But there is no technology currently available that can easily profile this metabolic, molecular information from the GI tract. Traditional evaluation methods involve either fecal analysis or biopsy, which are invasive, expensive, and cannot provide real-time profiling across the GI tract.

Now a team of Caltech engineers has developed a smart capsule called PillTrek, which can measure pH, temperature, and a variety of different biomarkers. It incorporates simple, inexpensive sensors in a miniature wireless electrochemical workstation that relies on low-power electronics. PillTrek is tiny, measuring 7 millimeters in diameter and 25 millimeters in length, making it smaller than commercially available capsule cameras used for endoscopy but capable of executing a range of electrochemical measurements.