A team of researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati (IIT-G) has developed a portable device to detect bacteria without cell culture or microbiological assays.
Background:
At present, the detection of bacteria in body fluids is done in laboratories. The cells that are derived from the patient are initially cultured or grown so that enough of the bacterial cells are available for microbiological analysis.
However, this technique is extremely time- consuming.
Recent development:
The new portable device uses an Organic Field Effect Transistor (OFET) to instantly detect the charges on the cell walls of bacteria. The rapid detection kits are like those used for blood sugar monitoring.
The OFET is an electronic device that works on the principle that charges in the vicinity of the channels of certain semiconductors can induce a current in them. Thus, the charges on the surface of the bacterium, induces a current in the OFET, which is registered and read.
The team work has been recently patented as well as published in the July 2019 issue of 'Journal of Materials Chemistry of the Royal Society of Chemistry'.
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