Classifications

• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C12—BIOCHEMISTRY; BEER; SPIRITS; WINE; VINEGAR; MICROBIOLOGY; ENZYMOLOGY; MUTATION OR GENETIC ENGINEERING
  • C12Q—MEASURING OR TESTING PROCESSES INVOLVING ENZYMES, NUCLEIC ACIDS OR MICROORGANISMS; COMPOSITIONS OR TEST PAPERS THEREFOR; PROCESSES OF PREPARING SUCH COMPOSITIONS; CONDITION-RESPONSIVE CONTROL IN MICROBIOLOGICAL OR ENZYMOLOGICAL PROCESSES
  • C12Q1/00—Measuring or testing processes involving enzymes, nucleic acids or microorganisms; Compositions therefor; Processes of preparing such compositions
  • C12Q1/02—Measuring or testing processes involving enzymes, nucleic acids or microorganisms; Compositions therefor; Processes of preparing such compositions involving viable microorganisms
  • C12Q1/04—Determining presence or kind of microorganism; Use of selective media for testing antibiotics or bacteriocides; Compositions containing a chemical indicator therefor
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C12—BIOCHEMISTRY; BEER; SPIRITS; WINE; VINEGAR; MICROBIOLOGY; ENZYMOLOGY; MUTATION OR GENETIC ENGINEERING
  • C12Q—MEASURING OR TESTING PROCESSES INVOLVING ENZYMES, NUCLEIC ACIDS OR MICROORGANISMS; COMPOSITIONS OR TEST PAPERS THEREFOR; PROCESSES OF PREPARING SUCH COMPOSITIONS; CONDITION-RESPONSIVE CONTROL IN MICROBIOLOGICAL OR ENZYMOLOGICAL PROCESSES
  • C12Q1/00—Measuring or testing processes involving enzymes, nucleic acids or microorganisms; Compositions therefor; Processes of preparing such compositions
  • C12Q1/34—Measuring or testing processes involving enzymes, nucleic acids or microorganisms; Compositions therefor; Processes of preparing such compositions involving hydrolase
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C12—BIOCHEMISTRY; BEER; SPIRITS; WINE; VINEGAR; MICROBIOLOGY; ENZYMOLOGY; MUTATION OR GENETIC ENGINEERING
  • C12Q—MEASURING OR TESTING PROCESSES INVOLVING ENZYMES, NUCLEIC ACIDS OR MICROORGANISMS; COMPOSITIONS OR TEST PAPERS THEREFOR; PROCESSES OF PREPARING SUCH COMPOSITIONS; CONDITION-RESPONSIVE CONTROL IN MICROBIOLOGICAL OR ENZYMOLOGICAL PROCESSES
  • C12Q2334/00—O-linked chromogens for determinations of hydrolase enzymes, e.g. glycosidases, phosphatases, esterases
  • C12Q2334/20—Coumarin derivatives

Definitions

• Detection of bacteria is important in a variety of industries, including the food and beverage industry. For example, the need to screen food and water for pathogenic bacteria is crucial to ensuring consumer safety. The determination of levels of certain families of bacteria is a commonly used approach to estimating the shelf life and microbial acceptability of food products and hygienic status of the processing equipment and raw materials used in their manufacture. The diagnosis of microbial infections also relies on the detection of the causative organism(s).
• bacteriophage which are viruses that infect bacteria
• the presence of the bacteriophage, the infected bacteria, or the lack thereof, may be detected.
• a target bacteria is detected by infecting the bacteria with a bacteriophage (BP) specific to the bacteria, inactivating the excess BP, and then manipulating the BP-infected bacteria in some manner to detect the presence or absence of the BP as an indirect indication of whether or not the sample originally contained the target bacteria.
• Bacterial "helper cells” can be used to amplify the number of BP-infected bacteria and thereby enhance, e.g., make more rapid, the assay method.
