Rapid Identification of Mycobacterium tuberculosis Complex Using Mass Spectrometry: A Proof of Concept

Abstract

Mycobacteria that form the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex are responsible for deadly tuberculosis in animals and patients. Identification of these pathogens at the species level is of primary importance for treatment and source tracing and currently relies on DNA analysis, including whole genome sequencing (WGS), which requires a whole day. In this study, we report the unprecedented discrimination of M. tuberculosis complex species using matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF-MS), with WGS as the comparative reference standard. In the first step, optimized peptide extraction applied to 36 isolates otherwise identified in five of the 11 M. tuberculosis complex variants by WGS yielded 139 MALDI-TOF spectra, which were used to identify biomarkers of interest that facilitate differentiation between variants. In a second step, 70/80 (88%) other isolates were correctly classified by an algorithm based on specific peaks. This study is the first to report a MALDI-TOF-MS method for discriminating M. tuberculosis complex mycobacteria that is easily implemented in clinical microbiology laboratories.

Research of saccharides and related biocomplexes: A review with recent techniques and applications

“…LAM and ManLAM can be analyzed with CE-UV and CE-LIF. Identification with MS is done using the m/z fragments of 400-1600 Da [281,282,308,309].…”

“…Better utilization of wood waste was shown to improve the production of monosaccharides, polysaccharides, and saccharide metabolites [30,43,201,207,284]. However, the purification of individual saccharides needs large-scale isolation processes Saccharides of aerosols hold valuable information about the sources of organic carbons and their drift, which have implications for human health [32,192,213,214,218,[308][309][310][311][312]. Levoglucosan is a tracer of biomass burning in aerosols [32,213].…”

Evolution of tuberculosis diagnostics: From molecular strategies to nanodiagnostics

“…Hettick et al subtyped six mycobacterial species based on protein profiles and mass/charge ratio of small molecules such as lipids and polypeptides which could serve as biomarker [ 224 ]. Robinne et al, recently published a first report where MALDI TOF-MS method is used for differentiating between MTBC with specificity of 88% that could be easily employed in laboratory settings [ 226 ]. Mass spectrometry combined with liquid chromatography (LC-MS) was applied by Bajaj et al, for identification of MTBC.…”

Dermatology practice updates in mycobacterial disease

“…19,20 In addition, newer technologies such as matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) and whole genome sequencing (WGS) have shown promising results in improving the speed and accuracy of mycobacterial identification and susceptibility testing. [21][22][23] NTM diagnosis can be challenging due to the wide range of Here we review the most well-known nontuberculous mycobacteria that cause cutaneous infections. diagnosis in HIV patients.…”

“…Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing can provide rapid and specific identification of mycobacteria and may be useful for early diagnosis and detection of drug resistance 19,20 . In addition, newer technologies such as matrix‐assisted laser desorption ionization‐time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI‐TOF MS) and whole genome sequencing (WGS) have shown promising results in improving the speed and accuracy of mycobacterial identification and susceptibility testing 21–23 …”