Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS): a novel technology for identifying microbes causing infectious diseases

Area of Science:

• Biological Sciences
• Environmental Science
• Agricultural Science

Background:

• Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) is an atomic emission spectroscopy technique.
• It utilizes plasma generated by a high-power pulsed laser focused on a target material.
• LIBS offers experimental simplicity, versatility, and rapid elemental analysis.

Purpose of the Study:

• To summarize the theory and applications of LIBS in identifying microbes.
• To highlight LIBS's role in agricultural and environmental infectious disease detection.
• To showcase LIBS as a sensitive elemental analysis tool.

Main Methods:

• Focusing a high-power pulsed laser on target materials to create plasma.
• Analyzing the atomic emission spectra from the generated plasma.
• Applying LIBS for elemental composition analysis of various biological and environmental samples.

Main Results:

• LIBS has been successfully used to detect various microorganisms, including bacteria, molds, yeasts, and viruses.
• The technique is effective in identifying foodborne pathogens like Salmonella enteric serovar typhimurium.
• LIBS can discriminate differences in soil bacteria, indicating environmental soil quality across mining sites.

Conclusions:

• LIBS is a robust and sensitive tool for elemental analysis in biological sciences.
• Its applications extend to agriculture, environmental monitoring, and food safety.
• LIBS provides a rapid, flexible, and less sample-intensive alternative to traditional analytical techniques.