• a common detection method in the final stages of such an assay is to incubate the bacterial helper cells with the BP-infected bacteria and either observe changes in solution turbidity or, alternatively, observe BP plaque formation on an appropriate growth medium.
• U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 09/434,586 (Wicks et al.) describes devices and methods for the detection of bacteria in a sample. Briefly, a sample containing suspect (target) bacteria is infected with a BP specific to the suspect bacteria, the excess BP is inactivated with an antiviral agent, and the BP-infected bacteria are added to bacterial helper cells to amplify the BP and to produce a signal that can be detected visually or with an instrument.
• the BP can be detected by incubating the helper cells on agar and counting the number of BP plaques that are formed.
• ES enzyme substrates
• Utilizing ES indicators could lead to significant advantages over trying to observe changes in solution turbidity or counting plaque formation.
• the use of ES indicators could lead to more convenient, more rapid, and less expensive assay methods.
• the use of traditional soluble ES indicators is generally not possible in such assay methods.
• the soluble ES would undesirably react with enzyme within the intact bacteria cells of both non-target bacteria and, if used, bacterial helper cells and thereby produce unacceptable levels of background signal.
• the present invention solves the problem of the prior art by utilizing enzyme substrates as indicators that have been bonded (i.e., immobilized) to an insoluble solid support.
• enzyme substrates as indicators that have been bonded (i.e., immobilized) to an insoluble solid support.
• immobilized enzyme substrate prevents the enzyme substrate from crossing a bacteria cell wall to react with enzyme within intact bacteria cells. As a result, the enzyme substrate can only react with an enzyme released from a lysed bacteria cell.
• the present invention provides a method of detecting (identifying and/or quantifying) a target bacteriophage.
• the method includes: combining bacteria and a sample of interest to form a reaction mixture; incubating the reaction mixture under conditions effective for any target bacteriophage present in the sample of interest to lyse the bacteria and release enzyme; adding an immobilized enzyme substrate to the reaction mixture; and monitoring the reaction mixture for a detectable signal produced from interaction between the immobilized enzyme substrate and any released enzyme present. Adding the immobilized enzyme substrate to the reaction mixture can occur before or after incubating the reaction mixture.
• This method can involve a qualitative or quantitative determination of bacteriophage in a sample.
• the reaction mixture is plated out on an appropriate growth medium, and the areas emitting the detectable signal are counted.
• a method of detecting (identifying and/or quantifying) target bacteria includes: combining bacteriophage and a sample of interest to form a reaction mixture; incubating the reaction mixture under conditions effective for the bacteriophage to lyse any target bacteria present in the sample of interest and release enzyme; adding an immobilized enzyme substrate to the reaction mixture; and monitoring the reaction mixture for a detectable signal produced from interaction between the immobilized enzyme substrate and any released enzyme present. Adding the immobilized enzyme substrate to the reaction mixture can occur before or after incubating the reaction mixture. This method can involve a qualitative or quantitative determination of bacteria in a sample.
• the present invention provides a method of detecting target bacteria that involves: combining bacteriophage and a sample of interest to form a reaction mixture; allowing the bacteriophage to infect any target bacteria present in the sample of interest; adding an antiviral agent to inactivate any extracellular bacteriophage; adding bacterial helper cells to the reaction mixture; adding an immobilized enzyme substrate to the reaction mixture; incubating the reaction mixture under conditions effective for the bacteriophage to lyse any target bacteria present and the bacterial helper cells and release enzyme; and monitoring the reaction mixture for a detectable signal produced from interaction between the immobilized enzyme substrate and any released enzyme present.
• This method is preferably used for the quantitative determination of bacteria in a sample, although it can also involve a qualitative determination.
• the present invention also provides an immobilized enzyme substrate that includes a porous solid support and an enzyme substrate covalently bonded thereto.
• the present invention provides a method of detecting the presence or absence of bacteriophage or bacteria using an immobilized enzyme substrate (i.e., enzyme reactant).
