Rapid Diagnosis of Pathogenic Microorganisms and Detection of Drug-Resistant Mutations

TOPICAL COLLECTIONS

Guest Editors

Zhengkang Li

Laboratory Medicine, Guangdong Provincial People’s Hospital (Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences), Southern Medical University, Guangzhou 510080, Guangdong Province, China

Zhengkang Li, majored in preventive medicine at Southern Medical University from 2006 to 2011, and studied in the Department of Pathogenic Biology at Peking University from 2011 to 2014. He is primarily engaged in the development of molecular diagnostic technologies for clinical microorganisms. Currently, he is leading three projects funded by the Guangdong Medical Research Fund and other related topics and participating in two national key research and development projects, as well as one key research and development program of Guangdong Province. He has published 20 academic papers as first author (including co-author) or corresponding author, including 7 SCI papers (such as 《Lancet Microbe》 (IF: 20.9) and 《ACS Nano》 (IF: 15.8)), and has contributed to the authorization of 4 invention patents. Main research directions: Development and application of molecular diagnostic technologies for pathogenic microorganisms.

Jianming Zhang

The First Hospital of Quanzhou, Fujian Province

Jianming Zhang, a Doctor of Medicine, is the Chief Technologist at The First Hospital of Quanzhou, Fujian Province, and also a master's tutor at Fujian Medical University. He is mainly engaged in the inspection of clinical microbiology and molecular biology. He has published more than 20 papers in domestic and foreign journals as the first author or corresponding author, including 4 SCI papers. He has won two third prizes of Fujian Provincial Science and Technology Progress Award (one of which was presided over by him), and one third prize of Fujian Provincial Medical Science and Technology Award (as the second completer).

Lingqing Xu

The Affiliated Qingyuan Hospital (Qingyuan People's Hospital), Guangzhou Medical University, Guangdong Province

Lingqing Xu, a Doctor of Medicine, is the Chief Technologist at the Affiliated Qingyuan Hospital (Qingyuan People's Hospital), Guangzhou Medical University, Guangdong Province, and also a master's supervisor at Guangzhou Medical University. He is mainly engaged in the inspection of clinical microbiology and molecular biology for twenty years. He has published more than 30 papers in domestic and foreign journals as the first author or corresponding author, including more than 10 SCI papers. He has won second prize of Guangdong Qingyuan Science and Technology Progress Award (one of which was presided over by him).

Collection Overview

Rapid diagnosis of pathogenic microorganisms and detection of drug-resistant mutations are paramount for safeguarding public health, advancing clinical treatment, and facilitating drug development. As globalization accelerates and population movement increases, diseases—particularly respiratory infections—are spreading more rapidly, posing a significant challenge to global public health. Accurate and swift pathogenic diagnosis can empower healthcare providers to adopt timely and effective therapeutic interventions, mitigating the spread of diseases.

Concurrently, drug resistance in pathogenic microorganisms has become increasingly severe, prompting the World Health Organization (WHO) to designate antimicrobial resistance as one of humanity's ten global health threats. Traditionally, detecting bacterial and fungal drug resistance necessitates culture-based methods and drug sensitivity assays, which are time-consuming and impractical for culturing viruses in routine healthcare settings.

With the advent of polymerase chain reaction (PCR), sequencing, and mass spectrometry techniques, identifying mutation sites associated with antimicrobial drug resistance has become pivotal in guiding clinical practice. Therefore, this Methods Collection aims to compile and organize the latest research findings and methodologies in rapid microbial diagnostics.