The problem of rapid identification of pathogenic bacteria in the environment remains unsolved. The CDC estimates that each year 4,000 Americans die, and millions become sick, from poultry and meat tainted by bacteria, such as E. coli or Salmonella. Recent E. coli outbreaks in Japan, and at Jack-in-the-Box restaurants, show that lives could be saved if rapid identification was possible, in order to: (1) eliminate the pathogen source, and (2) take appropriate medical countermeasures. Recently, the Army's ERDEC published that MALDI-TOF-MS of either proteinaceous extracts, or of entire cells, has a high potential for specific identification of bacteria feared as biowarfare agents. Genus-, species-, and strain- specific protein biomarkers in the MALDI-TOF spectra were reported for Bacillus anthracis, Yersinia pestis, and Brucella melitensis. MALDI-TOF-MS measurements per se take less than 1 minute. Thus, bacteria identification can be fast provided the sample preparation protocol is rapid. ProteiGene, Inc. will research MALDI-TOF-MS for rapid protein biomarker identification of pathogenic bacteria - in Phase I particularly E. coli. ProteiGene will determine the optimal sample preparation and measurement conditions for obtaining reliable biomarker identification, and determine a pattern of MALDI-TOF-MS peaks which uniquely identify E. coli, and distinguish it from other bacterial species.
The potential for commercialization of this method to applications such as those involved in bacterial sampling of food products, to the water supply and to various infectious diseases is very high.