• an immobilized enzyme substrate i.e., enzyme reactant
• the present invention provides a method that uses enzyme activity for the detection of bacteriophage, which provides an indirect method for the detection of bacteria, or for the detection of bacteria directly.
• the enzyme substrate preferably includes a detectable label that, upon contact with enzyme present in the sample to be tested, produces a change, for example, in the spectral properties of the enzyme substrate or its reaction products resulting from the enzyme reaction. This change is used for the determination of the enzyme activity, and hence, the presence or absence of bacteriophage, and hence bacteria, or bacteria directly.
• the change is a spectral change in the fluorescence radiation of the enzyme substrate, although other spectral changes can be used such as changes in absorption or excitation, for example.
• the enzyme substrate can be immobilized on a variety of solid supports.
• the enzyme substrate is attached to the end of an optical fiber and a photodetector for subsequent signal evaluation is provided, which will measure the signal, e.g., fluorescent light, emitted by the enzyme substrate or its reaction products, upon reaction with an enzyme.
• Suitable photodetectors are photomultipliers, phototransistors and photodiodes.
• the optical fiber is a single fiber, but it may also be configured as a multi-fiber bundle. Solid Support Acceptable supports for use in the present invention can vary widely.
• a support can be porous or nonporous, but is preferably porous. It can be continuous or noncontinuous, flexible or nonflexible.
• a support can be made of a variety of materials including supports made of ceramic, glassy, metallic, organic polymeric materials, or combinations thereof. Such supports can be magnetic, which allows for concentration and intensification of the signal.
• Preferred supports include organic polymeric supports, such as particulate or beaded supports, woven and nonwoven webs (such as fibrous webs), microporous fibers, microporous membranes, hollow fibers or tubes. Woven and nonwoven webs may have either regular or irregular physical configurations of surfaces.
• Porous materials are particularly desirable because they provide large surface areas.
• the porous support can be synthetic or natural, organic or inorganic. Suitable solids with a porous structure having pores of a diameter of at least about 1.0 nanometer (nm) and a pore volume of at least about 0.1 cubic centimeter/gram (cm /g).
• the pore diameter is at least about 30 nm because larger pores will be less restrictive to diffusion.
• the pore volume is at least about 0.5 cmVg for greater potential capacity due to greater surface area surrounding the pores.
• Preferred porous supports include particulate or beaded supports.
• the supports are preferably hydrophilic, and have high molecular weight (preferably, greater than about 5000, and more preferably, greater than about 40,000).
• the hydrophilic polymers are water swellable to allow for greater infiltration of enzyme.
• examples of such supports include cellulose, modified celluloses, agarose, polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), dextrans, amino-modified dextrans, polyacrylamide, modified guar gums, guar gums, xanthan gums, and locust bean gums.
• the support includes a reactive functional group that can be used for coupling to the enzyme substrate, preferably through a spacer group.
• the reactive functional group is capable of undergoing rapid, direct, covalent coupling with the desired spacer group to form derivatized supports.
• the support includes at least one reactive functional group, such as a hydroxyl, carboxyl, sulfhydryl, or amino group that chemically binds to the enzyme substrate, optionally through a spacer group.
• suitable functional groups include N-hydroxysuccinimide esters, sulfonyl esters, iodoacetyl groups, aldehydes, imidazolyl carbamates, and cyanogen bromide activated supports.
• Such functional groups can be provided to a support by a variety of known techniques. For example, a glass surface can be derivatized with aminopropyl triethoxysilane in a known manner.
• Coupling agents are preferably used in bonding the enzyme substrate to a support.
• the coupling agents EDC l-(3-dimethylaminopropyl)-3- ethyl carbodiimide hydrochloride
• HOBt 1-hydroxy-benzotriazole hydrate
• the use of such coupling agents is described in Advanced Organic Chemistry, Jerry March, Wiley InterScience, 4 th Edition, 1992, pp 420-421.
• Spacer groups can also be used for bonding the enzyme substrate to a support.
