Comparing recovering efficiency of immunomagnetic separation and centrifugation of mycobacteria in metalworking fluids

The accurate detection and enumeration of Mycobacterium immunogenum in metalworking fluids (MWFs) is imperative from an occupational health and industrial fluids management perspective. We report here a comparison of immunomagnetic separation (IMS) coupled to flow-cytometric enumeration, with traditional centrifugation techniques for mycobacteria in a semisynthetic MWF. This immunolabeling involves the coating of laboratory-synthesized nanometer-scale magnetic particles with protein A, to conjugate a primary antibody (Ab), specific to Mycobacterium spp. By using magnetic separation and flow-cytometric quantification, this approach enabled much higher recovery efficiency and fluorescent light intensities in comparison to the widely applied centrifugation technique. This IMS technique increased the cell recovery efficiency by one order of magnitude, and improved the fluorescence intensity of the secondary Ab conjugate by 2-fold, as compared with traditional techniques. By employing nanometer-scale magnetic particles, IMS was found to be compatible with flow cytometry (FCM), thereby increasing cell detection and enumeration speed by up to two orders of magnitude over microscopic techniques. Moreover, the use of primary Ab conjugated magnetic nanoparticles showed better correlation between epifluorescent microscopy counts and FCM analysis than that achieved using traditional centrifugation techniques. The results strongly support the applicability of the flow-cytometric IMS for microbial detection in complex matrices.

     

Detection of Cryptosporidium oocysts in water: techniques for generating precise recovery data

When determining the recovery efficiency of a procedure for the detection of Cryptosporidium or the removal efficiency of a treatment process, it is necessary to accurately enumerate a 'seed dose'. Conventional techniques for this are highly variable and consequently, can result in misleading data. In this study, a flow cytometric method was developed for the production of suspensions of Cryptosporidium oocysts in which the number of organisms could be precisely determined. A Becton Dickinson FACScalibur flow cytometer was employed to produce oocyst suspensions containing 100 oocysts. Analysis of these suspensions resulted in a mean dose of 99.5 oocysts (S.D. = 1.1, %cv = 1.1). These results indicate that the use of such suspensions to seed test systems generates far more accurate data than is presently possible using conventional techniques. In addition, the use of immunomagnetic separation (IMS) for the isolation of oocysts from three different water matrices, after seeding with oocysts counted using flow cytometry, was investigated. The recovery efficiency of the IMS procedure was found to be high, with the percentage recovery of oocysts ranging from 82.3 to 86.3%, and the use of precise numbers of oocysts allowed accurate recovery efficiency data to be generated. A laser scanning instrument (ChemScan RDI) was employed for the rapid detection and enumeration of oocysts after capture using membrane filtration. This technique was found to be faster and easier to perform than conventional epifluorescence microscopy. These findings demonstrate that the ChemScan RDI system may be used as alternative procedure for the routine examination of IMS supernatant fluids for the presence of Cryptosporidium.     

Sensitive detection of Escherichia coli O157:H7 in food and water by immunomagnetic separation and solid-phase laser cytometry

Rapid, direct methods are needed to assess active bacterial populations in water and foods. Our objective was to determine the efficiency of bacterial detection by immunomagnetic separation (IMS) and the compatibility of IMS with cyanoditolyl tetrazolium chloride (CTC) incubation to determine respiratory activity, using the pathogen Escherichia coli O157:H7. Counterstaining with a specific fluorescein-conjugated anti-O157 antibody (FAb) following CTC incubation was used to allow confirmation and visualization of bacteria by epifluorescence microscopy. Broth-grown E. coli O157:H7 was used to inoculate fresh ground beef (<17% fat), sterile 0.1% peptone, or water. Inoculated meat was diluted and homogenized in a stomacher and then incubated with paramagnetic beads coated with anti-O157 specific antibody. After IMS, cells with magnetic beads attached were stained with CTC and then an anti-O157 antibody-fluorescein isothiocyanate conjugate and filtered for microscopic enumeration or solid-phase laser cytometry. Enumeration by laser scanning permitted detection of ca. 10 CFU/g of ground beef or <10 CFU/ml of liquid sample. With inoculated meat, the regression results for log-transformed respiring FAb-positive counts of cells recovered on beads versus sorbitol-negative plate counts in the inoculum were as follows: intercept = 1.06, slope = 0.89, and r2 = 0. 95 (n = 13). The corresponding results for inoculated peptone were as follows: intercept = 0.67, slope = 0.88, and r2 = 0.98 (n = 24). Recovery of target bacteria on beads by the IMS-CTC-FAb method, compared with recovery by sorbitol MacConkey agar plating, yielded greater numbers (beef, 6.0 times; peptone, 3.0 times; water, 2.4 times). Thus, within 5 to 7 h, the IMS-CTC-FAb method detected greater numbers of E. coli O157 cells than were detected by plating. The results show that the IMS-CTC-FAb technique with enumeration by either fluorescence microscopy or solid-phase laser scanning cytometry gave results that compared favorably with plating following IMS.     

