Magnetic Bead Assays

PREM participants: Dr. Menake Piyasena and Dr. Frank A. Gomez Support by NSF (DMR-0351848) is appreciated Certain antibiotics bind to specific receptors on bacterial cell walls blocking further growth and eventually leading to the bacterial death. Dr. Menake Piyasena (PREM Post-doc fellow) at CSULA has demonstrated a bead-based technique on a microfluidic format that can be used to monitor bacteria-antibiotic interactions. Proof of concept studies utilized a fluorescent dye labeled peptide that resembled the bacterial cell wall and the antibiotic teicoplanin which was covalently immobilized onto magnetic beads. In a microfluidic channel made of polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), teicoplanin-coated magnetic beads were packed and the binding of injected fluorescent peptide was monitored via fluorescent microscopy. The antibiotic-peptide interaction was further confirmed by flow cytometry and fluorometry. The concept we have developed can be used to monitor bacterial interactions with other drugs and also as a device for pathogen detection. MagneticBeadAssays.JPG