Quantitative matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry for rapid resistance detection

Antibiotic resistance in Gram-negative microorganisms is an increasing health care problem. The rapid detection of such resistance is crucial for starting an early specific therapy and to enable initiation of the required hygiene measures. With continued emphasis on reducing the cost of laboratory testing, only economical/low-cost approaches have a chance of being implemented. During recent years, matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) has been developed to be a standard method in microbiology laboratories for the rapid and cost-efficient identification of microorganisms. Extending the usage of MALDI-TOF MS in the clinical microbiology laboratory to the area of resistance testing is an attractive option. Quantitative MALDI-TOF MS using an internal standard facilitates the measurement of the quantity of peptides and small proteins within a spectrum. These quantities correlate to the number of microorganisms and therefore to the growth of a microorganism. The comparison of growth in the presence or absence of an antibiotic allows for analysis of the susceptibility behavior of a strain. Here, we describe a novel method and its application in the analysis of 108 Klebsiella sp. isolates. After 1 h of incubation at a meropenem concentration of 8 μg/ml, a sensitivity of 97.3% and a specificity of 93.5% were achieved (compared to Etest results).