Innovating nanosensing technique to detect living bacteria and reveal resistance to antibiotics

Full text: Bacterial pathogens are a major concern for health issues, it is crucial to detect and identify them with the shortest time delay as possible. Usually, once a bacterial infection is suspected, a time consuming procedure dependent on the bacterial growth rate concludes to a diagnosis. In this study, we present a new technique that is capable of characterizing bacterial sensitivity to antibiotics in unmatched time scales (minutes). The experimental set-up is based on AFM technology. The device has already shown promising results with strains such as Escherichia coli, Staphyloccocus aureus, Lactococcus lactis and many others are being tested. (author)