The National Institutes of Health challenged the biotechnology community on Thursday to design a wearable device able to measure blood alcohol content in real-time for its National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.
Challenge winners will receive $200,000 to create a device able to measure the concentration of alcohol in the blood or interstitial fluid surrounding the body’s cells, for a more accurate reading. Current systems detect alcohol through sweat or vapor. Those who place second will receive $100,000.
The challenge is designed to help researchers collect more accurate data to better understand alcohol use disorder and conditions affected by alcohol use, officials said. The ideal device could also be used by consumers who wish to track their drinking habits.
"I expect tangible breakthroughs in real-time alcohol-sensing technology through this competition," NIAAA Director George F. Koob, said in a statement. "Creative solutions could include the adaptation and miniaturization of technologies such as spectroscopy or wave technology or other designs."
"We’ve learned that there is real interest in the private sector around wearable alcohol biosensors, and that innovation using distinct means of alcohol detection are on the horizon," NIAAA’s Division of Metabolism and Health Effects Director Kathy Jung, said in a statement.
Competition submissions will be accepted until May 15, 2017 and judging will take place from May 16 to July 26, 2017, with winner announced in August 2017.
Also announced on Thursday, NIH will offer a grant of about $1 million in two phases for researchers who can determine a way to use EHR and other data for alcohol treatment.
Projects should focus on major data collection able to integrate into clinical records and data warehouses, among other electronic resources, officials said. The project will address questions on improving clinical care for alcohol use disorder patients and understanding existing barriers to the use of EHR data in treating alcohol abuse.
Applicants can submit their projects beginning May 16, 2017.
"Electronic health records are increasingly being utilized to support major research initiatives, as they bring opportunities to access diagnostic, treatment and outcome data of vast numbers of patients," according to the announcement.
"Alcohol and other substance use disorder treatment lags far behind the rest of healthcare in the deployment of electronic health records," it continued. "This funding opportunity announcement is intended to provide a mechanism to stimulate such research."
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