New Abbott Technology Offers Rapid Alternative to Culture for Microbial Detection

In a poster presented at the AMP meeting, Donna Wolk, Ph.D., division chief, microbiology, University of Arizona, compared the performance of Abbott's Ibis T-5000 system’s bacterial candida and antimicrobial resistance assay (BCA) with traditional culture testing for 221 blood culture broth samples from patients infected with gram-positive and gram-negative aerobes, anaerobes and yeast. The T-5000 system is intended for research use only, and is not approved in the United States for clinical applications.

Compared to culture, the BCA assay identified 22 more microbial isolates of which 19 were pathogenic species. The BCA assay correctly identified 217 blood culture results. Further, the BCA assay identified significantly more pathogenic bacteria and yeast than routine subculture, and BCA results were reported in seven hours while the individual subculture results were not available for 48 to 72 hours.

“In our research, the assay showed it can identify microbes that can’t be detected by routine methods and has potential to streamline rapid microbial identification and antibiotic resistance testing into one multiplex method,” Wolk said.

Currently intended for research use only, the T-5000 is the only high-throughput technology that simultaneously enables broad identification, detailed genotyping and characterization, and recognition of emerging organisms. The system is based on both PCR and mass spectrometry analysis for rapid and reliable detection of microbes.

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Abbott Molecular (abbottmolecular.com) is an emerging leader in molecular diagnostics – the analysis of DNA, RNA, and proteins at the molecular level. Abbott Molecular's instruments and reagents detect pathogens and subtle, but key changes in patients' genes and chromosomes, which permit earlier diagnoses, the selection of appropriate therapies and improved monitoring of disease progression.
About Abbott
Abbott is a global, broad-based health care company devoted to the discovery, development, manufacture and marketing of pharmaceuticals and medical products, including nutritionals, devices and diagnostics. The company employs more than 72,000 people and markets its products in more than 130 countries.