Rapid antimicrobial susceptibility testing with electrokinetics enhanced biosensors for diagnosis of acute bacterial infections.

Rapid pathogen detection and antimicrobial susceptibility testing (AST) are required in diagnosis of acute bacterial infections to determine the appropriate antibiotic treatment. Molecular approaches for AST are often based on the detection of known antibiotic resistance genes. Phenotypic culture analysis requires several days from sample collection to result reporting. Toward rapid diagnosis of bacterial infection in non-traditional healthcare settings, we have developed a rapid AST approach that combines phenotypic culture of bacterial pathogens in physiological samples and electrochemical sensing of bacterial 16S rRNA. The assay determines the susceptibility of pathogens by detecting bacterial growth under various antibiotic conditions. AC electrokinetic fluid motion and Joule heating induced temperature elevation are optimized to enhance the sensor signal and minimize the matrix effect, which improve the overall sensitivity of the assay. The electrokinetics enhanced biosensor directly detects the bacterial pathogens in blood culture without prior purification. Rapid determination of the antibiotic resistance profile of Escherichia coli clinical isolates is demonstrated.