Barczak, Amy K.Gomez, James E.Kaufmann, Benjamin B.Hinson, Ella R.Cosimi, LisaBorowsky, Mark L.Onderdonk, Andrew B.Stanley, Sarah A.Kaur, DevinderBryant, Kevin F.Knipe, David M.Sloutsky, AlexanderHung, Deborah T.2019-10-132012Barczak, A. K., J. E. Gomez, B. B. Kaufmann, E. R. Hinson, L. Cosimi, M. L. Borowsky, A. B. Onderdonk, et al. 2012. “RNA Signatures Allow Rapid Identification of Pathogens and Antibiotic Susceptibilities.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 109 (16): 6217–22. doi:10.1073/pnas.1119540109.0027-84240744-28311091-6490http://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:41542766With rising rates of drug-resistant infections, there is a need for diagnostic methods that rapidly can detect the presence of pathogens and reveal their susceptibility to antibiotics. Here we propose an approach to diagnosing the presence and drug-susceptibility of infectious diseases based on direct detection of RNA from clinical samples. We demonstrate that species-specific RNA signatures can be used to identify a broad spectrum of infectious agents, including bacteria, viruses, yeast, and parasites. Moreover, we show that the behavior of a small set of bacterial transcripts after a brief antibiotic pulse can rapidly differentiate drug-susceptible and -resistant organisms and that these measurements can be made directly from clinical materials. Thus, transcriptional signatures could form the basis of a uniform diagnostic platform applicable across a broad range of infectious agents.en-USJournal Article2019-10-1310.1073/pnas.1119540109