• Suitable spacer groups include long-chain diamines, such as hexamethylene diamine.
• Immobilization of an enzyme substrate to a support can also occur electrostatically (i.e., ionically), although covalent attachment is preferred.
• immobilization can occur through the interaction between the negatively charged sulphonate groups of an enzyme substrate (e.g., one derivitized with l-hydroxypyrene-3,6,8-trisulphonate) and positively charged surface ammonium groups of an anion exchanger used as a solid support.
• Particularly preferred reactive supports useful in the present invention are supports having azlactone-functional groups on internal and/or external surfaces of such supports. Such reactive groups have an azlactone-functional group of the following formula:
• Azlactone-functional reactive supports are particularly preferred because they are generally stable. They also rapidly and directly covalently couple enzyme substrates, optionally with spacer groups, better and with fewer side reactions (e.g., hydrolysis) than other supports having reactive functional groups. Furthermore, they possess high covalent coupling capacities with nucleophiles. Azlactone-functional reactive supports can be made by a number of methods as disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 5,561,097 (Gleason et al.). Enzyme Substrates A wide variety of enzyme substrates (ES) can be used.
• the enzyme substrates include a group capable of interacting with, or more preferably reacting with, the hydroxyl, amino, or sulfhydryl moiety, for example, of a solid support such that the reaction results in the bonding of the ES to the support.
• the mechanism of bonding to the support does not interfere with the ability of the enzyme to act on the ES or destroy the ability of the ES to produce a signal when acted upon by the enzyme.
• Enzyme substrates include those that interact with enzymes to give a detectable signal. Examples include, but are not limited to, enzyme substrates for bet ⁇ -galactosidase (bet ⁇ -gal), bet ⁇ -glucuronidase, alcohol dehydrogenase or other NAD oxidoreductases, transferases, alkaline phosphatases or other hydrolases, lyases, isomerases, oxidases, gyrases, nucleases (DNases and RNases), and restriction enzymes. Such enzymes are produced by bacteria. Enzyme substrates typically can be polypeptides, carbohydrates (e.g., polysaccharides), or fatty acid derivatives.
• a suitable enzyme substrate preferably includes a detectable label.
• labels include fluorescent, luminescent, and chromogenic labels.
• Preferred labels are fluorescent.
• fluorescent labels include coumarin, fluorescein and fluorescein derivatives.
• lumiescent labels include adamantyl oxirane derivatives.
• chromogenic labels include sulphonphthaleins, sulphonphthalein derivatives, and indoxyl compounds and their derivatives.
• enzyme substrates include coumarin-4-acetic acid 7- -caprylate, coumarin-4-acetic acid 7-O-bet ⁇ -D-glucuronide, and coumarin-4- acetic acid 7-O-bet ⁇ -D-galactopyranoside.
• the immobilized dye resulting from this process is a synthetic reactant for dealkylases (such as galactosidase). Such enzymes will split the ether groups, thereby producing a signal from the immobilized fluorescent dye 7-hydroxy- coumarin-4-acetic acid (i.e., a derivative of the acetic acid- functional dye), which may be detected.
• dealkylases such as galactosidase
• enzyme substrates labeled with a dye can be immobilized on a solid support.
• egg albumin lysozyme can be immobilized on a solid support and then labeled with a fluorescent dye, e.g., fluoresceinisothiocyanate. Upon contact with the enzyme trypsin this enzyme substrate will decompose releasing fluorescein and fluorescein-marked fragments of the lysozyme.
• Suitable target bacteria that can be hosts for bacteriophage and detectable according to the present invention include, but are not limited to, those of the following genera: Escherichia, Enterobacter, Salmonella, Staphylococci, Shigella, Listeria, Aerobacter, Klebsiella, Proteus, Pseudomonas, Streptococcus, Chlamydia, Mycoplasma, Pneumococcus, Neisseria, Clostridium, Bacillus,
• bacteria can also be used as reagents in methods of the present invention.
