Comparison of the BACGene Real-Time PCR and BAX® System PCR Methods for the Detection of Salmonella in Pet Food
A head to head study was conducted comparing the performance of the Eurofins Genescan Technologies developed BACGene® Salmonella real-time PCR method with the BAX® System Salmonella method in spiked pet food (dry kibble). 375G pet food composites (previously screened negative for Salmonella) were prepared from kibble provided by a pet food manufacturer and spiked with Salmonella at three different levels (low, med, high) in an attempt to obtain fractional positives at one or more spike levels by either or both methods. Negative controls were also included to which no Salmonella was added. Salmonella Senftenberg (UV-biotag GFP labeled) was used as the test organism. All samples, irrespective of PCR result, were taken to culture confirmation by FDA-BAM and further confirmed by examination of fluorescence. Fractional results were obtained for both methods with 11/20 (aggregate of low and medium spike) samples positive for each. All presumptive positives for both methods were confirmed by culture, however, the BAX® System method had one sample that was positive by culture but negative by PCR (false negative). No false positives were reported by either method. The cause of the false negative on BAX is not yet known, but some possibilities will be discussed in the conclusions section of the poster.
Author
Dan Demarco, Associate Scientific Director Eurofins Microbiology
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