Identification of Vibrio vulnificus by cellular fatty acid composition using the Hewlett-Packard 5898A Microbial Identification System: collaborative study

A gas chromatographic method using a capillary column for rapid identification of Vibrio vulnificus was examined in a collaborative study. Identifications were performed by analysis of cellular fatty acid profiles which were automatically searched against reference profiles stored in a computer-generated library. Each of the 13 collaborators was sent 15 unknown isolates, which included 10 V. vulnificus isolates and 5 negative control isolates. Each collaborator was furnished with a computer-generated library, developed by the Dallas U.S. Food and Drug Administration laboratory, which contained entries for V. vulnificus, V. cholerae, V. fluvialis, V. parahaemolyticus, V. mimicus, and Aeromonas hydrophila. Of the 195 isolates sent to the collaborators, results for 190 isolates were received. The other 5 isolates were nonviable before analyses began. Of the 126 V. vulnificus isolates analyzed, 118 (93.7%) were correctly identified. Of the 65 negative control isolates sent, one was nonviable, one was misidentified as V. vulnificus, and 2 were misidentified as V. parahaemolyticus. Of the 64 negative controls analyzed, 95.3% were correctly identified. Statistical analysis shows a sensitivity rate of 0.872, specificity rate of 0.982, false positive rate of 0.010, and false negative rate of 0.206. The gas chromatographic method for identification of Vibrio vulnificus by microbial fatty acid profile has been adopted first action by AOAC INTERNATIONAL.

Rapid identification of Vibrio vulnificus on nonselective media with an alkaline phosphatase-labeled oligonucleotide probe

An oligonucleotide DNA probe (VVAP) was constructed from a portion of the Vibrio vulnificus cytolysin gene (hylA) sequence and labeled with alkaline phosphatase covalently linked to the DNA. Control and environmental isolates probed with VVAP showed an exact correlation with results obtained with a plasmid DNA probe (derived from pCVD702) previously described as having 100% specificity and sensitivity for this organism. Identification of V. vulnificus strains was confirmed independently by analysis of the cellular fatty acid composition and by API 20E. Naturally occurring V. vulnificus bacteria were detected without enrichment or selective media by VVAP in unseeded oyster homogenates and seawater collected from a single site in Chesapeake Bay during June at concentrations of 6 x 10(2) and 2 x 10(1) bacteria per ml, respectively. V. vulnificus bacteria were also enumerated by VVAP in oysters seeded with known concentrations of bacteria and plated on nonselective medium. The VVAP method provides a rapid, accurate means of identifying and enumerating V. vulnificus in seawater and oysters without the use of selective media or additional biochemical tests.

Comparative Efficiency of Brilliant Green, Bismuth Sulfite, Salmonella-Shigella, Hektoen Enteric, and Xylose Lysine Desoxycholate Agars for the Recovery of Salmonella from Foods: Collaborative Study

The relative efficiency of brilliant green (BG), bismuth sulfite (BS), Salmonella-Shigella (SS), xylose lysine desoxycholate (XLD), and Hektoen enteric (HE) agars for the recovery of Salmonella from 5 foods was collaboratively studied in 11 laboratories. The analytical efficiency of various paired combinations of the 5 agars was statistically compared according to 3 parameters: (1) productivity or recovery of Salmonella, (2) rate of enumeration of cultures that were false positive for Salmonella, and (3) rate of enumeration of false-negative reactions. In descending order of productivity, the sequential rankingwasBS, XLD, HE, BG, and SS agars. In ascending order, the rates of false-positive reactions based on a statistical analysis of paired agar combinations was HE, BS, BG and XLD (tie), and SS agars. Analogously, in ascending order, the sequence of false-negative reaction rates was BS, XLD, HE, BG, and SS agars. The combination of BS, XLD, and HE agars is more efficient for recovery of Salmonella from foods than is the present official combination of BG, BS, and SS agars. The revision of official final action method 46.054 to replace the combination of BG, BS, and SS agars with a combination of BS, XLD, and HE agars has been adopted official first action.