Existing gastrointestinal (GI) diagnostic tools are unable to non-invasively monitor mucosal tight junction integrity in vivo beyond the esophagus. In the GI tract, local inflammatory processes induce alterations in tight junction proteins, enhancing paracellular ion permeability. Although transepithelial electrical resistance (TEER) may be used in the laboratory to assess mucosal barrier integrity, there are no existing methodologies for characterizing tight junction dilation in vivo. Addressing this technology gap, intraluminal bioimpedance sensing may be employed as a localized, non-invasive surrogate to TEER electrodes used in cell cultures. Thus far, bioimpedance has only been implemented in esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) due to the need for external electronics connections. In this work, we develop a novel, noise-resilient Bluetooth-enabled ingestible device for the continuous, non-invasive measurement of intestinal mucosal “leakiness.” As a proof-of-concept, we validate wireless impedance readout on excised porcine tissues in motion. Through an animal study, we demonstrate how the device exhibits altered impedance response to tight junction dilation induced on mice colonic tissue through calcium-chelator exposure. Device measurements are validated using standard benchtop methods for assessing mucosal permeability.

现有的胃肠道 （GI） 诊断工具无法在食管以外的体内无创监测粘膜紧密连接完整性。在胃肠道中，局部炎症过程诱导紧密连接蛋白的改变，增强细胞旁离子通透性。尽管跨上皮电阻 （TEER） 可以在实验室中用于评估粘膜屏障的完整性，但没有现有的方法来表征体内紧密连接扩张。为了解决这一技术差距，腔内生物阻抗传感可以用作细胞培养中使用的 TEER 电极的局部、非侵入性替代物。到目前为止，由于需要外部电子连接，生物阻抗仅在食管胃十二指肠镜检查 （EGD） 中实施。在这项工作中，我们开发了一种新颖的、抗噪的蓝牙可吞咽设备，用于连续、无创地测量肠粘膜“渗漏”。作为概念验证，我们验证了运动中切除的猪组织的无线阻抗读数。通过一项动物研究，我们展示了该设备如何通过钙-螯合剂暴露对小鼠结肠组织诱导的紧密连接扩张表现出改变的阻抗反应。使用用于评估粘膜通透性的标准台式方法验证设备测量值。