Patent Document ID: 10157734
Application ID: 14720360
Patent Flag: 1

Claim One:
1. A method for identifying and characterizing one or more unknown microbes in a sample, the method comprising: (a) providing a fluid extract of the sample, the fluid extract comprising a plurality of proteins from each of the one or more unknown microbes; (b) performing a first, top-down analytical method using mass spectrometry to detect the plurality of proteins from each of the one or more unknown microbes and optionally identify the plurality of proteins; (c) comparing mass spectrometric data for the detected, and optionally identified, plurality of proteins from step (b) to protein information contained in a reference database of known microbes; (d) identifying at least one of the one or more unknown microbes in the sample to at least the genus species level based on matches between the mass spectrometric data for the detected, and optionally identified, plurality of proteins from step (b) and the protein information contained in the reference database; and (e) performing a second, top-down analytical method using targeted mass spectrometry based on the identified at least one microbe to determine if proteins indicative of antibiotic resistance, antibiotic susceptibility, and/or virulence of the identified at least one microbe are present in the sample and, optionally, identifying and/or quantifying the proteins indicative of antibiotic resistance, antibiotic susceptibility, and/or virulence; wherein the first analytical method includes mass spectrometry analysis of intact, soluble proteins of the one or more unknown microbes; and wherein the combination of steps (b) through (d) is performed in less than 10 minutes and step (e) is performed in less than 15 minutes.