Biocompatible implantable sensor apparatus and methods
First Claim
1. A sensor apparatus, comprising:
- a substrate;
signal processing circuitry; and
at least one first detector element and at least one second detector element each in signal communication with the signal processing circuitry, each of the at least one first detector element and the at least one second detector element comprising;
a three-dimensional membrane structure comprising (i) an at least partly enclosed cavity, the at least partly enclosed cavity comprising an enzymatic substance disposed therein, (ii) and at least one spout in communication with the at least partly enclosed cavity;
an electrolyte layer;
one or more electrodes comprising at least a working electrode, a counter electrode, and a reference electrode, an active face of the working electrode, an active face of the counter electrode, and an active face of the reference electrode disposed on an exterior surface of the substrate and at least partly within or contacting said electrolyte layer; and
a non-enzymatic membrane disposed within the at least one spout and at least partly occluding the at least one spout, said non-enzymatic membrane comprising a non-enzymatic material at least partly permeable to an analyte;
wherein the three-dimensional membrane structure is arranged over the exterior surface of the substrate such that (i) the at least partly enclosed cavity is disposed over at least a portion of the active face of the working electrode, and (ii) the at least partly enclosed cavity is offset from the active face of the counter electrode and the active face the reference electrode;
wherein said at least one first detector element is configured to;
(i) have a first response characteristic, and (ii) utilize chemical interaction between at least the analyte and the enzymatic substance to enable generation of a first electrical signal at said at least one electrode of the at least one first detector element, said first electrical signal relating to a blood analyte concentration;
wherein said at least one second detector element is configured to;
(i) have a second response characteristic at least partially different from the first response characteristic, and (ii) utilize chemical interaction between at least the analyte and the enzymatic substance to enable generation of a second electrical signal at the at least one electrode of the at least one second detector element, the second electrical signal relating to the blood analyte concentration; and
wherein the first response characteristic and the second response characteristic are each based at least on a combination of a cross-sectional area of the at least one spout and a fill-level of the non-enzymatic material within the at least one spout being different for the at least one first detector element relative to the at least one second detector element.
3 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
Enzymatic and non-enzymatic detectors and associated membrane apparatus, and methods of use, such as within a fully implantable sensor apparatus. In one embodiment, detector performance is controlled through selective use of membrane configurations and enzyme region shapes, which enable accurate detection of blood glucose level within the solid tissue of the living host for extended periods of time. Isolation between the host'"'"'s tissue and the underlying enzymes and reaction byproducts used in the detectors is also advantageously maintained in one embodiment via use of a non-enzyme containing permeable membrane formed of e.g., a biocompatible crosslinked protein-based material. Control of response range and/or rate in some embodiments also permits customization of sensor elements. In one variant, heterogeneous detector elements are used to, e.g., accommodate a wider range of blood glucose concentration within the host. Methods of manufacturing the membranes and detectors, including methods to increase reliability, are also disclosed.
239 Citations
30 Claims
-
1. A sensor apparatus, comprising:
-
a substrate; signal processing circuitry; and at least one first detector element and at least one second detector element each in signal communication with the signal processing circuitry, each of the at least one first detector element and the at least one second detector element comprising; a three-dimensional membrane structure comprising (i) an at least partly enclosed cavity, the at least partly enclosed cavity comprising an enzymatic substance disposed therein, (ii) and at least one spout in communication with the at least partly enclosed cavity; an electrolyte layer; one or more electrodes comprising at least a working electrode, a counter electrode, and a reference electrode, an active face of the working electrode, an active face of the counter electrode, and an active face of the reference electrode disposed on an exterior surface of the substrate and at least partly within or contacting said electrolyte layer; and a non-enzymatic membrane disposed within the at least one spout and at least partly occluding the at least one spout, said non-enzymatic membrane comprising a non-enzymatic material at least partly permeable to an analyte; wherein the three-dimensional membrane structure is arranged over the exterior surface of the substrate such that (i) the at least partly enclosed cavity is disposed over at least a portion of the active face of the working electrode, and (ii) the at least partly enclosed cavity is offset from the active face of the counter electrode and the active face the reference electrode; wherein said at least one first detector element is configured to;
(i) have a first response characteristic, and (ii) utilize chemical interaction between at least the analyte and the enzymatic substance to enable generation of a first electrical signal at said at least one electrode of the at least one first detector element, said first electrical signal relating to a blood analyte concentration;wherein said at least one second detector element is configured to;
(i) have a second response characteristic at least partially different from the first response characteristic, and (ii) utilize chemical interaction between at least the analyte and the enzymatic substance to enable generation of a second electrical signal at the at least one electrode of the at least one second detector element, the second electrical signal relating to the blood analyte concentration; andwherein the first response characteristic and the second response characteristic are each based at least on a combination of a cross-sectional area of the at least one spout and a fill-level of the non-enzymatic material within the at least one spout being different for the at least one first detector element relative to the at least one second detector element. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
