title: Gas chromatographic detection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex in pure cultures from respiratory specimens.
abstract: It is important to identify mycobacteria to the species level in order to establish their clinical significance and to take the appropriate therapeutical decision. Biochemical tests on primary cultures take time (3-6 weeks) until the report of results; that's why more rapid techniques are needed. We have used gas chromatography with flame-ionisation detection (GC-FID) as an alternative identification method for 53 mycobacterial strains isolated from respiratory specimens. We have extracted fatty acids from whole mycobacterial cells, then derivatized them into methylesters, detectable by GC-FID. All the strains were identified as M. tuberculosis complex (MTC), using the Microbial Identification System (MIS) software. The specificity of the identification by GC-FID of MTC is 100%. In conclusion, pulmonary mycobacteriosis are dominated by MTC; GC-FID is a rapid and accurate method for the identification of MTC.
authors.affiliation: Microbiology Department, University of Medicine and Pharmacy Gr. T. Popa Iaşi.
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Dorneanu
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Wittmer
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Diculencu
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Pelz
mesh_terms: D002849:Chromatography, Gas / Q000191:economics / Q000379:methods*; D017046:Cost Savings; D006801:Humans; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D009169:Mycobacterium tuberculosis / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D013048:Specimen Handling; D013183:Sputum / Q000382:microbiology*; D014397:Tuberculosis, Pulmonary / Q000175:diagnosis*