Evaluation of the BacT/ALERT PZA kit in comparison with the BACTEC 460TB PZA for testing Mycobacterium tuberculosis susceptibility to pyrazinamide.
OBJECTIVE
To compare the performance of the BacT/ALERT PZA kit (BioMerieux, Marcy l'Etoile, France) with the radiometric BACTEC 460TB PZA test (Becton-Dickinson method) for testing Mycobacterium tuberculosis susceptibility to pyrazinamide.


METHODS
A total of 50 M. tuberculosis strains were tested. Thirty of these strains had been previously considered pyrazinamide-susceptible and 20 pyrazinamide-resistant by BACTEC 460TB.


RESULTS
Final overall agreement was 100%. Time needed for the susceptibility test was 6.69 days for the BacT/ALERT PZA kit versus 8.07 days for the BACTEC 460TB PZA test.


CONCLUSIONS
BacT/ALERT PZA test is an excellent alternative to BACTEC 460TB for pyrazinamide susceptibility testing.
Aragón
Lina Marcela
LM
Servei de Microbiología, Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau, Av. Sant Antoni Ma Claret, 167, 08025 Barcelona, Spain.
Garrigó
Montserrat
M
Moreno
Carmen
C
Español
Montserrat
M
Coll
Pere
P
D000581:Amidohydrolases / Q000235:genetics; D000995:Antitubercular Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D024881:Drug Resistance, Bacterial; D006801:Humans; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests / Q000295:instrumentation*; D009163:Mycobacterium bovis / Q000187:drug effects; D009169:Mycobacterium tuberculosis / Q000187:drug effects*; D011718:Pyrazinamide / Q000494:pharmacology*; D014376:Tuberculosis / Q000382:microbiology
D000995:Antitubercular Agents; D011718:Pyrazinamide; D000581:Amidohydrolases; C487496:PncA protein, Mycobacterium tuberculosis