(463c) Detection of Low-Concentrated Bacteria On a Simple and Rapid Electrophoretic Platform

Detection of pathogenic microorganisms in low concentration is essential in many areas of research and technology, especially in food and pharmaceutical industry. In recent years, capillary electrophoresis has gained increasing attention as a fast and sensitive technique for detection of bacteria. However, the conventional techniques involve the integration of pre-concentration steps for detection of low concentrated bacteria. Here we propose a rapid electrophoretic method for detection of E.coli, independent of pre-concentration steps, using a cationic surfactant (CTAB) on simple electrophoretic platform, consisting of two cuvettes as reservoirs and a plastic microcapillary. Our technique is capable of detecting 100 cells/ml, in order of minutes (10 min).