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 hp
Sign In
Advertise with Us
ZeptoMetrix an Antylia scientific company

Download Mobile App




Point-of-Care Device to Reduce Antibiotic Susceptibility Testing Time from Days to Minutes

By LabMedica International staff writers
Posted on 12 Sep 2023
Print article
Image: The rapid diagnostic test could pinpoint the correct antibiotic for infection treatment in under an hour (Photo courtesy of Microplate Dx)
Image: The rapid diagnostic test could pinpoint the correct antibiotic for infection treatment in under an hour (Photo courtesy of Microplate Dx)

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a significant global health issue, currently leading to over 1.27 million deaths worldwide each year. By 2050, AMR could be causing up to 10 million deaths annually, surpassing even cancer and diabetes. One of the consequences of rising AMR is that medicine could revert back to a time before antibiotics, jeopardizing even routine surgeries. One of the main types of infections contributing to this issue is urinary tract infections (UTIs). They are a leading cause of sickness and death and are closely linked with sepsis cases. There is a critical need for quick diagnostic tests to determine the most effective antibiotic treatment for each case. Now, a point-of-care diagnostic platform can not only detect bacterial presence but also guide clinicians to choose the best antibiotic treatment.

Microplate Dx (Glasgow, UK) has combined novel hardware with proprietary data processing algorithms to develop a rapid antibiotic susceptibility testing platform. Initially aimed at UTIs, the company has already conducted multiple successful clinical trials of its platform. A urine sample is simply added to a cartridge, which is then placed in the device, and results are available in less than an hour. This quick and affordable system aims to eliminate the current practice of 'best-guess' prescriptions, thereby promoting better use of antibiotics and ultimately reducing resistance and saving lives.

The product is currently in its prototype phase, with Microplate Dx planning more clinical trials for 2024/25. The company aims to launch the product in pharmacies across Europe and is also considering entering the US market. Although the company is initially focusing on UTIs, the versatility of its platform opens the doors for expanding to test for other drug-resistant infections like respiratory tract issues, sepsis, meningitis, and fungal infections.

“Our mission at Microplate Dx is to improve the quality of lives for patients by providing antimicrobial stewardship cost-effectively. Any delay in identifying the correct antibiotic for treatment can put lives at risk and huge pressure on clinical decision-making, especially when the antibiotic sensitivity data that Microplate Dx can produce in an hour or less compared to the current approach that can take two days using existing techniques,” said Dr. Stuart Hannah, Microplate Dx CEO. “Early clinical benchmark testing relating to urinary tract infections has been positive and the company now intends to target scale-up both commercially and technically. Early prescribing of appropriate antibiotics to patients, so-called ‘personalized prescribing’, is vital to combat antimicrobial resistance on a global scale, and for serious infections, early intervention will save countless lives.”

Related Links:
Microplate Dx

Gold Member
Pharmacogenetics Panel
VeriDose Core Panel v2.0
Verification Panels for Assay Development & QC
Seroconversion Panels
New
Luteinizing Hormone Assay
DRG LH-Serum ELISA Kit
New
HbA1c Test
HbA1c Rapid Test

Print article

Channels

Clinical Chemistry

view channel
Image: Professor Nicole Strittmatter (left) and first author Wei Chen stand in front of the mass spectrometer with a tissue sample (Photo courtesy of Robert Reich/TUM)

Mass Spectrometry Detects Bacteria Without Time-Consuming Isolation and Multiplication

Speed and accuracy are essential when diagnosing diseases. Traditionally, diagnosing bacterial infections involves the labor-intensive process of isolating pathogens and cultivating bacterial cultures,... Read more

Molecular Diagnostics

view channel
Image: Health Canada has approved SPINEstat, a first-in-class diagnostic blood test for axSpA, as a Class II medical device (Photo courtesy of Augurex)

First-in-Class Diagnostic Blood Test Detects Axial Spondyloarthritis

Axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA) is a chronic inflammatory autoimmune condition that typically affects individuals during their most productive years, with symptoms often emerging before the age of 45.... Read more

Immunology

view channel
Image: The cancer stem cell test can accurately choose more effective treatments (Photo courtesy of University of Cincinnati)

Stem Cell Test Predicts Treatment Outcome for Patients with Platinum-Resistant Ovarian Cancer

Epithelial ovarian cancer frequently responds to chemotherapy initially, but eventually, the tumor develops resistance to the therapy, leading to regrowth. This resistance is partially due to the activation... Read more

Technology

view channel
Image: The new algorithms can help predict which patients have undiagnosed cancer (Photo courtesy of Adobe Stock)

Advanced Predictive Algorithms Identify Patients Having Undiagnosed Cancer

Two newly developed advanced predictive algorithms leverage a person’s health conditions and basic blood test results to accurately predict the likelihood of having an undiagnosed cancer, including ch... Read more

Industry

view channel
Image: The collaboration aims to leverage Oxford Nanopore\'s sequencing platform and Cepheid\'s GeneXpert system to advance the field of sequencing for infectious diseases (Photo courtesy of Cepheid)

Cepheid and Oxford Nanopore Technologies Partner on Advancing Automated Sequencing-Based Solutions

Cepheid (Sunnyvale, CA, USA), a leading molecular diagnostics company, and Oxford Nanopore Technologies (Oxford, UK), the company behind a new generation of sequencing-based molecular analysis technologies,... Read more
Copyright © 2000-2025 Globetech Media. All rights reserved.