Enabeling Rapid Detection of β-lactamase Activity

The increasing emergence of carbapenem-resistant organisms (CRO), including Enterobacterales (CRE), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (CRPA) and Acinetobacter baumannii (CRAB), is a major public health threat. The modified carbapenem inactivation method (mCIM) is a reference method that is widely used in clinical and public health laboratories to detect carbapenemase production; however, it is time-consuming and not suitable for detecting carbapenemases in A. baumannii. New methods that can rapidly detect extended carbapenemase-producing organisms (CPO) including A. baumannii are essential for effective infection prevention and control. Join Dr. Chunye Lu, Antibiotic Resistance Testing Laboratory Supervisor at CDPH, and Vida Mofidi, Senior Public Health Microbiologist with OCPHL Special Pathogens department, for an informational webinar as they discuss the validation and implementation of a novel assay for the detection of CPO using Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption Ionization-Time of Flight Mass Spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS).

Learning Objectives

Provide background information on the importance of CRO and CPO
Review currently available phenotypic tests for CPO
Summarize results from MBT STAR®-Carba Kit
Discuss implementation of the MBT STAR®-Carba Kit into the CPO testing workflow

Rapid Detection of Carbapenemase Activity in Carbapenemase-Producing Organisms (CPO) Using MALDI-TOF