Multicenter evaluation of commercial frozen plates for microdilution broth antifungal susceptibility testing of yeasts and comparison of MIC limits recommended in NCCLS M27-A2.
A commercial kit, Frozen Plate for Antifungal Susceptibility Testing of Yeasts, Eiken (Eiken Chemical Co., Ltd., Tokyo), was tested in a multi-institute study to evaluate the agreement between interinstitute MICs and National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards (NCCLS) M27-A2 recommendation limits of MIC value. The kit was reported as a method equivalent to the standardized guidelines for antifungal susceptibility testing by the Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards-1994, the Japanese Society for Medical Mycology, and which is widely used in Japan for amphotericin B, flucytosine, fluconazole, miconazole, and itraconazole. The degrees of inter-institute and NCCLS agreements were good to excellent especially with 48-hr incubation for all antifungal agents. However, the percent agreements to NCCLS recommendations against itraconazole were poor. Overall, MIC values obtained using the frozen plate antifungal susceptibility testing kit, with 48-hr incubation, were thought to be reliable and convenient alternatives to the data obtained by the NCCLS M27-A2 reference macrodilution and microdilution method. This kit will allow matching of results between international laboratories. However, the MIC value for itraconazole requires careful interpretation.
Makimura
Koichi
K
Department of Molecular Biology and Gene Diagnosis, Teikyo University Institute of Medical Mycology, Hachioji, Tokyo, Japan. makimura@main.teikyo-u.ac.jp
Oguri
Toyoko
T
Mikami
Yuzuru
Y
Kume
Hikaru
H
Hanazawa
Ryo
R
Abe
Michiko
M
Ikeda
Reiko
R
Shinoda
Takako
T
D000935:Antifungal Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D003470:Culture Media; D005615:Freezing; D007564:Japan; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests / Q000379:methods* / Q000592:standards; D011933:Reagent Kits, Diagnostic / Q000592:standards; D015003:Yeasts / Q000187:drug effects / Q000254:growth & development
D000935:Antifungal Agents; D003470:Culture Media; D011933:Reagent Kits, Diagnostic