Project overview
Ocular surface infectious diseases are the leading cause of unilateral visual loss worldwide. The World Health Organisation estimates that 20 million are losing their eyesight annually. Ocular infections constitute a significant component of this vision loss. Delays in diagnosis, inappropriate antimicrobial use and anti-microbial resistance are all factors for poor visual outcomes. Additionally, the lack of understanding of the immune response during infection results in poor decision-making regarding anti-inflammatory therapy interventions1,2.
In collaboration with NHS Ophthalmology, Molecular Biology (Clinical Experimental Sciences) and iFAST (University Spin-Out commercialising a new rapid Antimicrobial Susceptibility Test), we have developed a novel platform for rapidly assessing ocular surface infections. This test uses microfluidic impedance cytometry to provide a susceptibility profile of a bacterial sample in 2 hours. It has been tested at the UK Health Security Agency on 50 different strains/species against a panel of different antibiotics to develop insights into the mode of action of phage infection3. We have also found that the technology detects cellular immune responses during human ocular infection. The device can detect response to antimicrobial therapy and resistance to therapy. This project has been developed via the University of Southampton Global Network for Anti-Microbial Resistance and Infection Prevention
In collaboration with NHS Ophthalmology, Molecular Biology (Clinical Experimental Sciences) and iFAST (University Spin-Out commercialising a new rapid Antimicrobial Susceptibility Test), we have developed a novel platform for rapidly assessing ocular surface infections. This test uses microfluidic impedance cytometry to provide a susceptibility profile of a bacterial sample in 2 hours. It has been tested at the UK Health Security Agency on 50 different strains/species against a panel of different antibiotics to develop insights into the mode of action of phage infection3. We have also found that the technology detects cellular immune responses during human ocular infection. The device can detect response to antimicrobial therapy and resistance to therapy. This project has been developed via the University of Southampton Global Network for Anti-Microbial Resistance and Infection Prevention
