Detection of bacteria in water based on a transferring technique of bacterial surface structure

It is important to prevent the spread of food poisoning and infection caused by pathogenic bacteria in order to protect the safety of food and drinking water. Conventional methods of bacterial identification usually take a few days and require complicated sample pretreatments and special technique for testing. Dr. Tokonami established a synthesis method of templates in which bacterial surface structures are transferred precisely. She developed a novel method of bacterial detection by combining the templates with dielectrophoresis which controls bacterial movement. This technique enabled rapid detection, which succeeded in reduction of time for measurements in comparison with preexisting methods. It is also remarkable that the templates show high specificity for respective bacteria. This method can be used as a bacterial detection system in the water treatment plant and the food industry where require strict hygiene control.