Rospotrebnadzor registered a new test for antibiotic resistance

Scientists of the Central Research Institute of Epidemiology of Rospotrebnadzor registered a test to identify the antibiotic resistance gene methicillin based on CRISPR / Cas technology. This was reported in the press service of the department.

The test system can detect traces of a special gene - mecA - in patients with suspected dangerous infections, including lesions of the brain and spinal cord. The analysis combines two technologies: the traditional PCR test, which finds the gene itself, and the CRISPR/Cas molecular scissors, which confirm its presence with high accuracy.

The main danger of mecA is that it makes bacteria completely immune to a wide range of antibiotics. If this gene is not detected in time, standard treatment will not work.

Rospotrebnadzor stressed that this is the world's first officially approved test system that uses CRISPR / Cas technology to test antibiotic resistance in the laboratory - in vitro. The new development is as accurate as the usual PCR test, and in some cases even surpasses it.