Nanotechnology 'could revolutionise UK kidney disease care'

Every day 19 people in the UK are diagnosed with kidney failure, yet there is currently no device that can be used by doctors for day-to-day monitoring of kidney disease. Four of these 19 people will not have been known to specialist services for sufficient time to prepare for their treatment. After 90 days one of them will have died, two will have had a transplant, and the remaining 16 will be receiving dialysis treatment at a cost of over £25,000 per year. Many more will have a lesser degree of kidney dysfunction that will place them at increased risk of cardiovascular disease and acute kidney injury.

Assessing, treating and caring for people with kidney disease currently costs the NHS over £1.4Bn - more than breast, lung, colon and skin cancer combined. Created by Bio Nano Consulting, the Quantitative Electrochemical Lateral Flow Assay (QELFA) device uses nanoparticles to test urine, giving results in seconds, and is linked to surgeries via mobile technology so doctors can track disease development.

The device could be designed to show a test result with a number display or colour change, or both, and to transmit it electronically to a GP or specialist. Proteinuria (protein in the urine) is a hall mark of kidney disease and occurs when protein that should be retained by the body is allowed to leak out of the kidneys. Using current technology, monitoring and testing for proteinuria is time consuming and costly. The QELFA device uses a dipstick method, similar to a pregnancy test, to monitor levels of proteinuria.

The report from the IME, Nanotechnology: The Societal Impact of the Invisible, highlights the enormous potential for nanotechnology in our society but calls on the Government to increase funding for nanotechnology development to ensure the UK does not fall behind other nations. Nanotechnology is the manipulation of matter at an atomic level, so small that its usual properties are altered, and many have heralded the technology as the new industrial revolution.

“Nanotechnology could revolutionise the way we live our lives – it can be used in everything from food and healthcare to electronics, clothing and cosmetics.  But despite its 40 years in the public domain, the nanotechnology industry is still failing to engage with society in an open and clear way, and governments continue to lack impetus in committing to international regulation. The UK Government must provide more funding to ensure that the UK benefits fully from nanotechnology’s potential,” said report author Dr Helen Meese, Head of Materials, IME. “The QELFA device is a brilliant example of what’s possible. Using an old technology like a pregnancy tester and combining it with nanotechnology, you have a device which could not only diagnose the million people in the UK who are unaware they have kidney disease, but also help doctors effectively monitor those undergoing treatment. It could also save the NHS millions of pounds a year. But although the UK has been at the forefront of nanotechnology development, we still lag behind in its commercialisation and many people are still unsure of its potential. We must change this.”

The device is not yet available, and is likely to come to market within two to three years, according to Bio Nano Consulting.