Project Title: Phenotypically characterising genetically diverse antimicrobial resistant bacteria in water sources from the UK and Tanzania using parallelised real-time single cell imaging of bacteria.
Project Description: Bacterial drinking water contamination is a global problem with low- and middle-income countries and regions, such as sub-Saharan Africa, being the worst affected. It is estimated that over 780 million people have no access to clean drinking water and every day over 2000 people die due to water-born bacterial infections due to inadequate sanitation and limited access to safe drinking water. Testing for bacterial contamination in sub-Saharan Africa is usually done by foreign NGOs, with... Bacterial drinking water contamination is a global problem with low- and middle-income countries and regions, such as sub-Saharan Africa, being the worst affected. It is estimated that over 780 million people have no access to clean drinking water and every day over 2000 people die due to water-born bacterial infections due to inadequate sanitation and limited access to safe drinking water. Testing for bacterial contamination in sub-Saharan Africa is usually done by foreign NGOs, with samples taken from villages at regular time intervals and transported to laboratories in major cities for further processing. With logistics estimated to account for over 70% of total water testing costs, the process is slow, expensive, requires specialist user training and access to a properly equipped laboratory. Thus, a simple-to-use, inexpensive, reliable water testing system that can be used in the field could result is faster sample-to-result times, saving lives and empowering local communities. Moreover, Antibiotic resistance (AMR) is a growing global problem; a recent study identified that AMR was ‘exacerbated in LMICs, where there is often inadequate surveillance and minimal laboratory capacity’. WHO predictions estimate that this could rise to over 10 million deaths globally in the next 35 years if no action is taken. We therefore propose a multi-disciplinary collaboration study combining expertise in Optical systems and low-cost instrumentation from university of Cambridge in UK and microbiological research at Ifakara Health Institute in Tanzania to test and characterise bacterial strains in Tanzania. This study presents an opportunity to study the phenotypic characteristics of the genetically diverse samples isolated from water sources. Different genomic strains will have varying susceptibility to antibiotics. By studying real-time bacterial response to antibiotics, we can better characterise how genomic variants correlate to susceptibility.
Principal Investigator : Catherine Mkindi
Department Name : BRCT
Time frame: (2020-08-01) - (2021-07-30)
Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) (Normal)
External Collaborating Partners
University of Cambridge
University of Cambridge