Resonant Mass Measurement for Rapid Antibiotic Susceptibility Testing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for assessing antibiotic efficacy and cell growth are time-consuming, often requiring several hours and are not sensitive enough to detect low concentrations of microorganisms, limiting their diagnostic effectiveness.
Innovation Solution
A method utilizing a suspended microchannel resonator to detect and measure individual microbes and their mass by monitoring the resonant frequency of a mechanically resonating structure, allowing for rapid assessment of cell growth and antibiotic effects by passing bacterial cultures through a microfluidic channel, enabling precise measurement of microbe concentration and mass over time.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of time
If conventional methods are used to assess antibiotic efficacy, then measurement reliability is maintained, but measurement time is excessive (several hours)
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces conventional optical detection systems with a resonant mass measurement system. A microchannel resonator mechanically vibrates at a resonant frequency, and when microbes pass through the channel, they alter the resonant frequency based on their mass. This mechanical resonance approach enables rapid detection within minutes while maintaining high sensitivity for low-concentration microbe detection, resolving the contradiction between speed and detection capability.
2Loss of time
If conventional incubation methods are used, then accurate growth assessment is achieved, but pre-measurement incubation time is excessive
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary detection by measuring the resonant frequency of the microchannel before and during microbe passage. This allows real-time monitoring of microbe concentration and growth without requiring extended pre-incubation periods. The resonant mass measurement captures growth dynamics as they occur, enabling accurate growth assessment within minutes rather than hours.
3Measurement precision
If low concentrations of microorganisms are detected, then diagnostic sensitivity is improved, but detection difficulty increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs mechanical vibration of the microchannel resonator to enhance detection sensitivity. The resonator is driven at its resonant frequency, creating amplified mechanical oscillations that are highly sensitive to mass changes. When even low concentrations of microbes pass through the channel, their mass causes measurable frequency shifts, enabling sensitive detection without complex instrumentation or sample preparation.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables rapid assessment of antibiotic efficacy within a few hours, accurately measuring microbe growth and concentration at low levels, reducing pre-measurement incubation time and providing detailed growth profiles, thus improving diagnostic efficiency and sensitivity.
Implementation Method 1
A plurality of individual microbes may be detected and, optionally, their mass measured, by the effect their mass has on the microchannel's resonant frequency as they pass through the channel, one by one
Implementation Method 2
A bacteria culture, or other cell culture, suspended in a liquid broth, may be passed through a mechanically resonating structure such as a suspended microchannel of appropriate size
Data Source
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AI summary
System and Method for measuring the growth of a bacterial culture and its response to one or more antimicrobials using measurement of mass of individual microbes. Methods include periodic sampling, determining change in mass and concentration, and comparing growth rates of cultures in nutrient broth vs. mixtures containing various antibiotic mixtures. A number of antimicrobials can be compared in one measurement by multiplexing or using multiple sensors to measure in parallel. Growth and antibiotic efficacy can be assessed at low concentrations at the onset of growth, typically within 1 to 2 hours.