ACCURACY OF MICRO-ID LISTERIA FOR IDENTIFICATION OF MEMBERS OF THE GENUS LISTERIA

Conventional culture procedures for identification of members of the genus Listeria are tedious and time consuming. Recently, a rapid identification system, MICRO-ID(R) Listeria, was developed which allows identification of members of the genus Listeria to the species level. A total of 63 cultures representing 7 species of Listeria and 10 cultures of other gram-positive organisms was identified. All isolates were evaluated both by MICRO-ID(R) Listeria and conventional biochemical procedures. Identification using MICRO-ID(R) Listeria was accomplished by determining the octal code, CAMP, and hemolysis reactions. The MICRO-ID(R) Listeria and the Bacteriological Analytical Manual (BAM) identifications agreed on all 73 cultures. The test strips were easy to inoculate and read, and results were obtained 24 h after inoculation, as compared to 7 d for the BAM procedure.