Kit for diagnosis of bacterial meningitis by real-time PCR-HRM

Meningitis is the inflammation of the brain membrane that can cause from neurological damage to the death of those infected. The evolution of the disease is fast, with case-fatality rates of up to 20% of cases or sequelae. The main etiological agents of bacterial meningitis are organisms that are difficult to grow and detect in clinical samples by conventional laboratory methods. Therefore, it is crucial to accurately identify invasive diseases caused by bacteria so appropriate treatment can start immediately. The 'gold standard' for diagnosis uses fluorescent probes, which makes the product much more expensive.

The proposed product allows, in a single step, the simultaneous detection of the etiological agents of the three most common bacterial meningitis: Neisseria meningitidis, Streptococcus pneumoniae and Haemophilus influenzae. The test offers a rapid diagnosis, with high specificity and sensitivity at costs up to 80% lower than the molecular tests of the qPCR-Taqman system, because it does not use fluorescent probes and provides the possibility to use national reagents. The correct identification of the etiological agent allows the appropriate treatment and better results for the patient.