High-throughput PCR
Provides Real-time
Solutions
Foodborne bacterial contamination is estimated to cause about 76 million illnesses per year in the United States alone. In a report from the United States Department of Agriculture Economic Re-
search Service, foodborne illnesses account for about 1 of every 100
hospitalizations and 1 of every 500 deaths in the US. The most common
bacterial pathogens attributed to outbreaks are Salmonella, Listeria
monocytogenes, Escherichia coli O157:H7 and Campylobacter. Accord-
ing to a Centers for Disease Control and Preven-
tion report tracking foodborne
illnesses in 2007, of all the out-
breaks attributed to a single
food, 17% were from poultry,
16% from beef and 14% from
leafy vegetables. Other food
commodities have been
plagued by massive recalls due
to contamination including
peanut butter, tomatoes,
The iQ-Check TM real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) system
from Bio-Rad Laboratories was designed specifically with the needs of
users in mind with kits available for Salmonella, L. monocytogenes, Liste-
ria spp., E. coli O157:H7 and Campylobacter. The use of highly specific
probes and primers results in excellent sensitivity and specificity, vali-
dated by AOAC. With a high-throughput extraction, all pathogens can be
tested at the same time, making life for the laboratory a little bit easier.
Two instrument platforms are available for all sized labs. The 96-well, 5
color CFX96TM system is designed for high-throughout analysis while the
48-well, 2 color MiniOpticon TM is perfect for smaller labs.
www.foodscience.bio-rad.com
In Need of a Better Method
Chestnut Labs (Springfield, MO) provides clients with food safety testing, auditing, training, consultation and research including test kit validations and shelf-life studies. In operation for more than 20 years, the lab is
recognized for its superior customer service and ability to be a value-added business partner for its clients. Chestnut Labs operates under the
ISO 17025 principles and is committed to providing clients with a commitment to quality and constant improvement.
Michael Clark, laboratory director at Chestnut Labs, mentions that
cost and turnaround time are very important to their customers. The
company needed a fast and dependable real-time PCR platform where
multiple pathogens could be tested simultaneously. The laboratory
needed a protocol that was user friendly and capable of high-throughput
analysis to eliminate the usual bottleneck areas common of real-time
PCR tests. The iQ-Check method met those needs. With the combination
of the high-throughput extraction protocol, the CFX96 real-time PCR de-
tection system and the CFX Manager Software, Chestnut Labs was able
to provide their customers with reliable,
next-day results without passing on an
additional cost.