Quantitative and qualitative comparison of density-based purification methods for detection of Cryptosporidium oocysts in turbid environmental matrices

Purification methods for Cryptosporidium oocysts are usually selected on the basis of recovery yield, but the amount of particulate debris in environmental matrices could limit efficiency of oocyst detection by microscopic examination or PCR detection. Previous studies have shown that the standard immunomagnetic separation (IMS) procedure would not be the most suitable method for oocyst purification from turbid matrices. We compared the capacity of Percoll-sucrose flotation and six other density-based purification methods to achieve selective separation of Cryptosporidium oocysts from particulate debris. Rate of oocyst recovery and particulate loading in the purified suspensions were chosen as comparison criteria for the different purification methods. In most earlier studies, the chemical treatments employed to obtain a purified oocyst suspension modify the surface properties of oocysts in spiked samples. Assuming this produces unrealistic conditions affecting the evaluation of purification methods, we performed the present study with native oocysts. Flotation and gradient procedures were tested with and without formaldehyde ethyl acetate (FEA) separation. FEA separation was found to be unsuitable. Filtration and Percoll gradient did not allow selective oocyst separation from debris. Among the purification methods suitable for routine microscopic examination, Percoll-sucrose flotation provided the best recovery rates. For automated enumeration systems or PCR detection, potassium bromide and especially Nycodenz gradients appeared to be the most suitable purification methods. Potassium bromide and Nycodenz gradients provided the best balance between oocyst recovery and particulate load.     

Comparison of ATP and in vivo bioluminescence for assessing the efficiency of immunomagnetic sorbents for live Escherichia coli O157:H7 cells

AIMS: To develop methods to assess the efficiency of immunomagnetic separation (IMS). METHODS AND RESULTS: The capturing efficiency of biosorbents for Escherichia coli O157:H7, constructed using streptavidin-coated magnetic beads and biotinylated antibodies, was tested using both in vivo and ATP bioluminescence. Both methods were suitable for the enumeration of bacteria captured by the biosorbents. The level of both ATP and in vivo bioluminescence depended on the media used, but was unaffected by the magnetic beads. The capture efficiency depended on time and sample volume, but did not depend on the length of spacer arm of the biotinylation agent. For cell concentrations of 相似文献   

Sensitive Detection of Escherichia coli O157:H7 in Food and Water by Immunomagnetic Separation and Solid-Phase Laser Cytometry