• the type of bacteriophage that can be detected using the method and immobilized enzyme substrate of the present invention is not limited.
• Suitable target bacteriophage that can interact with host bacteria and be detectable according to the present invention include, but are not limited to, the following: Escherichia phage, Enterobacter phage, Salmonella phage, Staphylococci phage, Shigella phage, Listeria phage, Aerobacter phage, Klebsiella phage, Proteus phage, Pseudomonas phage, Streptococcus phage, Chlamydia phage,
• Mycoplasma phage Pneumococcus phage, Neisseria phage, Clostridium phage, Bacillus phage, Corynebacterium phage, Mycobacterium phage, Campybacter phage, Vibrio phage, Serratia phage, Providencia phage, Chromobacterium phage, Brucella phage, Yersinia phage, Haemophilus phage, Bivrio phage, and Bordetella phage.
• Such phage can also be used as reagents in methods of the present invention. They are typically available from the American Type Culture Collection (ATCC) or can be isolated from nature, and can be used in the form of lyophilized pellets, for example.
• ATCC American Type Culture Collection
• a wide variety of enzymes are produced upon the lysis of bacterial cells using bacteriophage.
• the released enzyme reacts with an immobilized enzyme substrate to give a detectable signal.
• examples include, but are not limited to, beto-galactosidase (bet ⁇ -gal), bet ⁇ -glucuronidase, alcohol dehydrogenase or other NAD oxidoreductases, transferases, alkaline phosphatases or other hydrolases, lyases, isomerases, oxidases, gyrases, nucleases (DNases and RNases), and restriction enzymes.
• the method and immobilized enzyme substrate of the present invention can be used in a variety of assays.
• the immobilized enzyme substrate can be added with bacteriophage to a sample of interest for detecting a target bacteria.
• the bacteriophage chosen is one that will infect and subsequently lyse the bacteria of interest.
• the immobilized enzyme substrate can be added with bacteria to a sample of interest for detecting a target bacteriophage.
• the bacteria chosen is one that is susceptible to (i.e., can be infected and lysed by) the bacteriophage of interest.
• a method of detecting a target bacteriophage includes: combining bacteria and a sample of interest to form a reaction mixture; incubating the reaction mixture under conditions effective for any target bacteriophage present in the sample of interest to lyse the bacteria and release enzyme; adding an immobilized enzyme substrate to the reaction mixture; and monitoring the reaction mixture for a detectable signal produced from interaction between the immobilized enzyme substrate and any released enzyme present. Adding the immobilized enzyme substrate to the reaction mixture can occur before or after incubating the reaction mixture.
• a method of detecting target bacteria includes: combining bacteriophage and a sample of interest to form a reaction mixture; incubating the reaction mixture under conditions effective for the bacteriophage to lyse any target bacteria present in the sample of interest and release enzyme; adding an immobilized enzyme substrate to the reaction mixture; and monitoring the reaction mixture for a detectable signal produced from interaction between the immobilized enzyme substrate and any released enzyme present. Adding the immobilized enzyme substrate to the reaction mixture can occur before or after incubating the reaction mixture.
• bacteriophage for example, the reaction mixture can be plated out on an appropriate growth medium, and the areas emitting the detectable signal are counted. Such areas typically become plagues (i.e., areas of clearing or bacteriophage-derived discontinuity on a lawn of bacterial "helper cells") with sufficient time.
• a standard test method for plaque detection is described in Standard Test Method for Coliphages in Water, ASTM Designation: D4201-82 (Reapproved 1989).
• a quantitative assay for bacteria involves phage amplification to detect bacteria by observing the formation of plaques.
• this method involves: combining bacteriophage and a sample of interest to form a reaction mixture; allowing the bacteriophage to infect any target bacteria present in the sample of interest; adding an antiviral agent to inactivate any extracellular bacteriophage; adding bacterial helper cells to the reaction mixture; adding an immobilized enzyme substrate to the reaction mixture; incubating the reaction mixture under conditions effective for the bacteriophage to lyse any target bacterium present and the bacterial helper cells and release enzyme; and monitoring the reaction mixture for a detectable signal produced from interaction between the immobilized enzyme substrate and any released enzyme present.
