An Underappreciated Innovation, Zapping Microbes With Lasers Has Helped Identify Pathogens Faster Since 2013

By the bioMérieux Connection Editors In late 2013, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted 510(k) de novo clearance to the first mass spectrometer for identifying disease-causing bacteria and yeast for clinical use in the U.S. market.  The technology is called Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption Ionization-Time of Flight mass spectrometry, or MALDI-TOF MS, and it uses a …