Diagnostic gum for screening diabetes

• US 8,257,940 B2
• Filed: 10/01/2009
• Issued: 09/04/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 10/01/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Charlie Chandsawangbhuwana, Jonathan T.W. Kuo
• Original Assignee: Charlie Chandsawangbhuwana, Jonathan T.W. Kuo
• Inventors: Chandsawangbhuwana, Charlie, Kuo, Jonathan T W
• Primary Examiner(s): GITOMER, RALPH J
• Application Number:
  US12/571,766
• Publication Number:
  US 20110081673A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,069 Days
• Field of Search: 435/14, 426/3
• US Class Current: 435/14
• CPC Class Codes: C12Q 1/006 for glucose
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2800/042 Disorders of carbohydrate metabolism, e.g. diabetes, glucose metabolism

Abstract

A diagnostic chewing gum for identifying a risk for diabetes includes a mixture of an enzyme, a conjugated protein of the glucose enzyme, a substrate, and a gum base. The enzyme and the conjugated protein facilitate a conversion of the substrate to produce a detectable signal in the presence of glucose to produce a detectable change in the gum. In use, the gum is chewed, the resulting change in the gum is compared against a chart, and the risk for diabetes is determined from the chart.

Claims

1. A diagnostic chewing gum for identifying a risk for diabetes, comprising a mixture of:

an oxidase enzyme;

a substrate; and

a gum base, wherein the oxidase enzyme causes a conversion of the substrate to produce a detectable signal in the presence of glucose, thereby producing a detectable change in the gum.

2. The gum of claim 1, further comprising a conjugated protein of the oxidase enzyme, wherein the conjugated protein facilitates the conversion of the substrate to produce the detectable signal.

3. The gum of claim 2, wherein the oxidase enzyme is glucose oxidase.

4. The gum of claim 3, wherein the conjugated protein is horseradish peroxidase.

5. The gum of claim 4, wherein the substrate is a chromogenic substrate, a luminescent substrate, or a fluorescent substrate.

6. The gum of claim 5, wherein the chromogenic substrate is 3,3′

,5,5′

-tetramethylbenzidine or 3,3′

-diaminobenzidine.