Rapid, direct methods are needed to assess active bacterial populations in water and foods. Our objective was to determine the efficiency of bacterial detection by immunomagnetic separation (IMS) and the compatibility of IMS with cyanoditolyl tetrazolium chloride (CTC) incubation to determine respiratory activity, using the pathogen Escherichia coli O157:H7. Counterstaining with a specific fluorescein-conjugated anti-O157 antibody (FAb) following CTC incubation was used to allow confirmation and visualization of bacteria by epifluorescence microscopy. Broth-grown E. coli O157:H7 was used to inoculate fresh ground beef (<17% fat), sterile 0.1% peptone, or water. Inoculated meat was diluted and homogenized in a stomacher and then incubated with paramagnetic beads coated with anti-O157 specific antibody. After IMS, cells with magnetic beads attached were stained with CTC and then an anti-O157 antibody-fluorescein isothiocyanate conjugate and filtered for microscopic enumeration or solid-phase laser cytometry. Enumeration by laser scanning permitted detection of ca. 10 CFU/g of ground beef or <10 CFU/ml of liquid sample. With inoculated meat, the regression results for log-transformed respiring FAb-positive counts of cells recovered on beads versus sorbitol-negative plate counts in the inoculum were as follows: intercept = 1.06, slope = 0.89, and r² = 0.95 (n = 13). The corresponding results for inoculated peptone were as follows: intercept = 0.67, slope = 0.88, and r² = 0.98 (n = 24). Recovery of target bacteria on beads by the IMS-CTC-FAb method, compared with recovery by sorbitol MacConkey agar plating, yielded greater numbers (beef, 6.0 times; peptone, 3.0 times; water, 2.4 times). Thus, within 5 to 7 h, the IMS-CTC-FAb method detected greater numbers of E. coli O157 cells than were detected by plating. The results show that the IMS-CTC-FAb technique with enumeration by either fluorescence microscopy or solid-phase laser scanning cytometry gave results that compared favorably with plating following IMS.     

Development of a method for the detection of waterborne microsporidia

Microsporidia are obligate intracellular pathogens capable of infecting humans. There is credible evidence to suggest that microsporidial infections may be transmitted through consumption of spores in contaminated water; however, methods to detect this pathogen have not been standardized and microsporidia occurrence studies have not been conducted. Concentration of spores by continuous flow centrifugation (CFC), purification using immunomagnetic separation (IMS), and detection by either microscopy or real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) were evaluated for detection of Encephalitozoon intestinalis spores in seeded water samples. Recovery efficiency of CFC using microscopic detection ranged from 38.7-75.5% in filtered tap water. Using an indirect IMS method, 78.8-90.2% of seeded spores were recovered in ultrapure water (18 M Omega); however, the lack of a specific monoclonal antibody and the presence of other particulates interfered with the IMS assay in some turbid samples. Despite low recovery efficiencies and the detectable presence of PCR inhibitors in each of the samples, a combination of CFC concentration, indirect IMS, and real-time PCR produced a positive test result in six of ten natural water samples (turbidity 0.1-28.9 NTU) at a seeding level of 50 spores/L.     

Digital quantification using amplified single-molecule detection

We describe a scheme for biomolecule enumeration by converting nanometer-scale specific molecular recognition events mediated by rolling-circle amplification to fluorescent micrometer-sized DNA molecules amenable to discrete optical detection. Our amplified single-molecule detection (SMD) approach preserves the discrete nature of the molecular population, allowing multiplex detection and highly precise quantification of molecules over a dynamic range of seven orders of magnitude. We apply the method for sensitive detection and quantification of the bacterial pathogen Vibrio cholerae.     

Methods for the recovery, isolation and detection of Cryptosporidium oocysts in wastewaters

This correspondence describes the successful development of methods for the recovery, isolation and detection of Cryptosporidium oocysts in wastewater and biosolids. Wastewater from one plant was used to optimize methods in raw influent as well as primary, secondary and tertiary effluents. Raw influents and primary effluents were concentrated using centrifugation followed by isolation of Cryptosporidium oocysts using immunomagnetic separation (IMS) and detection of recovered organisms using epifluorescence microscopy. Mean oocyst recovery in raw influent was 29.2+/-12.8% and 38.8+/-27.9% in primary effluent at three sample volumes tested. Secondary and tertiary effluents were analyzed using a modified Method 1622 resulting in mean oocyst recoveries of 53.0+/-19.2% and 67.8+/-4.4%, respectively. In biosolids with approximately 10% total solids, mean oocyst recovery was 43.9+/-10.1% using IMS with a 5 g (wet weight) sample size. Due to the variability in these matrices, an internal microbiological standard was incorporated to serve as a tool for method performance.     

