Redox Components available in Human Sweat

Since, Dopamine is (DA, 3,4-dihydroxyphenethylamine) is catecholamine neurotransmitter present in

human sweat with redox-active properties. And the feature we are focusing for our device is the
voltage sensitivity. We need to analyse voltage sensitivity of rest other components present out
there in human sweat.

A limited number of redox-active biomarkers exist in the body and can be detected without the
addition of a BRE. They, instead, are detected directly by direct oxidation/reduction. These are small
molecules and include the neurotransmitters of serotonin, epinephrine, norepinephrine, serotonin,
dopamine, and specific hormones such as melatonin. Typically, these molecules contain substituted
conjugated double bond systems (e.g., catechol) that allow for more labile transfer of electrons at
specific electrochemical potentials. The potential of the oxidation/reduction then informs on the
species, which can be determined by either square wave voltammetry (SWV) or fast scan cyclic
voltammetry.

Some of them which show voltage sensitivity I found by reviewing existing literature out there are –

➢ Ascorbic acid
➢ Uric acid
➢ Adrenaline (Epinephine)
➢ Cortisol (mainly Glucocortisol
➢ Lactate
➢ Tyrosine[9], [10]
➢ Serotonin
➢ Sodium
➢ Norepinephrine [13] Graphene based sensor based on square wave voltammetry
➢ Neuropeptides
➢ Brain derived neurotropic factor (BDNF)

Ascorbic acid (AA) and uric acid (UA) are two common interfering compounds with redox-active
properties known to co-exist with DA in the human body. [1]

Ascorbic acid- The vitamin C concentration in human sweat ranges from 10 to 50 μmol/L. The normal
concentration range of vitamin C in the human body in daily life is 34 to 114 μmol/. [2] Vitamin C can
prevent and treat hematological diseases, restore the immune system, accelerate wound healing,
skin care, and enhance the antioxidant capacity of the body. It is clinically used for the adjuvant
treatment of various tumors and cancers, anti-aging, and the treatment of immune system diseases.
However, a large amount of vitamin C intake will cause kidney disease, thrombosis, and stones. [13]

Uric Acid - Average concentration of uric acid in the sweat is 24.5 micromol/L. [3]. This is especially
more problematic with AA, as it is also often present at much higher concentrations than DA in
biological samples.
Adrenaline - 1-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)-2-methyloaminoethanol is otherwise known as epinephrine or

adrenaline. Its presence was recorded in human sweat which is associated with stress and possibly
contribute in output voltage of our device [4]. It is an important catecholamine neurotransmitter in
the mammalian central nervous system for transporting the information to biological cells [6-8].
Deficiency of EP may cause several diseases and neurological disorders such as shakiness, sweating,
fast heart beat and high blood pressure and also Alzheimer’s, Hyperactivity disorder, Schizophrenia,
and Huntington’s diseases. Medically, EP has been used as a common emergency healthcare
medicine. Epinephrine plays a key role in increasing blood flow to muscles with fight-or flight
response, treatment in bronchial asthma, cardiac surgery and myocardial infarction.[14]

Cortisol - Cortisol molecules are stored in eccrine and apocrine glands, and excreted through a sweat
pore to the epidermal surface. [5] Eccrine sweat contains cortisol in the range of 8–141 ng/mL and
can be used to track the diurnal rhythms non-invasively. Cortisol is involved in numerous biological
pathways like endocrinal, metabolic, and inflammatory etc. and controls or affects the expression of
various other biomarkers like Neuropeptide-Y (NPY) and cytokines. Cortisol is also known to play a
role in numerous patho-physiologies, especially the ones in neurodegenerative.[6] Cortisol, are
linked to PTSD and major depressive disorder disorders. In addition, the cortisol dynamics in stress
response plays a crucial role in human performance. Other than the direct assessment of stress,
stress hormones are also important in the understanding of pain and fear neural circuits, both of
which are subjective sensation or emotion that are difficult to quantify. [8] The increase in cortisol
content will lead to symptoms such as elevated blood pressure, muscle weakness, osteoporosis,
hyperglycemia, and obesity. In contrast, low cortisol content will cause non-specific symptoms such
as weight loss, hypotension, and abdominal pain.

