Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings
Methods and Systems for the Rapid Detection of Microorganisms Using Recombinant Infectious Agents to Express an Indicator Subunit

Abstract:

Disclosed herein are methods and systems for rapid detection of microorganisms such as bacteria in a sample. A genetically modified bacteriophage is also disclosed which comprises an indicator gene encoding one subunit of an indicator protein. The specificity of the bacteriophage allows detection of a particular bacteria of interest and an indicator signal may be amplified to optimize assay sensitivity.