Development of a Rapid, Antimicrobial Susceptibility Test for E. coli Based on Low-Cost, Screen-Printed Electrodes.

Perrine Lasserre,David Alcorn,Damion K Corrigan,Alexandra Dobrea,Stuart Hannah,Paul A Hoskisson,Ewen O Blair

doi:10.3390/bios10110153

Perrine Lasserre, David Alcorn + Show 5 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/bios10110153

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Journal: Biosensors	Publication Date: Oct 23, 2020
Citations: 17	License type: CC BY 4.0

Affiliation: University of Strathclyde, Royal Alexandra Hospital

Abstract

Antibiotic resistance has been cited by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as one of the greatest threats to public health. Mitigating the spread of antibiotic resistance requires a multipronged approach with possible interventions including faster diagnostic testing and enhanced antibiotic stewardship. This study employs a low-cost diagnostic sensor test to rapidly pinpoint the correct antibiotic for treatment of infection. The sensor comprises a screen-printed gold electrode, modified with an antibiotic-seeded hydrogel to monitor bacterial growth. Electrochemical growth profiles of the common microorganism, Escherichia coli (E. coli) (ATCC 25922) were measured in the presence and absence of the antibiotic streptomycin. Results show a clear distinction between the E. coli growth profiles depending on whether streptomycin is present, in a timeframe of ≈2.5 h (p < 0.05), significantly quicker than the current gold standard of culture-based antimicrobial susceptibility testing. These results demonstrate a clear pathway to a low cost, phenotypic and reproducible antibiotic susceptibility testing technology for the rapid detection of E. coli within clinically relevant concentration ranges for conditions such as urinary tract infections.

Highlights

Since their discovery in 1928, antibiotics treat bacterial infections and enable safe routine surgeries by minimising the risk of infection-related complications [1]
In contrast to genotypic antibiotic resistance tests (ART) calling for prior knowledge of resistance determinants, phenotypic antibiotic susceptibility testing (AST) suggests antibiotics that would be effective against the micro-organisms tested [36,37]
The sensor consists of gel-modified screen-printed electrode sensors capable of measuring antibiotic susceptibility profiles of the common infection E. coli

Summary

Introduction

Since their discovery in 1928, antibiotics treat bacterial infections and enable safe routine surgeries by minimising the risk of infection-related complications [1]. Poor antibiotic stewardship spanning several decades across numerous industries such as agriculture [2] and cosmetics [3], has resulted in a vastly increasing prevalence of antibiotic resistant organisms. AMR risks returning medicine to a pre-antibiotic age, where routine surgeries become potentially life-threatening procedures. Constant exposure to antibiotics selects for adaptive mutations that favour resistant strains [7]. Various methods to mitigate the spread of antibiotic resistance exist, including new drug and vaccination development, improved antibiotic stewardship and better diagnostic testing The World Health Organisation (WHO) raised antibiotic, or more broadly, antimicrobial resistance (AMR) as an issue of upmost global importance [4,5], supporting Lord Jim O’Neill’s estimation of 10 million annual deaths from AMR by 2050, more than cancer and diabetes combined [6].

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