New BAX system test for E. coli O157:H7

Beef processors, service labs and other food industries can now use a new test from DuPont Qualicon to quickly and accurately check beef and produce for contamination with E. coli O157:H7.

Developed in collaboration with the USDA Agricultural Research Service, this BAX System assay uses real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technology to quickly detect all known E. coli O157:H7, even atypical strains that can be missed by some other tests.

E. coli O157:H7 is a foodborne pathogen that can cause serious, sometimes fatal, illness at very low infectious doses--as few as 10 organisms.

The BAX System real-time assay was validated on industry standard sizes of ground beef, beef trim, lettuce and spinach that were spiked at 1-2 cells per portion, and it was found to perform as well or better than the reference culture methods.