-
-
19. An analyte detection apparatus for use in a human being, comprising:
-
a substrate; and a first detector element configured to detect blood analyte within a first analyte concentration response range, and a second detector element configured to detect blood analyte within a second analyte concentration response range at least partially non-overlapping with the first analyte concentration response range, each of the first detector element and the second detector element comprising; one or more electrodes disposed on or within the substrate, each of the one or more electrodes comprising at least a terminal configured to enable electrical signals to be communicated from the respective ones of the one more electrodes to a circuit, the one or more electrodes comprising a working electrode, a counter electrode, and a reference electrode; an electrolyte material in communication with at least a portion of each of the one or more electrodes; a first membrane element in contact with at least a portion of the electrolyte material; a second membrane element comprising (i) a cavity formed therein, the cavity having enzymatic material disposed therein, and (ii) at least one spout in communication with the cavity, the second membrane element disposed on an exterior surface of the analyte detection apparatus such that (i) the cavity is associated with the working electrode and is not associated with the counter electrode and the reference electrode, and (ii) the second membrane element forms a three-dimensional structure on the exterior surface of the analyte detection apparatus; and a non-enzymatic material configured to at least partly occlude at least a portion of the at least one spout and isolate tissue of the human being from the enzymatic material, yet permit analyte and oxygen therethrough, the enzymatic material configured to interact with at least a portion of the analyte and at least a portion of the oxygen entering the cavity via the at least one spout; wherein the first analyte concentration response range and the second analyte concentration response range are each based at least on a combination of at least one size dimension of the cavity and a thickness of the enzymatic material disposed within the cavity being different for the first detector element relative to the second detector element. - View Dependent Claims (20, 21)
-
-
22. A dynamically variable sensor apparatus, comprising:
-
signal processing circuitry; and at least one first detector element and at least one second detector element each in signal communication with the signal processing circuitry, the at least one first detector element and the at least one second detector element each comprising; an at least partly enclosed cavity, the at least partly enclosed cavity comprising at least one enzymatic substance, and at least one aperture in communication with the at least partly enclosed cavity, the aperture at least partly obscured with a non-enzyme, analyte-permeable substance; an electrolyte layer; and at least one electrode disposed at least partly within or contacting said electrolyte layer; wherein said at least one first detector element and said at least one second detector element are each configured to utilize chemical interaction between at least the analyte and their respective enzymatic substance to enable generation of an electrical signal at their respective at least one electrode via their respective electrolyte layer, said electrical signal of the at least one first detector element and said electrical signal of the at least one second detector element each relating to a concentration of said analyte in a region external to their respective cavities; wherein the at least one first detector element is configured to detect analyte within a first blood analyte concentration range, and the at least one second detector element is configured to detect analyte within a second blood analyte concentration range, the second blood analyte concentration range comprising a lower blood analyte concentration range relative to the first blood analyte concentration range, at least a lower threshold of the second blood analyte concentration range being less than a lower threshold of the first blood analyte concentration range, the first blood analyte concentration range and the second blood analyte concentration range each based on at least one of (i) a shape or dimension of the at least one aperture, (ii) a thickness of the non-enzyme yet permeable substance, or (iii) a shape or dimension of the cavity for the at least one first detector element being different from that for the at least one second detector element; and wherein the signal processing circuitry is configured for selective utilization of each of the electrical signal generated by the at least one first detector element and the electrical signal generated by the at least one second detector element while the sensor apparatus is operating within a living being, the selective utilization comprising; identification of a blood analyte concentration; determination of a trend of the identified blood analyte concentration as a function of at least time; based at least in part on a determination that the blood analyte concentration is within the first blood analyte concentration range with the blood analyte concentration trending increasing, cause utilization of the electrical signal generated by the at least one first detector element; based at least in part on a determination that the blood analyte concentration is within the first blood analyte concentration range with the blood analyte concentration trending decreasing, cause utilization of one or more of the electrical signal generated by the at least one first detector element or the electrical signal generated by the at least one second detector element; based at least in part on a determination that the blood analyte concentration is within the second blood analyte concentration range with the blood analyte concentration trending increasing, cause utilization of one or more of the electrical signal generated by the at least one first detector element or the electrical signal generated by the at least one second detector element; and based at least in part on a determination that the blood analyte concentration is within the second blood analyte concentration range with the blood analyte concentration trending decreasing, cause utilization of the electrical signal generated by the at least one second detector element.