Lactate - Lactate has been considered as one of the excellent biomarkers for tissue oxygenation,
which is used for assessing human’s physical performance. The increase amount of lactate
production may result in cell acidosis and the disruption of the muscles performance. Moreover,
sweat lactate is an important product of eccrine gland energy metabolism in body fluids. The
production of sweat lactate is positive correlation to the exercise intensity. Lactate concentration in
the sweat could rise up to 25 mM in normal people during extensive exercise.[7]

Sodium- Sodium is one of the preferred markers to diagnose and track the progression of cystic
fibrosis, and knowledge of sodium levels could potentially enable personalised hydration strategies
to be implemented for athletes or people working under severe environmental conditions. [11]

CF(Cystic Fibrosis), caused by mutations in the gene encoding the CFTR (cystic fibrosis
transmembrane conductance regulator) protein, promotes alterations in the transport of chloride
and sodium in epithelial secreting cells, generating the appearance of lung diseases, pancreatic and
hepatic insufficiency, ion lost owing to dehydration by sweating and male infertility. [12]

Ethanol- Alcohol abuse and addiction can cause acute alcoholism and multiple organ damage such as
heart, liver, and lung. Biomarkers of ethyl glucuronate (EtG), a direct metabolite of ethanol, can be
used as an objective indicator for evaluating the intervention of alcohol intake behavior and can be
detected in body fluids such as sweat and urine. Although EtG only accounts for about 0.1% of the
total ethanol, it is detected within one day or more after drinking one or two cups and within 2–4
days after drinking more ethanol
Norepinephrine- (NE) is an important catecholamine neurotransmitter in the mammalian central
nervous system. It is well known that norepinephrine plays an important role in the control of
arousal, attention, mood, learning, memory, and stress response. is involved in a large number of
physiological processes, allowing the organism to cope with its ever-changing internal and external
environments. Norepinephrine also shows great potential in treating myocardial infarction
hypertension, bronchial asthma and organic heart disease. The abnormal levels of norepinephrine
could be related to several disorders, namely depression, migraine, anxiety, ganglia neuroblastoma,
and paraganglioma according to many researches. Moreover, norepinephrine is also a kind of
excitant, which could lead to classic sympathetic effects, including increased arousal, heart rate,
blood pressure, and respiratory rate.[13]

Serotonin - 5-hydroxytryptamine (5HT) commonly known as serotonin, which is electrochemically

active, but its detection is more difficult than epinephrine, because serotonin is a reactive oxidation
product. The serotonin neurotransmitter system plays an important role within the cells of living
organisms. i.e., the regulation of mood, attention, appetite, sleep, and other functions. Eccentric
levels of serotonin have been associated with several disorders such as exquisitely depression,
Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, migraine, anxiety and synapse formation. [14]

Neuropeptides - NPY antagonizes behavioral consequences of stress through actions within the
brain. Behavioral anti-stress actions of NPY are noteworthy in that their magnitude surpasses that of
other endogenous compounds. NPY acts with a high potency on a common core mechanism of
emotionality and behavioral stress responses.[15]

Availability of above said components-

1- Ascoribic acid is easily available in the form of injections, tablets and powder.
• Ascorbic acid- https://www.apollopharmacy.in/medicine/ascorbic-acid-injection-5ml
• Adrenaline- https://www.apollopharmacy.in/medicine/adrenaline-injection-1ml
2- Else, there are various sites to buy chemicals online.
• https://www.ibuychemikals.com/Search?category=&qskey=serotonin&mode=all&dG
9rZW5pZDE2OTkzMzc2Mjg%3D=MTY5OTMzNzYyOHNlYXJjaA%3D%3D
Reference-

1- https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/abstract/document/9126813

2- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0021979722002697

3- https://europepmc.org/article/MED/12817713

4- https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlelanding/2014/tb/c4tb00317a/unauth

5- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32266329/

6- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0013468621011245

7- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0925400520306705

8- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590238520300217

9- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3298607/

10- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK209061/

11- https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlelanding/2016/AY/C5AY02254A

12- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S073170851300575X

13- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590183420300016

14- https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Ksv-Krishna-
Rao/publication/324314380_Electrochemical_detection_of_serotonin_in_human_serum_sa
mple_and_simultaneous_resolution_in_presence_of_epinephrine/links/5b81ef22299bf1d5a
7289ee2/Electrochemical-detection-of-serotonin-in-human-serum-sample-and-
simultaneous-resolution-in-presence-of-epinephrine.pdf

15- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15337373/