Abstract

Molecular Fingerprinting of Tuberculosis Using Gold Nanoparticle Chemiresistor Arrays as a POC Diagnostic

Lee Hubble, Research Scientist, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) Australia

Chemiresistor sensor arrays are an emerging molecular fingerprinting technology with the potential for development of low-cost, non-invasive, point-of-care (POC) diagnostics for disease detection. These chemiresistor arrays consist of functionalised gold nanoparticle thin films that can respond to low-molecular weight molecules through changes in their electrical resistance. The responses from an array of chemiresistors provide a unique molecular fingerprint of a sample which can be used as a discrimination, classification, and in some instances quantification tool. Recently, we have demonstrated this technology in the field of bacterial metabolomics for the monitoring of bacterial growth, and for identification and discrimination of different bacterial species. Building on this foundation, we are currently investigating this technology for the molecular fingerprinting of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) in an attempt to identify Mtb-induced changes in tuberculosis (TB)-infected patient body chemistries. To achieve this, researchers from Australia’s Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) and India’s Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) are collaborating to evaluate gold nanoparticle chemiresistor arrays as a TB POC diagnostic under the aegis of the Australia-India Strategic Research Fund (AISRF). In this talk, we will present an overview of the chemiresistor array technology and its evolution toward a POC diagnostic for TB.