• the bacteriophage will be all inactivated by the antiviral agent and no lysing of the bacterial helper cells will occur.
• This method is preferably used for the quantitative determination of bacteria in a sample, although it can also involve a qualitative determination.
• Suitable bacterial helper cells can be the same or different than the target bacteria. Preferably, they are closely related to the target bacteria such that they can be infected by the chosen bacteriophage. Examples of bacterial helper cells include those listed above for the target and reagent bacteria.
• the phage amplification can occur on a wide variety of culture media known to one of skill in the art.
• a culture media includes various nutrients, including a carbon source such as a carbohydrate, and a nitrogen source such as an amino acid or protein hydrolysate.
• the amplification can occur on a solid or semi-solid culture device such as a "PETRIFILM" device as disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 5,958,675 (Wicks et al.)
• the method and immobilized enzyme substrate can be incorporated into the device disclosed in U.S. Patent Application Serial No.
• 09/434,586 (Wicks et al.) filed on November 5, 1999, which includes at least two chambers separated by an activatable seal (i.e., a component, such as a valve, that separates two compartments so as to prevent leakage) wherein upon activation of the seal, the two chambers are in communication.
• an activatable seal i.e., a component, such as a valve, that separates two compartments so as to prevent leakage
• this device is in the form of a tube, which can have a variety of cross-sectional shapes, although other constructions (e.g., rectangular or circular tubes, channels on a flat substrate, or microreplicated structures) are envisioned.
• the device is used in the detection of bacteria (target bacteria) by adding bacteriophage to a test sample to infect the target bacteria in the test sample, killing the extracellular bacteriophage with an antiviral (or mixture of antivirals, such as ferrous salts, cuprous salts, leaf extracts, pomegranate rind extracts, and organic acids, suitable for killing extracellular bacteriophage), neutralizing the antiviral (for example, with a buffer), adding an immobilized ES, and amplifying the bacteriophage by incubating the resulting mixture in the presence of a lawn of bacterial helper cells.
• an antiviral or mixture of antivirals, such as ferrous salts, cuprous salts, leaf extracts, pomegranate rind extracts, and organic acids, suitable for killing extracellular bacteriophage
• neutralizing the antiviral for example, with a buffer
• adding an immobilized ES and amplifying the bacteriophage by incubating the resulting mixture in the presence of
• Such phage amplification assays that use plaque formation as the end-point (and no ES) are known to those of skill in the art and are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,498,525 (Rees et al.).
• an immobilized ES such as described in Example 4 of the present invention, the appearance of a fluorescent signal is an indication that the test sample contained the target bacteria.
• the assay results in the form of a fluorescent signal can be read rapidly, typically within about four hours to about six hours, and confirming at 24 hours, if needed. Conventional methods to enumerate bacteria usually require about 24 hours to about 48 hours of growth.
• a sample (10 g) of azlactone beads (Pierce Chemical Co., Rockford, IL) was derivatized with 1,6-hexanediamine (as described in Example 11 of U.S. Pat. No. 5,561,097) to provide a free amino group at each azlactone site. Approximately 41 mmole amine equivalents were used per ml of azlactone beads suspension. A sample (200 mg) of the derivatized azlactone beads was added to a solution of the fluorogenic substrate coumarin-4-acetic acid l-O- ⁇ et ⁇ -D-galactopyranoside (10 mg, Sigma, St.
• EXAMPLE 2 Enzyme Substrate Bonded to an Insoluble Support in the Presence of E. Coli Cells and Bacteriophage
• the objective of this experiment was to observe the fluorescent signal produced from an enzyme substrate attached to an insoluble support in the presence of E. coli cells, both in the presence and absence of bacteriophage.
