Development of a Dielectric Barrier Discharge (DBD) Plasma Detector and Optical Measurement Device for Diagnosing SIBO from Exhaled Air
Project no. 24134 · Status: Kapanmış (Yayın bekleniyor) · 2022
Summary
<p> The importance of gut health has been recognized since ancient times. An unhealthy gut can lead to inadequate nutrient absorption, which over time contributes to the development of various diseases. Today, factors such as antibiotic use, unhealthy dietary habits, and lifestyle-related influences disrupt the microbial balance of the gut; consequently, conditions such as small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) may arise. If left untreated, SIBO has been proposed to be associated with serious health problems ranging from autoimmune diseases—such as asthma and type 2 diabetes—to cancer. However, the diagnosis of SIBO is particularly challenging, as it can easily be confused with other disorders exhibiting similar symptoms.</p><p> In recent years, breath analysis has gained considerable attention for the early and accurate diagnosis of diseases, and numerous biomarkers have been identified in human breath. The ability to perform an unlimited number of measurements without the need for invasive procedures is one of the major advantages of breath analysis. In SIBO, the condition can be diagnosed by monitoring specific biomarkers present in exhaled breath. Previous studies have demonstrated that this disorder is associated with the concentrations of H₂ and CH₄ in breath samples. Currently, only a limited number of methods exist for the determination of these compounds in exhaled air, and most require expensive instrumentation. For example, commercial devices equipped with electrochemical sensors for the analysis of H₂ and CH₄ gases remain inaccessible to large populations due to their high operational costs. Therefore, the development of new analytical methods is of significant importance.</p><p> In this study, a plasma-based detector was developed and integrated into a gas chromatography system. The responses of hydrogen sulfide (H₂S), hydrogen (H₂), methane (CH₄), ammonia (NH₃), and carbon dioxide (CO₂) were subsequently examined. For CH₄, NH₃, and CO₂, limits of detection of 53 ppm, 0.29 ppm, and 85 ppm, respectively, were demonstrated to be achievable. It was further concluded that improvements in both the hardware and analytical conditions of the plasma detector system are required for the reliable determination of the remaining compounds.</p>