초록 |
Gram-negative infections are a major cause of serious health conditions, such as cholera infection, pneumonia, and sepsis, and require rapid diagnosis for treatment and to prevent further spread. Gram-negative bacteria are discriminated by the presence of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) on the outer membrane, which can be molecularly targeted for diagnosis or treatment. Herein, we use colistin, a cyclic peptide antimicrobial that specifically binds to LPS, as the targeting ligand for detection of Gram-negative bacteria. We synthesized fluorescent nanoprobes functionalized with colistin, which allow rapid labeling of gram-negative bacteria. The labeling procedure enables differential detection of gram-negative bacteria with high efficiency and specificity. This method shows significant advantages over the conventional, time-consuming culture-based procedures and can be potentially applied as a rapid diagnostic platform in the clinic. |