Rapid Detection of Pseudomonas aeruginosa Biofilms via Enzymatic Liquefaction of Respiratory Samples

Respiratory infections caused by multi-drug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa often yield poor outcomes if not detected right away. However, detecting this pathogen in respiratory samples with a rapid diagnostic test is challenging because the protective biofilms created by the pathogen are themselves surrounded by a high-viscosity sputum matrix. Here, we introduce a method for liquefying respiratory samples and disrupting bacterial biofilms on the spot within a minute. It relies on the generation of oxygen bubbles by bacterial catalase through the addition of hydrogen peroxide. When coupled with a mobile biosensor made of paper, the resulting diagnostic kit was able to detect P. aeruginosa infections in sputa from patients with excellent sensitivity and specificity within 8 min. The quick turnaround time along with few infrastructure requirements make this method ideal for the rapid screening of P. aeruginosa infections at the point of care.