Temperature-Enhanced mcr-1 Colistin Resistance Gene Detection with Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy Biosensors

Anal Chem. 2021 Apr 20;93(15):6025-6033. doi: 10.1021/acs.analchem.0c00666. Epub 2021 Apr 5.

Abstract

Antibiotic resistance is now one of the biggest threats humankind is facing, as highlighted in a declaration by the General Assembly of the United Nations in 2016. In particular, the growing resistance rates of Gram-negative bacteria cause increasing concerns. The occurrence of the easily transferable, plasmid-encoded mcr-1 colistin resistance gene further worsened the situation, significantly enhancing the risk of the occurrence of pan-resistant bacteria. There is therefore a strong demand for new rapid molecular diagnostic tests for the detection of mcr-1 gene-associated colistin resistance. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) is a well-suited method for rapid antimicrobial resistance detection as it enables rapid, label-free target detection in a cost-efficient manner. Here, we describe the development of an EIS-based mcr-1 gene detection test, including the design of mcr-1-specific peptide nucleic acid probes and assay specificity optimization through temperature-controlled real-time kinetic EIS measurements. A new flow cell measurement setup enabled for the first time detailed real-time, kinetic temperature-controlled hybridization and dehybridization studies of EIS-based nucleic acid biosensors. The temperature-controlled EIS setup allowed single-nucleotide polymorphism discrimination. Target hybridization at 60 °C enhanced the perfect match/mismatch (PM/MM) discrimination ratio from 2.1 at room temperature to 3.4. A hybridization and washing temperature of 55 °C further increased the PM/MM discrimination ratio to 5.7 by diminishing the mismatch signal during the washing step while keeping the perfect match signal. This newly developed mcr-1 gene detection test enabled the direct, specific label, and amplification-free detection of mcr-1 gene harboring plasmids from Escherichia coli.

MeSH terms

  • Anti-Bacterial Agents / pharmacology
  • Biosensing Techniques*
  • Colistin / pharmacology
  • Dielectric Spectroscopy
  • Drug Resistance, Bacterial / genetics
  • Escherichia coli Proteins* / genetics
  • Microbial Sensitivity Tests
  • Plasmids
  • Temperature

Substances

  • Anti-Bacterial Agents
  • Escherichia coli Proteins
  • Colistin