency ultrasound enhanced transdermal delivery of carbachol from a hydrogel reservoir, inducing localized sweat secretion under resting conditions without electrical current or skin penetration. Under the matched 15-min experimental window used here, ultrasound-induced sweating showed lower observed skin irritation and more favorable user-rated comfort than the tested iontophoresis setting. Integrated sensors measured uric acid, pH and K+ in ultrasound-induced sweat, and sweat uric acid showed a positive correlation with serum levels in a preliminary human study. These results support wearable ultrasound as a low-irritation strategy for controlled sweat generation and downstream biomarker tracking under resting conditions.

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Acknowledgements<br>The authors thank the Test Center and the Instrument Analysis Center of Shenzhen University for technical support.

Funding<br>This work was supported by the Shenzhen Science and Technology Program (JCYJ20240813142503006), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (22427806), the Synthetic Biology Research Center of Shenzhen University, the Key Laboratory of Marine Microbiome Engineering of Guangdong Higher Education Institutes (2024KSYS011), and the Shenzhen Overseas Talent Program.

Author information<br>Authors and Affiliations<br>College of Chemistry and Environmental Engineering, Synthetic Biology Research Center of Shenzhen University, Institute for Advanced Study, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, Guangdong, 518060, PR China<br>Litong Chen, Benxing Su, Geng Zhong, Jing Wang, Yongxiang Ji, Zhongzeng Zhou & Tailin Xu

Aiiso Yufeng Li Family Department of Chemical and Nanoengineering, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA<br>Xuecheng He

AuthorsLitong ChenView author publications<br>Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

Benxing SuView author publications<br>Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

Geng ZhongView author publications<br>Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

Jing WangView author publications<br>Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

Yongxiang JiView author publications<br>Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

Zhongzeng ZhouView author publications<br>Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

Xuecheng HeView author publications<br>Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

Tailin XuView author publications<br>Search author on:PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding authors<br>Correspondence to<br>Xuecheng He or Tailin Xu.

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