We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience. This includes personalizing content and advertising. To learn more, click here. By continuing to use our site, you accept our use of cookies. Cookie Policy.

Features Partner Sites Information LinkXpress
Sign In
Advertise with Us
INTEGRA BIOSCIENCES AG

Download Mobile App




Events

09 Apr 2024 - 12 Apr 2024
15 Apr 2024 - 17 Apr 2024
23 Apr 2024 - 26 Apr 2024

New Ultrafast Method Determines Antibiotic Resistance

By LabMedica International staff writers
Posted on 24 Aug 2017
Print article
Image: Klebsiella pneumoniae growing in the microfluidic chip imaged in phase contrast. The bacteria are 3 µm long and divide every 30 minutes (Photo courtesy of Özden Baltekina et al).
Image: Klebsiella pneumoniae growing in the microfluidic chip imaged in phase contrast. The bacteria are 3 µm long and divide every 30 minutes (Photo courtesy of Özden Baltekina et al).
Antibiotic resistance is a growing medical problem that threatens human health globally. One important contributory factor in the development of resistance is the incorrect use of antibiotics for treatment.

Reliable methods to quickly and easily identify bacterial resistance and provide the proper treatment from the start have not been possible because existing antibiotic resistance tests take too long. An antibiotic resistance test has been developed that is fast enough to enable a patient to take the right antibiotic home from the health center straight after the first appointment.

Scientists at Uppsala University (Sweden) developed a point-of-care susceptibility test for urinary tract infection, a disease that 100 million women suffer from annually and that exhibits widespread antibiotic resistance. They captured bacterial cells directly from samples with low bacterial counts (104 colony forming units [cfu]/mL) using a custom-designed microfluidic chip and monitor their individual growth rates using microscopy. By averaging the growth rate response to an antibiotic over many individual cells, they can reduce the detection time to the biological response time of the bacteria.

The microfluidic chip consists of a cover glass and a micro-molded silicon elastomer [polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS)] that are covalently bonded together. For micro-molding, they used the standard soft lithography techniques. Flow direction and rate during the study were maintained by pressure-driven flow. An OB1 Mk III electropneumatic controller regulated the air pressure applied to the closed fluidic reservoirs. The team used an Eclipse Ti-E inverted microscope for automated phase contrast microscopy.

The investigators were able to detect changes in growth rate in response to each of nine antibiotics that are used to treat urinary tract infections in minutes. In a test of 49 clinical uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC) isolates, all were correctly classified as susceptible or resistant to ciprofloxacin in less than 10 minutes. The total time for antibiotic susceptibility testing, from loading of sample to diagnostic readout, was less than 30 minutes, which allows the development of a point-of-care test that can guide correct treatment of urinary tract infection.

Özden Baltekin, a PhD student, who performed most of the laboratory work and is the first author of the study said, “We've developed a new method that allows determination of bacterial resistance patterns in urinary tract infections in 10 to 30 minutes. By comparison, the resistance determination currently in use requires one to two days. The rapid test is based on a new plastic microfluidic chip where the bacteria are trapped and methods for analyzing bacterial growth at single-cell level.” The study was published on August 8, 2017, in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Related Links:
Uppsala University

Platinum Member
COVID-19 Rapid Test
OSOM COVID-19 Antigen Rapid Test
One Step HbA1c Measuring System
GREENCARE A1c
Complement 3 (C3) Test
GPP-100 C3 Kit
Gold Member
Xylazine Immunoassay Test
Xylazine ELISA

Print article

Channels

Clinical Chemistry

view channel
Image: Reaching speeds up to 6,000 RPM, this centrifuge forms the basis for a new type of inexpensive, POC biomedical test (Photo courtesy of Duke University)

POC Biomedical Test Spins Water Droplet Using Sound Waves for Cancer Detection

Exosomes, tiny cellular bioparticles carrying a specific set of proteins, lipids, and genetic materials, play a crucial role in cell communication and hold promise for non-invasive diagnostics.... Read more

Molecular Diagnostics

view channel
Image: The cobas Malaria test is the first FDA-approved molecular test to screen U.S. blood donors for malaria (Photo courtesy of Roche)

First FDA-Approved Molecular Test to Screen Blood Donors for Malaria Could Improve Patient Safety

Malaria, a serious illness that often leads to death, is spread by a specific mosquito species that infect humans with a parasite. Other transmission modes include blood transfusions, organ transplants,... Read more

Hematology

view channel
Image: The low-cost portable device rapidly identifies chemotherapy patients at risk of sepsis (Photo courtesy of 52North Health)

POC Finger-Prick Blood Test Determines Risk of Neutropenic Sepsis in Patients Undergoing Chemotherapy

Neutropenia, a decrease in neutrophils (a type of white blood cell crucial for fighting infections), is a frequent side effect of certain cancer treatments. This condition elevates the risk of infections,... Read more

Pathology

view channel
Image: The medical office procedure detects the key biomarker in Parkinson’s and related neurodegenerative diseases (Photo courtesy of BIDMC)

Simple Skin Biopsy Test Detects Parkinson’s and Related Neurodegenerative Diseases

Parkinson's disease and a group of related neurodegenerative disorders known as synucleinopathies impact millions globally. These conditions, including Parkinson’s disease (PD), dementia with Lewy bodies... Read more
Copyright © 2000-2024 Globetech Media. All rights reserved.