Biologically-enhanced devices for the targeting of bacterial pathogens

分枝杆菌是感染人类和动物的细菌性病原体。它们在饮用水系统中无处不在，易于形成高弹性的生物膜。它们会引起肺部和软组织感染，尤其是儿童。被分枝杆菌污染的水系统也与北美医院的致命感染爆发有关。噬菌体是一种病毒，它与宿主细菌上的受体结合，从而引发感染。这种识别机制是高度特异性的，已被用于细菌分型。此外，这种高特异性使噬菌体成为监测细菌污染的极有希望的平台。噬菌体宿主特异性是由位于其尾部的识别蛋白介导的。在过去的几年里，我们已经开发了分离和生产这些噬菌体识别蛋白的技术，并证明了它们作为检测致病菌的探针的用途。此外，在地下水和封闭水系统中部署原位监测系统时，表面声波传感器显示出若干优势。表面声波传感器本质上是一种被动装置，有利于其工作功率的无线传输。为了使这种传感器能够用于水系统中细菌生物膜形成的现场监测，必须解决几个挑战。首先，典型的压电材料在接触液体时会退化。其次，能够刷新和重复使用表面将是一个重要的好处。最后，传感器的响应应该针对被监测的细菌。该项目将通过以下目标来解决这些挑战：1)开发可适应流体的压电纳米材料，2)设计和实现具有可重复使用能力的表面声波传感器，3)开发和评估作为分枝杆菌生物膜监测探针的噬菌体生物材料，以及4)开发噬菌体增强表面部分，赋予传感器表面这种特异性。鉴于非结核分枝杆菌在加拿大卫生系统中的重要性，该项目将侧重于非结核分枝杆菌。该平台将同样适用于其他许多其他病原体，如

Mycobacteria are bacterial pathogens infecting both humans and animals. They are ubiquitously found in drinking water systems and prone to the formation of highly-resilient biofilms. They cause infections in pulmonary and soft tissue, especially in children. Mycobacteria-contaminated water systems have also been linked to deadly infection outbreaks in North-American hospitals. Bacteriophages are viruses that bind to receptors on their host bacteria in order to initiate infection. This recognition mechanism is highly specific and has been exploited for bacterial typing. In addition, this high specificity makes bacteriophage highly promising platforms for the monitoring of bacterial contamination. Phage-host specificity is mediated by recognition proteins located at their tails. Over last several years, we have developed techniques for the isolation and production of those phage recognition proteins and demonstrated their use as probes for the detection of pathogenic bacteria. Further, surface acoustic wave sensors exhibit several advantages for the deployment of in-situ monitoring systems in ground water and closed water systems. A surface acoustic wave sensor is inherently a passive device conducive to have its operating power delivered wirelessly. Several challenges must be addressed to enable the deployment of such sensors for the in-situ monitoring of bacterial biofilm formation in water systems. First, typical piezoelectric materials employed tend to degrade when exposed to fluids. Second, the ability to refresh and reuse the surface would represent an important benefit. Finally, the sensor response should be made specific to the bacteria being monitored. This project will address these challenges through the following goals: 1) to develop piezoelectric nanomaterials resilient to exposure to fluids, 2) to design and realize surface acoustic wave sensors featuring the ability to be reused, 3) to develop and assess mycophage biomaterials as probes for the monitoring of mycobacteria biofilms, and 4) to develop phage-enhanced surface moieties that impart such specificity to the sensor surface. The project will focus on non-tuberculous mycobacteria given their emerging importance in the Canadian health system. The platform will be equally applicable to other numerous other pathogen such as