-
-
23. A sensor apparatus, comprising:
-
signal processing circuitry; and a first detector element configured to detect blood analyte within a first analyte concentration range, and a second detector element configured to detect blood analyte within a second analyte concentration range, the second analyte concentration range (i) at least partially non-overlapping with the first analyte concentration range and (ii) comprising a lower range relative to the first analyte concentration range, each of the first detector element and the second detector element in signal communication with the signal processing circuitry and comprising; an electrolyte material; a membrane element in communication with at least a portion of the electrolyte material, the membrane element comprising a cavity formed therein and at least one spout in communication with the cavity, the cavity having an enzymatic material disposed therein; and a non-enzymatic material configured to at least partly occlude at least a portion of the at least one spout and isolate tissue of the human being from the enzymatic material, yet permit analyte therethrough, the enzymatic material disposed within the cavity and configured to interact with the analyte entering the cavity via the at least one spout; at least one working electrode disposed on or within the substrate and in communication with the cavity via at least a portion of the electrolyte material, the at least one working electrode configured to utilize the interaction between the analyte and the enzymatic material to enable generation of an electrical signal; wherein the signal processing circuitry is configured for selective utilization of each of the electrical signal generated by the at least one first detector element and the electrical signal generated by the at least one second detector element while the sensor apparatus is operating within a living being, the selective utilization comprising; identification of each of (i) a blood analyte concentration, and (ii) a trend of the identified blood analyte concentration as a function of at least time; based at least in part on a determination that the blood analyte concentration is within the first blood analyte concentration range with the blood analyte concentration exhibiting a first trend, cause selective utilization of one or both of the electrical signal generated by the at least one first detector element or the electrical signal generated by the at least one second detector element, the selective utilization based at least in part on the first trend; and based at least in part on a determination that the blood analyte concentration is within the second blood analyte concentration range with the blood analyte concentration exhibiting a second trend, cause selective utilization of one or both of the electrical signal generated by the at least one first detector element or the electrical signal generated by the at least one second detector element, the selective utilization based at least in part on the second trend. - View Dependent Claims (24, 25)
-
-
26. A sensor apparatus, comprising:
-
a substrate; signal processing circuitry; logic in communication with the signal processing circuitry; and a first detector element configured to detect blood analyte within a first analyte concentration range, and a second detector element configured to detect blood analyte within a second analyte concentration range, the second analyte concentration range (i) at least partially non-overlapping with the first analyte concentration range and (ii) comprising a lower range relative to the first blood analyte concentration range, each of the first detector element and the second detector element in communication with the signal processing circuitry and comprising; an electrolyte material; at least one working electrode disposed on or within the substrate and in communication with at least a portion of the electrolyte material, the at least one working electrode configured to utilize an interaction between blood analyte and an enzymatic material to enable generation of an electrical signal; wherein the logic is configured to; identify a trend of a blood analyte concentration as a function of at least time; and cause selective utilization of one or both of the signal from the first detector element or the signal from the second detector element for use in determination of blood analyte level data based at least on the identified trend of the blood analyte concentration. - View Dependent Claims (27, 28, 29, 30)
-
Specification