Glycation in human fingernail clippings using ATR-FTIR spectrometry, a new marker for the diagnosis and monitoring of diabetes mellitus

摘要

Objectives: Although HbA1c is a good diagnostic tool for diabetes, the precarity of the health system and the costs limit the use of this biomarker in developing countries. Fingernail clippings contain +/- 85% of keratins, which are prone to glycation. Nail keratin glycation may reflect the average glycemia over the last months. We explored if attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR) can be used as a non-invasive tool for assessing glycation in diabetes.