Binding agents able to disrupt bacterial biofilms of diverse origin are described, including monoclonal antibodies secreted by human B lymphocytes. Methods to prevent formation of or to dissolve biofilms with these binding agents are also described. Immunogens for eliciting antibodies to disrupt biofilms are also described.

Three recombinant E. coli strains produce the enzymes CPD-photolyase, 6,4-bifunctional photolyase and 6,4-photolyase, from bacterial Antarctic isolates of the genus Hymenobacter the first one and Sphingomonas the others. It is also disclosed a process of production and purification of the recombinant enzymes with high performance, high degree of purity and high catalytic repair activity, having applications in, but it is not limited to, cosmetics and pharmaceutical industry. A fast, cheap and qualitative method is provided for the determination of the CPD photolyase activity.

Disclosed is information related to determining Escherichia coli from a sample such as urine. According to the method, part of sample is admixed with a reagent including a lanthanide(III) ion, a transition metal ion, and a transition metal ion/E. coli-specific M13 phage, and another part of the sample is admixed with the reagent including lanthanide(III) ion, the transition metal ion a wild-type M13 phage. The signals derived from the lanthanide(III) ions in the admixtures were detected with time-gated luminescence measurement. The presence of E. coli in the sample was determined by comparing the lanthanide(III) ion signal in the presence transition metal ion/E. coli-specific M13 phage and the wild type M13 phage.

The invention provides a method for detecting bacteria. The method utilises a peptide that forms a complex with a conjugated reporter polymer and is susceptible to cleavage by one or more proteases on the surface of a bacteria. Presence or absence of the bacteria can be determined by assessing the optical absorption and/or colour and/or photoluminescence (e.g. fluorescence) of the conjugated reporter polymer, which may undergo a conformational change after binding with the to the cleaved peptide substrate. Specifically, the peptide substrate may comprise a cleavage site for digestion by the protease, and the protease may be an omptin protease. The conjugated reporter polymer may be selected from a polythiophene, a poly(1,4-phenylene vinylene) (PPV), a poly(1,4-phenylene) (PPP), a polyfluorenes (PFO), a nitrogen-containing polymer such as polyquinoline, poly(2,5-pyridinevinylene) (PPyV), 1,3,4-oxadiazole, and poly(9-vinylcarbazole) (PVK), and a polypyrrole. The method may be used to detect contamination in food or water, or as a clinical and/or diagnostic test.

Described herein are engineered microbe-targeting or microbe-binding molecules, kits comprising the same and uses thereof. The microbe-targeting or microbe-binding molecules can comprise a microbe surface-binding domain linked to a portion of an Fc region. Further, the microbe-targeting molecules can be conjugated to substrate (e.g., a magnetic particle) to form a microbe-targeting substrate. Such microbe-targeting molecules and/or substrates and the kits comprising the same can be used in various applications, such as diagnosis and/or treatment of an infection caused by microbes. Moreover, the microbe-targeting molecules and/or substrates can be easily regenerated after use.

Selective enrichment media and methods for selectively growing and detecting Salmonella spp. and/or Shiga toxin-producing E. coli. The media may comprise a carbon and nitrogen source, an inorganic salt, a fermentable sugar, one or more selective agents, and an efflux pump inhibitor. Various selective agents include sulfa drugs, surfactants, aminocoumarins, cycloheximide, supravital stains, ascorbic acid, bromobenzoic acid, myricetin, nitrofurantoin, rifamycins, polyketides, and oxazolidinones. Various efflux pump inhibitors include arylpiperazines, such as 1-(1-naphthylmethyl)piperazine, and quinoline derivatives, such as 4-chloroquinoline. Methods of selectively growing and detecting Salmonella and/or Shiga toxin-producing E. coli are provided.

Compositions for the treatment of colorectal cancer target bacterial biofilms in the gastrointestinal tract. Methods of treatment include one or more agents which target bacteria and the bacterial biofilms.

The invention provides anti-ETEC adhesin protein antibodies and methods of using the same.

Systems comprising a diffraction grating, a light source configured to illuminate at a limited waveband, an optical detection system configured to detect zero and non-zero diffraction orders of light, and a signal processing unit adapted to analyze zero and non-zero diffraction orders to determine time-dependent changes in effective optical depth are provided. Methods for use of these systems for real-time detection of cell replication, microorganism detection, and for selecting a therapeutic agent for treating a microorganism are also provided.

The purpose of the present invention is to: provide an agent that effectively suppresses inhibition of antigen-antibody reaction in an immunoassay using a sample containing a body fluid, in particular, a component derived from a biological mucosal membrane, such as saliva; and to suppress false positive and false negative results in the immunoassay. The present invention provides an agent for suppressing inhibition of immune reaction, characterized in that the agent comprises a compound of the following (1) or (2): (1) Sulfonic acid compound of the formula R.sup.1—SO.sub.3H or a salt thereof. (In the formula, R.sup.1 is selected from the group consisting of: a straight-chain C.sub.5-C.sub.30 alkyl group; a straight-chain C.sub.1-C.sub.30 alkyl group substituted with an aryl group having at least one straight-chain C.sub.5-C.sub.30 alkyl group; and an aryl group having at least one straight-chain C.sub.5-C.sub.30 alkyl group. These groups may include a substituent group); and (2) Quaternary ammonium ion of the formula N.sup.+—R.sup.2R.sup.3R.sup.4R.sup.5 or a salt thereof. (In the formula, R.sup.2—R.sup.5 are each independently a straight-chain C.sub.1-C.sub.30 alkyl group, or an aryl group substituted with at least one straight-chain C.sub.5-C.sub.30 alkyl group. These groups may include a substituent group); wherein the agent is capable of suppressing immune reaction inhibitory action caused by a body fluid in an immunoassay sample.