Sagar N. Agnihotri, Nikos Fatsis-Kavalopoulos, Jonas Windhager, Maria Tenje, Dan I. Andersson
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引用次数: 0
Abstract
Population heterogeneity in bacterial phenotypes, such as antibiotic resistance, is increasingly recognized as a medical concern. Heteroresistance occurs when a predominantly susceptible bacterial population harbors a rare resistant subpopulation. During antibiotic exposure, these resistant bacteria can be selected and lead to treatment failure. Standard antibiotic susceptibility testing methods often fail to reliably detect these subpopulations due to their low frequency, highlighting the need for improved diagnostic approaches. Here, we present a droplet microfluidics method where bacteria are encapsulated in droplets containing growth medium and antibiotics. The growth of rare resistant cells is detected by observing droplet shrinkage under microscopy. We validated this method for three clinically important antibiotics in Escherichia coli isolates obtained from bloodstream infections and showed that it can detect resistant subpopulations as infrequent as 10−6 using only 200 to 300 droplets. In addition, we designed a multiplex microfluidic chip to increase the throughput of the assay.
期刊介绍:
Science Advances, an open-access journal by AAAS, publishes impactful research in diverse scientific areas. It aims for fair, fast, and expert peer review, providing freely accessible research to readers. Led by distinguished scientists, the journal supports AAAS's mission by extending Science magazine's capacity to identify and promote significant advances. Evolving digital publishing technologies play a crucial role in advancing AAAS's global mission for science communication and benefitting humankind.