Smart Electrochemical Nanosensors for Real-Time Animal Health Monitoring

The Challenge

Animal health monitoring is critical for early disease detection, improved welfare, and enhanced agricultural productivity. However, current clinical-based methods are invasive, labour-intensive, and rely on specialist expertise, making real-time, widespread monitoring difficult. This leads to delayed detection of stress, fatigue, or illness, often resulting in preventable suffering, reduced productivity, and financial loss. Existing biosensors track basic vital signs but fall short in detecting deeper biochemical markers of health, such as pH, glucose, or electrolyte imbalances—key indicators of conditions like dehydration, acidosis, and metabolic disorders, which often appear before physical symptoms. Without real-time biochemical sensing, early intervention is missed. The lack of accessible, continuous monitoring tools limits effective disease prevention in livestock and companion animals, compromising sustainability and resilience in agriculture. There is an urgent need for advanced, scalable, and precise technologies that can detect subtle metabolic changes to support proactive animal health management and safeguard food and economic security.

The Solution

This project will develop a next-generation animal health monitoring system by integrating advanced electrochemical sensing with VetChip’s existing implantable biosensor platform. The innovative approach uses organically functionalised, porous metal-oxide nanosensors to detect key biochemical markers—such as glucose, pH, lactate, and electrolytes—in real time. These nanosensors offer high specificity and sensitivity, enabling early detection of metabolic stress, dehydration, acidosis, and other health issues before physical symptoms appear. By continuously tracking both vital signs and biochemical signals, the system provides a comprehensive picture of animal health, facilitating timely interventions and improving welfare. Designed for seamless integration with current VetChip devices, the solution is scalable, non-invasive, and cost-effective. It supports veterinarians and animal owners with real-time alerts and data insights, ultimately reducing disease-related losses and improving productivity.

Industry Partners

University Partners