An Enzyme-Mediated Amplification Strategy Enables Detection of β-Lactamase Activity Directly in Unprocessed Clinical Samples for Phenotypic Detection of β-Lactam Resistance.

Biochemical assays that can identify β-lactamase activity directly from patient samples have the potential to significantly improve the treatment of bacterial infections. However, current β-lactamase probes do not have the sensitivity needed to measure β-lactam resistance directly from patient samples. Here, we report the development of an instrument-free signal amplification technology, DETECT, that connects the activity of two enzymes in series to effectively amplify the activity of β-lactamase 40 000-fold, compared to the standard β-lactamase probe nitrocefin.