• a sample (50 mg of beads) of the enzyme substrate coumarin-4-acetic acid 7-0- bet ⁇ -D-galactopyranoside covalently bonded to the insoluble azlactone beads support (as described in Example 1) was added to Butterfield's buffer (1 ml, pH 7, Fisher Scientific) that contained E.
• coli 625 cells (Silliker Laboratories, Chicago Heights, IL) having an initial concentration of approximately 10 s cells/ml.
• the resulting mixture was incubated for 6-10 hours at 37°C both in the presence and absence of bacteriophage RB33s (10 phage, T4 Laboratory, Evergreen State College, Olympia, WA) that was capable of lysing the E. coli cells.
• a sample of the substrate-beads in Butterfield's buffer medium only was also incubated in the same manner and showed little or no fluorescent signal.
• the incubated medium containing E. coli cells but no bacteriophage showed only a low background level of fluorescence.
• the objective of this experiment was to show that an enzyme substrate (coumarin-4-acetic acid 7-O-bet ⁇ -D-galactopyranoside) covalently bonded to an insoluble support substance (azlactone beads) produces little or low levels of fluorescent signal relative to free coumarin-4-acetic acid 1-O-beta-O- galactopyranoside in solution.
• a sample (about 200 mg of beads) of the enzyme substrate coumarin-4- acetic acid 7-O-bet ⁇ -D-galactopyranoside covalently bonded to the insoluble azlactone beads support (as described in Example 1) was suspended in 500 ⁇ l of sterile water and then 100 ⁇ l of this suspension was added to each of 5 wells of a 96-well plate (Co-Star, V.W.R., Chicago, IL). The quantity of beads was chosen so that hydrolysis of the enzyme substrate would be expected to give a fluorescent signal of about 4000 relative fluorescent units (RFU).
• E. coli 650 or E. coli 651 cells prepared by centrifuging 1 ml of an overnight culture of each bacterium, washing 2X with Butterfield's buffer, and resuspending in 500 ⁇ l of fresh Luria-Bertani (LB) Broth) was then added to the sample wells. The well plates were then incubated at 37°C for up to 6 hours. Changes in the fluorescence of each well were determined using a Cambridge Instruments Model 7620 Fluorescent Microplate Reader (Cambridge Instruments, Boston, MA). Those wells containing beads with covalently bound enzyme substrate gave little or no fluorescence while those that contained the free enzyme substrate in solution showed a marked increase in fluorescent signal (see Table 1).
• a phage amplification device having separate chambers A, B, C, and D is constructed as described in Example 3 of U. S. Pat. Application Serial No. 09/434,586 (Wicks et al.). Center chambers B and C contain antiviral components. Following construction, a pellet of lyophilized E. coli, ATCC 13706 bacteria (approximately 1 x 10 cfu/ml) is added to Chamber D to serve as bacteria "helper cells”. Additionally, a sample (50 mg of beads) of the enzyme substrate coumarin-4- acetic acid 7-0-bet ⁇ -D-galactopyranoside covalently bonded to the insoluble azlactone beads support (as described in Example 1) is added to Chamber D. Chamber A is left empty to receive the test sample and all valves are set initially in a "closed position.”
• the bacteriophage is allowed to adsorb to the bacteria cells for 10 minutes at 37°C in an incubator.
• Valve 1 (between Chambers B and C) is then opened and the antiviral components of Chambers B and C are allowed to mix for 2 minutes at 23°C.
• Non-adsorbed bacteriophage is then inactivated by opening Valve 2 (between Chambers A and B) and allowing the antiviral solution to mix with the contents of Chamber A for 5 minutes at 23°C.
• the resulting solution is then neutralized by opening Valve 3 (between Chambers C and D) and combining the solution with the bacteria "helper cells" pellet and immobilized enzyme substrate in Chamber D for 5 minutes at 23°C.
• the PAD is then incubated at 23 °C for up to 6 hours and changes in fluorescence are determined.
• the fluorescent signal is an indication of E. coli bacteria in the original culture.

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