METHOD FOR DETECTING ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE

The invention relates to a method for detecting a resistance of at least one cell of a microorganism to at least one antibiotic substance. More specifically, the invention concerns a method for detection of resistance of pathogen bacteria to ß-lactam antibiotics. According to the invention a patient's probe is treated with at least one disrupting agent that at least partially damages the cell wall of the microorganism. The concentration of the disrupting agent needed to detectably damage the cell is a measure for the sensitivity of the cell to the antibiotic substance. Surprisingly, it turned out that the cell wall of resistant strains is weakened so that treatment with a disrupting agent in low concentrations results in partial cell wall destruction. Due to cell wall destruction, marker substances can easily enter the cells so that they can be detected by standard methods. This effect is not observed with strains that are sensitive to the antibiotic so that, depending on the concentration of the disrupting agent, a clear distinction between resistant and sensitive cells can be accomplished.