Flow cytometry of leukocytes after intravenous fluorescein angiography

Blood specimens were obtained for T lymphocyte analysis from patients undergoing intravenous fluorescein angiography (IVFA). Mononuclear cells were prepared by differential density centrifugation and analyzed by flow cytometry (FCM). Prior to IVFA, there was very little autofluorescence in the mononuclear cell population. After IVFA, there was an increase in the fluorescence of the mononuclear cells. Though barely visible by fluorescence microscopy, the fluorescence was uniformly distributed throughout the cytoplasm. By FCM, fluorescein was detected in 27% of the lymphocytes, 61% of the monocytes, and 75% of the granulocytes. Care must be taken when interpreting flow-cytometric lymphocyte subset data because of the increased nonspecific fluorescence of mononuclear cells in patients who have undergone IVFA.     

Rapid detection of total and viable Legionella pneumophila in tap water by immunomagnetic separation,double fluorescent staining and flow cytometry

We developed a rapid detection method for Legionella pneumophila (Lp) by filtration, immunomagnetic separation, double fluorescent staining, and flow cytometry (IMS‐FCM method). The method requires 120 min and can discriminate ‘viable’ and ‘membrane‐damaged’ cells. The recovery is over 85% of spiked Lp SG 1 cells in 1 l of tap water and detection limits are around 50 and 15 cells per litre for total and viable Lp, respectively. The method was compared using water samples from house installations in a blind study with three environmental laboratories performing the ISO 11731 plating method. In 53% of the water samples from different taps and showers significantly higher concentrations of Lp were detected by flow cytometry. No correlation to the plate culture method was found. Since also ‘viable but not culturable’ (VNBC) cells are detected by our method, this result was expected. The IMS‐FCM method is limited by the specificity of the used antibodies; in the presented case they target Lp serogroups 1–12. This and the fact that no Lp‐containing amoebae are detected may explain why in 21% of all samples higher counts were observed using the plate culture method. Though the IMS‐FCM method is not yet fit to completely displace the established plating method (ISO 11731) for routine Lp monitoring, it has major advantages to plating and can quickly provide important insights into the ecology of this pathogen in water distribution systems.     

An improved cell separation technique for marine subsurface sediments: applications for high‐throughput analysis using flow cytometry and cell sorting

Development of an improved technique for separating microbial cells from marine sediments and standardization of a high‐throughput and discriminative cell enumeration method were conducted. We separated microbial cells from various types of marine sediment and then recovered the cells using multilayer density gradients of sodium polytungstate and/or Nycodenz, resulting in a notably higher percent recovery of cells than previous methods. The efficiency of cell extraction generally depends on the sediment depth; using the new technique we developed, more than 80% of the total cells were recovered from shallow sediment samples (down to 100 meters in depth), whereas ～ 50% of cells were recovered from deep samples (100–365 m in depth). The separated cells could be rapidly enumerated using flow cytometry (FCM). The data were in good agreement with those obtained from manual microscopic direct counts over the range 10⁴–10⁸ cells cm^?3. We also demonstrated that sedimentary microbial cells can be efficiently collected using a cell sorter. The combined use of our new cell separation and FCM/cell sorting techniques facilitates high‐throughput and precise enumeration of microbial cells in sediments and is amenable to various types of single‐cell analyses, thereby enhancing our understanding of microbial life in the largely uncharacterized deep subseafloor biosphere.     

Detection and recovery rates achieved using direct plate and enrichment/immunomagnetic separation methods for Escherichia coli O157:H7 in minced beef and on bovine hide

