Rather than sending water samples to laboratories and waiting days for results, this new test can be administered locally to obtain answers within hours, according to new research published by The Royal Society of Chemistry, August 2018.
"Drinking water contaminated with E. coli is a major public health concern," said Sam Nugen, Ph.D., Cornell associate professor of food science.
"These phages can detect their host bacteria in sensitive situations, which means we can provide low-cost bacteria detection assays for field use—like food safety, animal health, bio-threat detection and medical diagnostics."
The luciferase is fused to a carbohydrate (sugar) binder, so that when the bacteriophage finds the E. coli in water, an infection starts, and the fusion enzyme is made.
After the bacteriophage binds to the E. coli, the phage shoots its DNA into the bacteria.
"That is the beginning of the end for the E. coli," said Nugen.
The bacteriophage then lyses (breaks open) the bacterium, releasing the enzyme as well as additional phages to attack other E. coli.
Said Nugen: "This bacteriophage detects an indicator.
"Phage-based detection technologies have the potential to rapidly determine if a water source is safe to drink, a result that serves to immediately improve the quality of life of those in the community through the prevention of disease," he said.
DOI: 10.1039/C8AN00781K