A United States-based startup, T2 Biosystems, is developing a test that uses magnetic nanoparticles to detect blood-borne infections in hours. Conventional lab methods can take days. The company’s first device will target Candida, a fungus that is the third-most-common cause of hospital-acquired infections. About 60,000 patients a year contract candidemia and about 40 percent die from it. Identifying the cause of an infection quickly can help a patient to be put on the correct antibiotics sooner. Studies have shown that intervening in 12 hours instead of a few days reduces candidemia mortality rates to 11 percent. The technology uses iron-oxide nanoparticles that bind to specific biomarkers; then uses a miniature magnetic system to detect the binding. The company’s nanoparticle labels can be tailored to detect a wide variety of pathogens, as well as cancer cells and other biomarkers, including hormones. Clinical trials, which will involve samples from actual patients, are in the works. The company plans to finalize the detection system this summer and seek approval for the machinery and the Candida test from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration next year. The article can be viewed online at the link below.
http://www.technologyreview.com/biomedicine/37407/page1/