Patent ID: 6465201
Filing Date: 2002-10-15
Classification: C12Q

Abstract:
A method for rapidly detecting and enumerating microorganisms, having a level of microbial adenosine triphosphate (ATP), in mammalian cell cultures, comprising the steps of,providing a mammalian cell culture comprising mammalian cells having a level of mammalian ATP; reducing said level of mammalian ATP in said cell culture by, selectively lysing said mammalian cells and not lysing microbial cells with one or more detergents to extract said mammalian ATP, and treating said extracted mammalian ATP with one or more ATP hydrolyzing enzymes; immobilizing said microorganisms and washing away said detergent and said hydrolyzing enzyme by filtering said mammalian cell preparation through a micropartioned hydrophilic/hydrophobic membrane; extracting said microbial ATP using an extracting reagent; applying a bioluminescent reagent onto said membrane; and detecting and enumerating said microorganisms.