Streamlined Platform for Bacterial Identification and Antimicrobial Susceptibility Test

Case ID:
C14377
Disclosure Date:
9/20/2016
Unmet Need
For managing dangerous infections, clinicians need to know what bacteria strain(s) is/are causing the infections, the bacterial loads, and the antibiotic resistance profile of the bacteria.  Without knowing this vital information in a timely manner, it is impossible to begin using narrow-spectrum antibiotics that can effectively treat the patients. Importantly, these 3 aspects are all important, knowing one aspect earlier does not help.

Technology Overview
Our technology falls into the in-vitro microbiological diagnostics market. This market constantly needs rapid, accurate, and automated tests. Speed of the tests can improve patient outcome while reducing costs for both hospitals and patients. Importantly, to achieve rapid diagnosis, there is a critical need for tests that combine both bacteria identification and antimicrobial susceptibility testing. Rapid tests for identifying polymicrobial infections caused by more than one pathogens are highly desirable. In addition, automation is important to reduce testing errors, shorten hands-on time, and enhance a streamlined workflow. To address this market opportunity, manufacturers are offering assessments and processes to streamline lab workflows, reduce time to results, and generate productivity gains for end-users. We have seamlessly combined culture with PCR and melt curve based analysis. We flip the traditional workflow by culturing bacteria with unknown identity first with and without antibiotics. We then perform qPCR (or digital PCR) and melt curve analysis, which quantifies bacteria in each sample and identifies the species of the bacteria. Importantly, the high sensitivity and quantification capacity of qPCR and digital PCR shorten the necessary time of culturing from ~16 to 20 hours down to < 4 hours. The entire workflow can be performed in a single-tube (or a single microfluidic device in the future), which is readily applicable with automated fashion.

Stage of Development
We have verified the feasibility of our workflow in research laboratory settings by showing that qPCR and digital PCR can both quantify bacterial growth and assess antibiotic susceptibility.




 
Patent Information:
Title App Type Country Serial No. Patent No. File Date Issued Date Expire Date Patent Status
STREAMLINED PLATFORM FOR BACTERIAL IDENTIFICATION AND ANTIBIOTIC SUSCEPTIBILITY TEST PCT: Patent Cooperation Treaty United States 16/491,022   9/4/2019     Pending
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For Information, Contact:
Vera Sampels
vsampel2@jhu.edu
410-614-0300
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