While microbiology laboratories are pivotal in the identification and handling of infectious diseases, the microbiology lab environment is rapidly changing. Conventional testing methods are being challenged as innovative testing methodologies emerge. Molecular testing is an ever-evolving world for the most common disease areas, including respiratory, urinary tract, and vaginal pathogen detection. In the case of testing for urinary tract infections (UTIs)—the second most common type of infection, with nearly half of positive UTI cases polymicrobial—current culture-based methods for detecting UTI pathogens have significant limitations. These include inability to address polymicrobial infections, long time to result, and false negatives due to poor sensitivity. Doubtful cases of UTI are of particular concern.
A molecular alternative that uses real-time PCR technology, however, has the potential to increase the specificity and sensitivity of pathogen detection. Additionally, advancements in UTI testing now include unique multi-omics approaches to detect bacterial interactions and address antibiotic resistance in polymicrobial samples.
Furthermore, while standard culture tests susceptibility on individual isolates, pooled antibiotic susceptibility testing (P-AST)—a unique method in which organisms are grouped together—takes into consideration bacterial interactions and may provide more effective therapy options.
During the webinar, Advancements in UTI Testing: A Multi-omics Approach to Maximizing the Flexibility of Your Molecular Testing Laboratory—sponsored by Thermo Fisher Scientific, in partnership with Pathnostics— experts speakers David Baunoch, PhD, Chief Scientific Officer and Co-Founder of Pathnostics, and Jorge Fonseca, MBA, Product Director of Genetic Testing Solutions, Genetic Sciences Division, Thermo Fisher Scientific compared the utility of genotypic and phenotypic methods in treatment of UTIs and describe how a multi-omics approach could be implemented in a laboratory.
By watching Advancements in UTI Testing: A Multi-omics Approach to Maximizing the Flexibility of Your Molecular Testing Laboratory, you will:
- Understand the impact of urinary tract infections (UTIs) in patient care.
- Evaluate the technical challenges and limitations associated with urine culture.
- Explain the roles of the urinary microbiome and polymicrobial infections in the management of UTIs.
- Compare the utility of genotypic and phenotypic methods in treatment of UTIs.
- Describe how a multi-omics approach could be implemented in a laboratory.
- Learn how to implement molecular testing services or expand your existing menu.
- Evolve content, formats, and throughput within a single platform for the most common disease areas including respiratory, urinary tract, and vaginal pathogen detection.
- Explore controls and analytical validation service options needed for implementation.
Watch the webinar here, learn more about Thermo Fisher Scientific’s Real-Time PCR Solution for Urinary Tract Microbiota here, and learn more about Pathnostic’s assay offerings here.