HKBU Scholars Invent World-First Multidimensional System for Rapid Antibiotic Resistance Testing and Analysis

HONG KONG, January 17, 2019 /PRNewswire/ --

Researchers from the Department of Chemistry at Hong Kong Baptist University (HKBU) have invented the world's first multidimensional antimicrobial susceptibility testing (AST) system. The new technology can provide information about drug resistant pathogens present in patients, enabling doctors to accurately determine the effectiveness and appropriate dosage of antibiotics needed for effective treatment.

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The new fully-automated system is 10-20 times faster, more accurate and can also be run at a much lower cost than the current AST methods which are only available in professional medical laboratories. It is expected that the invention will aid diagnosis by providing doctors with a precise prescription which will significantly reduce the chance of antibiotic abuse or misuse. The team is planning to commercialise the system so that more people can benefit from the development.

In order to accurately test and analyse antibiotic resistance, the team fabricated a hydrogel microfluidic chip which simulates the drug diffusion process and the killing of pathogenic bacteria inside the human body. The system is simple to operate and only requires a small amount of the patient's body fluid, such as blood or saliva. Once unwanted substances have been removed, the sample fluid is placed on the chip, and is then treated with different antibiotics. After about four hours, the system indicates the effectiveness of the antibiotic treatment and whether it is needed. Due to the chip's multidimensional properties, multiple variables can be introduced simultaneously, such as different antibiotics, nutrients and immunologic substances. Automated microscopic observation of bacterial growth also enables users to determine the most appropriate type, or the best combination, of different types of antibiotics and the required dosage for treatment. 

The research team is led by Dr Ren Kangning, Assistant Professor in the Department of Chemistry at HKBU. The team members include PhD students Sun Han, Chan Chiu-wing and Hu Chong, MPhil student Wang Yisu, Research Assistant Liu Zhengzhi, and Professor Niaz Banaei, Director of the Clinical Microbiology Laboratory at Stanford University, USA.

Dr Ren said that currently clinical doctors assess a patient's suspected bacterial infections according to his/her experience. They then decide whether to prescribe antibiotics, tailoring the treatment and type of antibiotic to be applied accordingly. If the patient does not recover having taken the medicine, the doctor will reassess or use another antibiotic. Currently there are ASTs available for doctors to assess the patients' antimicrobial susceptibility but it takes a few days to obtain the results.