AIMS: To assess the detection and recovery rates achieved with commonly used cultural methods for the enumeration and recovery of Escherichia coli O157:H7 from minced beef and bovine hide. METHODS AND RESULTS: Minced beef and bovine hide were inoculated with varying concentrations (log(10) 1.58-2.58 CFU g(-1) and log(10) 2.42-4.49 CFU 100 cm(2) respectively) of E. coli O157:H7 and recovered using a direct plate method or an enrichment/immunomagnetic separation (IMS) method and then plated onto SMAC or SMAC-CT in both cases. The direct plate method detected the pathogen consistently from minced beef samples with an average recovery of 69.2-91.2%. From faecal material on the bovine hide the recovery of the pathogen ranged from 1.80 to 64.5% with fresh faeces depending on the inocula while from dried faeces on hide the results ranged from no recovery at all to 25.1%. Enrichment/IMS recovered E. coli O157:H7 at all inocula levels tested in minced beef while the pathogen was only detected consistently at an average inocula level of log(10) 2.73 CFU 100 cm(2) from fresh faeces and log(10) 4.49 CFU 100 cm(2) from dried faeces on bovine hide. CONCLUSIONS: The direct count enumeration method for E. coli O157:H7 underestimated the numbers of pathogens present. The enrichment/IMS procedure consistently detected the pathogen from minced beef but did not always detect E. coli O157:H7 from faeces on bovine hide. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: Overall this study highlights that any microbial data, used in either predictive microbiology or risk assessment, must take account of the sensitivity and associated performance of the methods employed, in order to make an accurate reflection of the true microbiology of the examined sample.     

Development of an IMS-PCR assay for the detection of Mycobacterium avium ssp. paratuberculosis in water

AIMS: To develop a sensitive detection method for Mycobacterium avium ssp. paratuberculosis (Map) in water by modifying and optimizing an existing immunomagnetic separation polymerase chain reaction (IMS-PCR) technique. METHODS AND RESULTS: Sterile distilled water (50 ml) spiked with 10(6) Map ml(-1) was subjected to either filtration (0.45 microm pore size) followed directly by IS900 PCR (method 1) or centrifugation (2500 g for 20 min) followed by IMS and IS900 PCR (method 2). Method 2 permitted the detection of Map, whereas method 1 did not. Method 2 was then optimized by adding different concentrations of Tween 80 (0.05, 0.1, 0.2, 0.4 and 0.6% v/v) to water samples spiked with Map (10(6)-1 CFU ml(-1)) prior to centrifugation, and assessing the impact of this action on the detection sensitivity of subsequent IMS-PCR. The optimum Tween 80 concentration was found to be 0.4%, which permitted the detection of 10 Map CFU ml(-1) in spiked water samples by IMS-PCR. CONCLUSIONS: This method will be used to determine the incidence of Map in water destined for domestic use in future studies. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: A sensitive method for the detection of Map in water involving addition of 0.4% Tween 80, centrifugation and IMS-PCR was developed.     

Strategy for selection of methods for separation of bioparticles from particle mixtures

The desired product of bioprocesses is often produced in particulate form, either as an inclusion body (IB) or as a crystal. Particle harvesting is then a crucial and attractive form of product recovery. Because the liquid phase often contains other bioparticles, such as cell debris, whole cells, particulate biocatalysts or particulate by-products, the recovery of product particles is a complex process. In most cases, the particulate product is purified using selective solubilization or extraction. However, if selective particle recovery is possible, the already high purity of the particles makes this downstream process more favorable. This work gives an overview of typical bioparticle mixtures that are encountered in industrial biotechnology and the various driving forces that may be used for particle-particle separation, such as the centrifugal force, the magnetic force, the electric force, and forces related to interfaces. By coupling these driving forces to the resisting forces, the limitations of using these driving forces with respect to particle size are calculated. It shows that centrifugation is not a general solution for particle-particle separation in biotechnology because the particle sizes of product and contaminating particles are often very small, thus, causing their settling velocities to be too low for efficient separation by centrifugation. Examples of such separation problems are the recovery of IBs or virus-like particles (VLPs) from (microbial) cell debris. In these cases, separation processes that use electrical forces or fluid-fluid interfaces show to have a large potential for particle-particle separation. These methods are not yet commonly applied for large-scale particle-particle separation in biotechnology and more research is required on the separation techniques and on particle characterization to facilitate successful application of these methods in industry.     

