BL-DetecTool
AMR detection in 15 min.
In order to use antibiotics only when required and stem the rise of resistant pathogens, it is essential to prescribe the appropriate drug. Therefore, new, rapid and easy-to-use diagnostic tools to detect both ESBLs and carbapenemases are urgently needed. In addition, rapid detection of ESBL and/or carbapenemases producing-Enterobacteriaceae in stool samples of patients potentially colonized is important in order to isolate the patient and break the dissemination of these strains.
In this context, the BL-DetecTool is a promising tool aimed at detecting broad-spectrum β-lactamases (ESBL and carbapenemases), which confer resistance to 3rd generation cephalosporins and carbapenems, directly from the patient’s biological sample.
For the first time, a new detection system will allow for a fast, affordable, user-friendly and direct detection of antibiotic degrading enzyme (β-lactamases) in clinical samples. The detection system corresponds to a strip, which allows the immunological detection, enclosed in a plastic device, which carries out sample treatment in a very simple way (filtration, concentration, extraction, incubation) and deposits it onto the strip. The concept of the device and the different steps involved in the test are being evaluated in different media (urine, blood) with different bacteria.
At this stage of the project the devices, produced by 3D printing, are ready to be optimized and validated with real clinical samples. In order to achieve our objectives, the operational procedures will be improved to fit with clinical habits and analytical specifications (specificity, reproducibility and sensitivity). At one point, the procedures and the detection system should be perfectly adapted to the hospital practices.
To ensure a large diffusion and improve this technology, new features must be developed in order to simplify the sample treatment, to facilitate the multiplexing, to increase the sensitivity and to eliminate potential interferences due to biological media.