Abstract

Our team contributes to the DARTS initiative, an ARPA-H-funded project and the largest government grant in Harvard University's history. DARTS tackles the urgent global challenge of antibiotic resistance, responsible for over 35,000 deaths annually in the U.S. alone. Our focus lies in advanced image and data analysis of bacterial "mother machines"—microfluidic devices containing millions of bacteria arranged in trenches. We develop computational tools to detect, track, and classify bacteria across all time points with unparalleled precision, addressing the immense data complexity.

This collaboration, led by the Paulsson Lab at Harvard Medical School and including teams from the Broad Institute, Janelia, BIFROST, and BLASTID, aims to revolutionize diagnostic platforms. By enabling ultra-high-speed bacterial screening, DARTS strives to rapidly identify antibiotic-resistant strains and discover effective treatments. Ultimately, this transformative technology could be deployed in hospitals and clinics worldwide to save lives and safeguard the efficacy of antibiotics.