Evaluation of the TPX MRSA assay for the detection of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus

: Stenholm T, Hakanen A, Salmenlinna S, Pihlasalo S, Härmä H, Hänninen P, Huovinen P, Vuopio J, Kotilainen P

: 2011

: European Journal of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases

: 10

: 30

: 10

: 1237

: 1243

: 7

: 0934-9723

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10096-011-1218-x

The aim of this study was to evaluate a new type of assay for the phenotypic detection of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). The assay is based on a point-of-care compatible two-photon excitation fluorescence detection technology (TPX). A collection of 243 epidemic MRSA isolates was tested in addition to 138 sporadic MRSA and 101 negative control strains. The assay proved to be both sensitive (97.9%) and specific (94.1%) in the identification of MRSA, with adequate positive (98.4%) and negative (92.2%) predictive values. The time required for obtaining a positive test result was less than 14 h for 99.0% of the MRSA true-positive samples. After a test run, the selectively enriched reaction mixtures may be recovered and further studied by molecular or standard phenotypic methods. The main benefits of the TPX methodology include a simple assay procedure, low reagent consumption, and a high-throughput capacity. © 2011 Springer-Verlag.