Adapting a portable diagnostic platform for rapid diagnosis and resistance profiling of urinary tract infections
Project title: Rapid and portable molecular diagnostic for urinary tract infections to combat antimicrobial resistance in primary and secondary care settings
Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are among the most common bacterial infections, yet their diagnosis relies on slow, culture-based methods that take 24–48 hours – a delay that drives the use of non-targeted antibiotic therapy and the associated emergence of antimicrobial resistance. As a result, there is an urgent need for rapid, point-of-care diagnostic tools that can identify both UTI pathogens and resistance markers to guide more targeted antibiotic therapy.
To address this need, ProtonDx will adapt and validate its existing sample-to-answer portable diagnostics platform (Dragonfly) to develop a new test for the management of UTIs. The test will genetically determine the presence of key bacterial pathogens and major markers of antimicrobial resistance. It is designed to report results at levels clinically relevant to UTIs within 30 minutes, enabling real-time decision-making. Dragonfly has already been validated for respiratory viruses, malaria and mpox, and the sample-to-result workflow is ready to be adapted for urine-based testing of UTIs.
With funding and support from PACE, ProtonDx will optimise and validate two diagnostic panels for UTIs. Panel 1 will focus on identifying six common causative pathogens (E. coli, K. pneumoniae, P. mirabilis, P. aeruginosa, E. faecalis and S. saprophyticus), while Panel 2 will identify key markers of resistance against major antibiotic classes (e.g., extended-spectrum beta-lactamases, carbapenemases, and genes associated with vancomycin and methicillin resistance). The resulting prototype will be assessed in pre-clinical studies, with in-field performance evaluated in a secondary care setting in the UK, and in both primary and secondary care settings in The Gambia.
Success for the project will mean a reduction in the unnecessary use of antibiotics, addressing the challenge of antimicrobial resistance, as well as improving patient outcomes by enabling faster and more accurate diagnosis of the causative pathogen and resistance profile in UTIs.
Company Summary
ProtonDx is an Imperial College London spinout and a leader in innovative, portable molecular diagnostics for rapid, precise, multi-pathogen infectious disease testing at the point of need. Founded in 2020 by Dr Jesus Rodriguez Manzano, Prof Pantelis Georgiou, and Dr Nicolas Moser, the company builds on years of pioneering research in diagnostics and sample extraction through unique collaborations between engineering, medicine, and molecular biology researchers. ProtonDx develops transformative technologies that deliver fast, accurate, and clinically actionable results for infectious diseases. Its Dragonfly platform brings sample-to-result molecular testing directly to the point of care, setting a new standard for rapid diagnostics.