IKBFU Physicists Use Unique Method to Identify Antibiotic Resistant Tuberculosis Bacteria

The research team of the Laboratory of Modelling Optical Properties of Nanomaterials at the IKBFU Sofia Kovalevskaya Research Centre has identified spectral markers that will be used to determine the antibiotic resistance of Mycobacterium tuberculosis bacteria. Using theoretical methods, the scientists were able to verify and substantiate the experimental Raman spectroscopy data obtained earlier. The physicists hypothesised that cells of certain strains of tuberculosis with varying levels of antibiotic resistance scatter light differently, and studied the general structure of the cell wall of the causative agent of the disease — Koch's bacillus.

Andrey Zyubin, Senior Research Fellow of the IKBFU Research Centre “Fundamental and Applied Photonics. Nanophotonics”, Head of the Sofia Kovalevskaya Research Centre:
Previously, we evaluated the obtained spectra manually. Since the bacterial cell spectrum is complex, it is difficult to understand precisely what you are seeing. Due to the identified spectral markers, we are now able to more accurately tell which cell wall changes can be characteristic of cells with different drug resistance.

In combination with the experimental data, the unique approach will help to develop a rapid and cost-effective diagnostic method for the identification of antibiotic resistant tuberculosis bacterial strains. It could also be used as a basis for a future handheld diagnostic device.

The method still requires further refinement, as Mycobacterium tuberculosis bacteria are very complex. Their cell walls have a multilayer structure. Therefore, it is important to perform comprehensive analyses, identify resistance markers in the bacterial cell and compare the data with a large set of experimental material.

The new technique is based on Raman spectroscopy, DFT-based approach, and molecular docking. The calculations were conducted by specialists of the IKBFU Sofia Kovalevskaya Research Centre.

The findings were published in the reputable Journal of Molecular Structure.