Canada: Turkish researcher designs diagnostic microchip

By Seyit Aydogan

TORONTO (AA) – A Turkish researcher at the University of Toronto designed a diagnostic microchip to swiftly determine antibiotic-resistant bacteria and what particular viruses would destroy them.

Speaking to Anadolu Agency, Dr. Enver Gurhan Kilinc said that the microchip they had designed was making “significant contributions” to treatments by reducing overall costs and saving a lot of time.

Kilinc said the small chip reduced the testing time from at least two days to 15 minutes, enabling doctors to treat bacterial infections much faster than before.

The microchip can also be used in the treatment of phage, also known as bacteriophage, which uses bacterial viruses to treat bacterial infections and is accepted as an alternative to antibiotics.

“Our research at the University of Toronto started in 2015. As a result of our research, we’ve reduced the cost of testing to under one [Canadian] dollar, whereas it used to cost 20 to 30 [Canadian] dollars before. We’ve also drastically reduced the testing time to 15 minutes from at least two days,” he said.

According to Kilinc, a hospital in Toronto, thrilled at this revolutionary product, uses this testing method at least 800 times a day.

“Our microchip system makes a comparison between the loaded viruses and the bacteria in 15 minutes and tells us which virus is effective on which bacteria by giving off a green light and a sound warning.”

- Alternative to antibiotics

Kilinc noted that the microchip would be a milestone in phage treatment, which is an alternative to antibiotics treatment.

“The chip we have designed enables the detection of the most effective phages that the patient needs in the shortest time. This is a less costly treatment than antibiotics, and it is also more effective.”