Wendy Joy Williams

US Patent:

20170204448, Jul 20, 2017

Filed:

Mar 29, 2017

Appl. No.:

15/472759

Inventors:

- Franklin Lakes NJ, US
William B. Brasso - Columbia MD, US
Susan M. Kircher - Hanover PA, US
Vanda White - Baltimore MD, US
Song Shi - Reisterstown MD, US
Xiao Mo - Ellicott City MD, US
Tuan-Linh Ngoc Nguyen - Carlisle PA, US
Adrien P. Malick - Sparks MD, US
Jon E. Salomon - Stewartstown PA, US
John D. Mantlo - Sykesville MD, US
Mary R. Votta - White Hall MD, US
Ben Turng - Ellicott City MD, US
Donald R. Callihan - Cockeysville MD, US
Wendy Louise Williams - Windsor PA, US

International Classification:

C12Q 1/04
G01N 33/483

Abstract:

Rapid methods that identify sepsis-causing bacteria or yeast aid the physician in critical therapeutic decision-making, thus decreasing patient mortality rates. The methods described herein employ plating microorganisms directly on to a MALDI-MS plate, adding concentrated formic acid, and identifying the microorganism by mass spectrometry. Optionally, an organic solvent may be combined with the formic acid, or added to the sample before or after the concentrated formic acid is added thereto. The methods enable direct extraction of proteins from microorganisms without the need for liquid protein extraction methods and yields positive identification results for gram-positive bacteria, gram-negative bacteria and yeast in minutes.