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Identification of upper respiratory bacterial pathogens with the electronic nose
Stephen Y Lai1, Olivia F Deffenderfer, William Hanson
1Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, University of Pennsylvania Medical Center, Philadelphia, USA.
Objective:
To use an electronic nose to identify common upper respiratory bacterial pathogens.
Study Design:
Controlled in vitro analysis.
Methods:
Swabs of bacteria were obtained from in vitro samples. The specimens were vaporized and analyzed over the organic semiconductor-based electronic nose (Cyranose 320). Data from the 32-element sensor array were subjected to principal component analysis for depiction in two-dimensional space and differences in odorant patterns were assessed by calculating Mahalanobis distances.
Results:
The electronic nose was able to distinguish between control swabs and bacterial samples. Furthermore, calculation of the Mahalanobis distances among the various bacteria demonstrated distinct odorant classes (Mahalanobis distance > or = 3). This demonstrates that the electronic nose could differentiate among various common bacterial pathogens of the upper respiratory tract, including Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenza, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa.
Conclusions:
The electronic nose represents a novel method to identify potential upper respiratory infections and to discriminate among common upper respiratory bacterial pathogens. This technology could provide a rapid means to identify organisms causing upper respiratory infections.