A portable bacteria tester already exists
Last reviewed: 16.10.2021
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Researchers at Rutgers University have developed a unique handheld device that can detect and identify different types of bacteria, determine their sensitivity to antibiotics, and even analyze the composition of algae that live on coral reefs. Scientists told about their invention in the scientific publication Scientific Reports.
“Our task was to develop a new method for determining the state of cellular structures. This method was not supposed to involve expensive and hard-to-find genomic devices, ”says Debashish Bhattacharya, co-leader of the project, PhD in Biochemical and Microbiology at Rutgers University's College of Environmental and Biological Science. “The new technology allows us to draw a conclusion about the state of living structures in a short time, without sending them to the laboratory, which helps to urgently index the stress level of representatives of different ecological systems.”
At the very beginning of the project, work began on this technology in order to assess the pollution and the degree of influence of the temperature of the aquatic environment on various microorganisms and, in particular, on unicellular algae. In this aspect, the device made it possible to quickly determine whether the cellular structure is in a stressful state and what is wrong with it. The essence lies in the sequential passage of microorganisms through a microscopic channel, the lumen of which is diametrically smaller than a human hair. During this passage, the complex electrical resistance that forms in the device is measured. The resulting value reflects the size and physical status of microorganisms - that is, factors reflecting the level of stress in cells.
Scientists have demonstrated that measurements of electrical resistance can be applied to a single cell or to an entire population. The researchers suggest using the device to determine the antibiotic resistance of various microbes and algae that live on coral reefs. This will allow monitoring the state of calcareous organogenic geological structures.
Coral reefs are among the most densely populated ecosystems in the World Ocean. The total number of biological species inhabiting them reaches 1 million, and sometimes even exceeds this figure, which is associated with the presence of unicellular algae (symbionts), the photosynthetic activity of which does not stop and continues all year round. Today, the state of this ecological system makes scientists worry: huge scientific resources are being used to study and observe coral reefs.
As for the new scientific development, scientists do not yet give any predictions about the use of a portable device for other purposes - in particular, medical.
You can learn more about the new development from the article www.nature.com/articles/s41598-020-57541-6