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BY STEVE BARRETT PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT NANODISCS GET PERSONAL WITH CANCER T HE IMMUNE S YS TEM S of mice can "remember" cancer cells and provide extended immunity, according to research involving technology that carries individualized vaccines to treat certain tumors. University of Michigan researchers fi lled nanodiscs — tiny, synthetic lipoproteins — with tumor neoantigens. Those are mutations located in tumor cells. "By generating T-cells that recognize these specifi c neoantigens, the technology targets cancer mutations and fi ghts to eliminate cancer cells and prevent tumor growth," the university stated in a news release. The nanodiscs were tested in mice with melanoma and colon cancer tumors. "Combined with immune checkpoint inhibitors, an existing technology that amplifi es T-cell tumor- fi ghting responses, the nanodisc technology killed tumors within 10 days of treatment in the majority of the mice," the university noted. When the mice were injected with the same tumor cells 70 days later, "the tumors were rejected by the immune system and did not grow." Nature Materials published the study. ■ WEARABLE, PAINLESS GLUCOSE MONITORING R AT H E R T H A N U S I N G drawn blood samples, PKvitality's wearable trackers "taste" the skin to analyze important physiological markers, according to the French startup. K'Track Glucose utilizes the company's SkinTaste biosensor array, which has micro-needles that gather and analyze fl uid from just under the skin's surface. This array, called K'apsul, can be paired with bracelets, watches, armbands and similar items. The fl uid collected by the biosensor contains glucose derived from the bloodstream. Wearers press a button that activates the collection of a drop of fl uid for analysis. Users feel faint pressure but no pain. That is because the needles are less than half a millimeter in length; nerves and blood vessels are generally at least 1 millimeter below the epidermis. K'Track Glucose and K'Track Athlete, which monitors lactic acid, are awaiting regulatory approval. The company says K'Track Glucose could enhance monitoring among the estimated 80 percent of people with diabetes who do not check their glucose frequently enough. ■ AN ADVANCE IN LESION-MARKING INK A NE W LY DE V EL O P ED ink may offer clinical and cosmetic advantages over those utilized in conventional tattoos that track certain skin cancers. Frequently, physicians apply small tattoos close to skin cancer lesions slated for additional treatment. However, the ink can endure long after it has outlived its usefulness. Moreover, it can lead to infl ammation, and it can eventually be mistaken for a lesion. UCLA researchers may have devised a solution for those challenges. An ink they have developed washes away over time in order to avoid confusion, Medgadget reports. In addition, only light of a particular wavelength — 465 nanometers — makes the ink visible, according to studies in lab mice. The ink also did not lead to nearby infl ammation, scientists found. The research appears in ACS Nano. ■ 3 0