Abstract: The COVID19 pandemic, exposed the vulnerability of global healthcare to such unforeseen outbreaks. In fact, COVID19, highlighted the need for a new generation of diagnostic devices that will be affordable, reliable and multifunctional in order to equip clinicians with the necessary “weapons” against similar infectious threats. Ιt is foreseen that Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) [1] will be soon threatening humanity. The main cause of antimicrobial resistance is the overuse or misuse of antibiotics, ranging from incorrect, empirical treatment to excessive use in farming. Sepsis is a deadly health complication of such pathogen infections [2] affecting 48 million people annually. Rapid and evidence-based therapeutic intervention is crucial for sepsis survival. However, available methods for sepsis diagnosis rely on broad physiological parameters and time-consuming blood cultures, making them inappropriate for timely and targeted patient treatment. There is a need, to develop tools that will improve diagnostic speed, accuracy and cost, leading to prompt administration of targeted antibiotics, reducing healthcare costs, and improving patient outcomes. In this context, point-of-care tests (POCT) must enable the acquisition of both pathogen information and host-response information with accuracy almost anywhere with rapid turnaround times [3]. Herein, we review a new versatile diagnostic platform that paves the way for combined culture-free detection of bacteraemia and monitoring the levels of circulating inflammation biomarkers at the point of care. Our technology relies on a plasmonic-augmented silicon photonic biochip, label-free/amplification-free immunoassay and microfluidics to detect and quantify both bacteria and protein biomarkers within minutes and only at a fraction of the cost of standard methods. As a proof-of-concept we focus on the direct detection of Escherichia coli (E.coli), one of the most commonly-encountered pathogen in sepsis, and CRP in a few minutes, in a single multi-sensor biochip compatible with high-volume, microchip manufacturing [4]. The biosensors exploits a functionalized aluminium plasmonic micro-transducer integrated within a silicon nitride photonic waveguide-based Mach-Zehnder Interferometer [5]. The modular nature of the reported biosensing platform makes it scalable and customizable allowing nearly any panel combination of tests to be conducted on the same biochip, enabling simultaneous detection of proteins, bacteria, and viruses at the cost of one disposable cartridge.
Literature: [1] O’neill J., Tackling Drug-resistant Infections Globally: Final Report And Recommendations, May 2016 [2] Inglis T., et al, doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2017.00006 [3] Reddy, B. et al, doi:10.1038/s41551-018-0288-9 [4] Dabos G. et al, doi:10.1038/s41598-018-31736-4. [5] Manolis A. et al, doi:10.1364/OE.383435
