The invention relates to vaccine compositions for treating and/or preventing infections by a bacterium of the Chlamydiaceae family, said compositions comprising bacteria of the Chlamydiaceae family, which have been previously treated by at least one peptidoglycan inhibitor, or extracts of said treated bacteria.

A system and method for detecting status of a health condition in a single-step process includes: a signal output device including a) a loading zone; b) a reaction zone fluidly coupled to the loading zone and including one or more reaction substances conjugated to labels, configured to enable detection of target material associated with the health condition; c) a testing zone fluidly coupled to the reaction zone and including one or more testing substances corresponding to the target material; and d) a control zone including a control substance retained at the control zone. The system and methods can be adapted for assessment of sexual health of one or more subjects, in relation to pregnancy, fertility, and/or sexually transmitted infections caused by one or more agents including, Chlamydia trachomatis, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, Trichomonas vaginalis, Treponema pallidum, Gardnerella vaginitis, human immunodeficiency virus, human papillomavirus infection, Hepatitis B, and herpes simplex virus.

The present invention relates to a method for detecting and diagnosing Chlamydia suis infections in a subject, and a diagnostic kit therefor.

The method for the diagnosis of a microbial infection in an organism makes use thereof that said microbial infection is at least partially present as elementary bodies in cellular material of the organism. The method comprises the steps of (1) providing a sample of cellular material from the organism; (2) processing the sample to obtain a test composition, that is enriched in elementary bodies, in so far as the sample contains any elementary bodies; and (3) Subjecting a volume of the test composition comprising at most a predetermined maximum of elementary bodies to a MALDI mass spectrometry method to identify presence of the microbial infection. The sample processing more particularly involves cell lysis and separation of elementary bodies from the lysed cell material. Subsequently, the elementary bodies (and any further material attached thereto) are contacted with a matrix material, that facilitates the MALDI mass spectrometry.

The invention provides Chlamydia antigens for use in the treatment, prevention and/or diagnosis of Chlamydia infection. In particular, the invention provides antigens CT733, CTI 53, CT601, CT279, CT443, CT372, CT456, CT381, CT255, CT341, CT716, CT745, CT387, CT812, CT869, CT166, CT175, CT163, CT214, CT721, CT127, CT043, CT823 and/or CT600 from C. trachomatis for the treatment, prevention or diagnosis of Chlamydia infection.

In various embodiments single-step ATPS paper-based diagnostic assays are provided that exploit the concept of sequential resolubilization of ATPS components to give rise to the desired phase separation behavior within paper. In one illustrative embodiment, a wick is provided for concentrating an analyte within an aqueous two-phase extraction system in a paper, where the wick comprises a paper configured to receive a sample where the paper comprises a first region containing a first component of an aqueous two-phase system (ATPS) where the first component is in a dry form, and a second region containing a second component of an aqueous two-phase system (ATPS) where the second component is in a dry form; and where said first region and the second region are disposed so that when said wick is contacted with a fluid sample, the first component of said ATPS is hydrated before the second component. In certain embodiments the first and second component are disposed so they are hydrated substantially simultaneously.

A system and method for detecting status of a health condition in a single-step process includes: a signal output device including a) a loading zone; b) a reaction zone fluidly coupled to the loading zone and including one or more reaction substances conjugated to labels, configured to enable detection of target material associated with the health condition; c) a testing zone fluidly coupled to the reaction zone and including one or more testing substances corresponding to the target material; and d) a control zone including a control substance retained at the control zone. The system and methods can be adapted for assessment of sexual health of one or more subjects, in relation to pregnancy, fertility, and/or sexually transmitted infections caused by one or more agents including, Chlamydia trachomatis, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, Trichomonas vaginalis, Treponema pallidum, Gardnerella vaginitis, human immunodeficiency virus, human papillomavirus infection, Hepatitis B, and herpes simplex virus.

In various embodiments devices and methods for the detection and/or quantification of clinically relevant pathogens (e.g., bacteria, fungi, viruses, etc.) are provided. In certain embodiments the device comprises a lateral-flow assay that detects the bacterium at a concentration of less than about 610.sup.6 cells/mL, less than about 310.sup.6 cells/ml, less than about 110.sup.6 CFU/mL, or less than about 50 g/mL. In certain embodiments the device comprises an aqueous two-phase system (ATPS) comprising a mixed phase solution that separates into a first phase solution and a second phase solution; and a lateral-flow assay (LFA). In certain embodiments the device comprises a flow-through system comprising a concentration component comprising an aqueous two-phase system (ATPS) comprising a mixed phase solution that separates into a first phase solution and a second phase solution; and a detection component disposed beneath said concentration component.

The invention provides Chlamydia antigens for use in the treatment, prevention and/or diagnosis of Chlamydia infection. In particular, the invention provides antigens CT733, CTI 53, CT601, CT279, CT443, CT372, CT456, CT381, CT255, CT341, CT716, CT745, CT387, CT812, CT869, CT166, CT175, CT163, CT214, CT721, CT127, CT043, CT823 and/or CT600 from C. trachomatis for the treatment, prevention or diagnosis of Chlamydia infection.

In one aspect, a method of detecting a pathogen, e.g., listeria bacterium, chlamydia bacteria, gonorrhea bacteria and/or HPV, in a sample is disclosed, which comprises bringing a sample into contact with a graphene layer functionalized with an antibody exhibiting specific binding to the pathogen, monitoring electrical resistance of said antibody-functionalized graphene layer in response to interaction with said sample, and detecting presence of the pathogen in said sample by detecting a change in said electrical resistance indicative of interaction of the pathogen with said antibody-functionalized graphene layer. For example, a decrease of the electrical resistance of the graphene layer can indicate the presence of the pathogen in the sample under study. In some embodiments, a method according to the present teachings is capable of detecting pathogens, such as listeria bacteria, chlamydia bacteria, gonorrhea bacteria and HPV in a sample at a concentration as low as 4 cfu per 100 grams of a sample.