There is a new toothbrush that checks your DNA for signs of cancer and Alzheimer’s. Read more on the story after the jump!
Technologists say that a new toothbrush could warn you about having diseases such as cancer and Alzheimer’s. Tiny microchips known as nanopore sequencers, can decode DNA into a digital format that can then be assessed against genetic markers that can spot the disease. This new toothbrush could lead to a revolution in health care. The Times reported that the sequencers are becoming smaller and can be put in any product or device that it comes into contact with human DNA.
Clive Brown, chief technology officer at Oxford Nanopore, a company that makes a palm-sized nanopore detector, told the Wired Health medical technology conference the sequences could be capable of monitoring our health. The Nanopore sequencers have already been used to test for Ebola in West Africa. They could also be used to check animals on farms and in food production lines.
The DNA passes through a hole in the chip which is 80,000 times thinner than a human hair through which an electrical current is run. It then measures the flow of atoms through a small hole and generates an electrical signal which is then turned into a digital record.
