Smartphone-based diagnosis of parasitic infections with colorimetric assays in centrifuge tubes

Escobedo, P. , Erenas, M. M., Martínez Olmos, A., Carvajal, M. A., Tabraue Chávez, M., Luque González, M. A., Díaz-Mochón, J. J., Pernagallo, S., Capitán-Vallvey, L. F. and Palma, A. J. (2019) Smartphone-based diagnosis of parasitic infections with colorimetric assays in centrifuge tubes. IEEE Access, 7, pp. 185677-185686. (doi: 10.1109/ACCESS.2019.2961230)

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Abstract

A smartphone-based platform for the diagnosis of parasitic infections has been developed, tested and validated. The system is capable of making automatic and accurate analysis of millimetric colorimetric arrays in centrifuge collection tubes, which are well established tools used in clinical analysis. To that end, an Android-based software application has been developed, making use of the smartphone rear camera, enabling precise image processing of the colorimetric spot arrays. A low-cost plastic accessory has been developed using 3D-printing to provide controlled illumination, fixed sample positioning and cell phone attachment. The platform was then tested repeatedly for its size detection, edge blurriness and colour detection capabilities. A minimum spot radius of 175 μm is detectable when using the developed app, with a tolerance of 15%, corresponding to 0.25 % of the area where the spot array is printed. Spot edge definition has been studied up to 40% of blurriness, resulting in a low average percentage error of 1.24%. Colour detection follows the well-known Gamma correction function. Finally, the whole platform was tested and validated using real DNA to analyse for accurate discrimination of Trypanosomatid species, which are responsible for devastating diseases in humans and livestock. The smartphone-based platform can be further extended to other clinical analysis. Its simplicity and reliable performance mean it can be used in remote, limited-resource settings by relatively unskilled technicians/nurses, where diagnostic laboratories are sparsely distributed. The results can however be sent easily via the smartphone to medical experts as well as government health agencies.

Item Type:Articles
Additional Information:This work has been supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economics and Competitivity (project CTQ2016-78754-C2-1-R) and by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). P. Escobedo wants to thank the Spanish Ministry of Education, Culture and Sport (MECD) for a pre-doctoral grant (FPU13/05032).
Status:Published
Refereed:Yes
Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID:Escobedo, Dr Pablo
Authors: Escobedo, P., Erenas, M. M., Martínez Olmos, A., Carvajal, M. A., Tabraue Chávez, M., Luque González, M. A., Díaz-Mochón, J. J., Pernagallo, S., Capitán-Vallvey, L. F., and Palma, A. J.
College/School:College of Science and Engineering > School of Engineering > Electronics and Nanoscale Engineering
Journal Name:IEEE Access
Publisher:IEEE
ISSN:2169-3536
ISSN (Online):2169-3536
Published Online:20 December 2019
Copyright Holders:Copyright © 2019 The Authors
First Published:First published in IEEE Access 7: 185677-185686
Publisher Policy:Reproduced under a Creative Commons License

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