Rapid direct determination using combined separation by prepared immunomagnetic and flow cytometry of Flavobacterium psychrophilum

Flavobacterium psychrophilum, the causative agent of bacterial cold-water disease (BCWD), was originally isolated from coho salmon Oncorhychus kisutch in the USA. Bacterial cold-water disease has since been spreading throughout Japan and has caused serious damage to populations of ayu Plecoglossus altivel in many farms and rivers. The rapid method of detecting for F. psuchrophilum is requested, however, traditional methods are laborious because of complicated assay procedures. In this study, a rapid method of detecting F. psychrophilum was developed using a modified method of flow cytometry (FCM) analysis and immunomagnetic separation (IMS). Magnetic iron, in small particles, was prepared by the reaction of a mixture of ferric and ferrous ions under alkaline conditions. The particles were coated with antiserum against F. psychrophilum by dextran. Polyclonal antibodies (anti-F. psychrophilum) conjugated with fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC) were reacted with F. psychrophilum, and then prepared immunomagnetic were applied using IMS, followed by FCM determination. A good correlation was observed between the cell numbers determined by the FCM method and the traditional method in the range of 10(2)-10(8) cells ml(-1). The FCM analysis could count cells within 1min, and the total analysis time, including sample preparation, was less than 2 h.     

Performances of the immunomagnetic separation method for Cryptosporidium in water under various operation conditions.

Immunomagnetic separation (IMS) has been specified as a standard method for the measurement of Cryptosporidium in some countries. In this study, the IMS method was evaluated on the basis of the recovery efficiencies of Cryptosporidium oocysts at various IMS operation conditions. The average recovery for different Cryptosporidium concentrations in deionized water was 82.6 +/- 18.2% (n = 52). No significant change in recovery was observed by altering the debris ratio of the water samples. The efficiency was increased by prolonging the reaction time, and by increasing the amount of immunomagnetic beads. The recoveries of oocysts seeded in an Eppendorf with a small reaction volume were similar to those seeded in glass tubes with 10 times the reaction volume. The recovery efficiency of oocysts was reduced significantly when the reaction buffer was replaced by PBS. In conclusion, this method has good reproducibility and high recovery.     

Rapid detection and enumeration of Giardia lamblia cysts in water samples by immunomagnetic separation and flow cytometric analysis

Giardia lamblia is an important waterborne pathogen and is among the most common intestinal parasites of humans worldwide. Its fecal-oral transmission leads to the presence of cysts of this pathogen in the environment, and so far, quantitative rapid screening methods are not available for various matrices, such as surface waters, wastewater, or food. Thus, it is necessary to establish methods that enable reliable rapid detection of a single cyst in 10 to 100 liters of drinking water. Conventional detection relies on cyst concentration, isolation, and confirmation by immunofluorescence microscopy (IFM), resulting in low recoveries and high detection limits. Many different immunomagnetic separation (IMS) procedures have been developed for separation and cyst purification, so far with variable but high losses of cysts. A method was developed that requires less than 100 min and consists of filtration, resuspension, IMS, and flow cytometric (FCM) detection. MACS MicroBeads were used for IMS, and a reliable flow cytometric detection approach was established employing 3 different parameters for discrimination from background signals, i.e., green and red fluorescence (resulting from the distinct pattern emitted by the fluorescein dye) and sideward scatter for size discrimination. With spiked samples, recoveries exceeding 90% were obtained, and false-positive results were never encountered for negative samples. Additionally, the method was applicable to naturally occurring cysts in wastewater and has the potential to be automated.     

Immunoassay based on carbon nanotubes-enhanced ELISA for Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium

Among the methods used to detect pathogenic bacteria, enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) is one of the most widely used techniques in routine sample analysis. For Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium detection, a typical ELISA yields a sensitivity of 10(6)-10(7)CFU/ml. To enhance the detection sensitivity, single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) was employed in this study as a labelling platform for antibody and horseradish peroxidase (HRP) co-immobilizing. With high proteins recovery after the coupling process, the resulting Ab/SWCNTs/HRP bioconjugate was used in the proof-of-concept ELISA experiments. Limit of detection (LOD) was found to be 10(3) and 10(4)CFU/ml for direct and sandwich ELISA, respectively, when Ab/HRP at 1:400 ratio was used. This figure accounts for 1000-time greater in detection sensitivity when compared to a commercial Ab-HRP conjugate. The Ab/SWCNTs/HRP bioconjugate was tested further in real samples and found a superior activity over the commercial Ab-HRP by showing 100-time greater detection limit.