Diagnosing High Fatality Sepsis Within 2-3 Hours... Securing the Golden Time

UNIST-Bundang Seoul National University Research Team Develops Early Diagnosis Method for Blood Bacterial Infection

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-su] A technology capable of diagnosing sepsis, a blood bacterial infection with a high fatality rate, within 3 hours has been developed. This breakthrough drastically shortens the diagnosis time, which previously took up to 2 to 3 days, allowing for timely treatment during the golden hour.

Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST), in collaboration with the research team from Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, announced on the 7th that they have developed a diagnostic chip technology that rapidly detects infectious bacteria in the blood and demonstrated its clinical utility using animal models and blood samples from patients with bacterial infections.

Determining the presence of bacteria in the blood (bacteremia) is essential to reduce the mortality rate of sepsis, a condition that worsens due to bacterial infection. Sepsis, a systemic inflammatory response, is one of the top ten causes of death due to its high fatality rate, but it can be completely cured if detected early. However, the widely used blood culture method to diagnose bacterial infection takes at least a day. Additional tests and time were required to identify the causative bacteria for accurate treatment.

The research team combined microfluidic chip technology with genetic material detection (FISH) technology to develop a method that can identify the type of causative bacteria within 3 hours. Blood flows through a chip about the size of a fingertip, where bacteria in the blood are separated and concentrated, then detected using FISH technology. The FISH probe binds to the genetic material (nucleic acid sequence) of specific bacteria, causing fluorescence. By observing this fluorescence change, the presence of specific bacterial infections can be determined. Furthermore, by comparing fluorescence intensity, not only the infection status but also the quantity of the bacteria can be measured.

Using this diagnostic technology, the research team successfully quantitatively detected bacteria in the blood of sepsis-suspected patients who tested negative with conventional diagnostic methods. Thanks to magnetic nanoparticles inside the microfluidic chip, bacteria can be rapidly separated and concentrated from the blood. The particle surfaces are coated with immune proteins that bind only to bacteria, and bacteria are separated using a magnetic field (magnet) in this state.

The research team explained, “We have developed a fast and simple test that complements the drawbacks of conventional blood culture methods, which took more than a day, and complex genome-based diagnostic tests. Although genome-based tests like PCR are faster than blood cultures, they still require time and complex processes for genome extraction and amplification. This technology significantly reduces time and simplifies the testing process through rapid bacterial separation, concentration, and immediate detection.” They also added, “We plan to further improve the types and accuracy of FISH probes and develop devices suitable for use in medical settings,” and “This technology could also be applied to detecting antibiotic-resistant bacteria and diagnosing antibiotic susceptibility.”

The research results were published on the 18th in the international academic journal Small Methods.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.