A microdevice to screen for bacteria that inhibit pathogens

What is it about?

Beneficial bacteria can be used to protect a host from pathogen infection. Finding new strains of bacteria that inhibit a specific pathogen often requires direct observation of interactions between the pathogen and thousands of different candidate strains. Standard lab methods of observation are slow and laborious, making the process difficult. The device and experimental methodology described can expedite this process so strains with the strongest levels of pathogen inhibition can be rapidly identified from larger collections of bacteria, all in a single experiment. Those strains are selectively removed from the device with a light-based extraction method allowing for further genomic and phenotypic characterization.

Featured Image

Photo by CDC on Unsplash

Photo by CDC on Unsplash

Why is it important?

Discovering new and novel strains of bacteria that protect against emerging pathogens is important in many sectors. In agriculture, new strains can advance biocontrol strategies to better protect crops against plant pathogens. In health, novel strains of bacteria can advance probiotic therapies and produce new antibiotics in the fight against antibiotic resistance. This microdevice has the potential to accelerate the discovery process by providing rapid, cost-effective, high-throughput screening of bacterial collections for strains that best inhibit pathogen growth, breaking down barriers that currently limit discovery.

Perspectives