The authors of the new work decided to use silk, which is an edible and safe material.They
Pharmaceutical companies label packagingof their products with barcodes, QR codes, holograms and RFIDs so that distributors and retailers can manage their product supply. But there are no consumer codes that can be used to verify the source of specific tablets or ampoules. Researchers have developed fluorescent synthetic materials such as microfibers and nanoparticles. They are used as tracking codes, but these substances are potentially unsafe to consume.
The authors of the new work genetically modified silkworms to produce silk fibroins, which are edible proteins that confersilk fibers are strong, with a blue, green or red fluorescent protein attached.
Next, the team dissolved fluorescent silk cocoons to create fluorescent polymer solutions.They applied a thin film of white silk 9 mm wide.As a result, they created the code they wanted, which can be read using an app that the researchers created: it scansfluorescent pattern, decodes the digitized key using a neural network algorithm and opensa page that contains information about the source and authenticity of the drug.
The researchers decided to test the strength of their code on alcohol-laden liquids and placed the encoded silk film in a clear bottle of Scotch whisky.The fluorescent code was successfully read using the app.
In the latest experiment, the authors tested that silk fluorescent proteins are successfully broken down by gastrointestinal enzymes.
The researchers say that if you start applying these edible codes to pills or ampoules, you will reduce the likelihood of using counterfeit drugs.
Read more
After ten years of work, scientists questioned the standard model of physics
There is another “planet” inside the Earth: how it saved nascent life
Scientists understand what happens in a dog's brain when a person talks