Neogen's Isothermal ANSR™ Salmonella Assay Receives AOAC-PTM Approval

Neogen Corporation has received Performance Tested Method^SM Certification from the AOAC Research Institute for its new ANSR™ Salmonella assay, which is designed for rapid and definitive detection of Salmonella in food and environmental samples.

Neogen recently introduced the ANSR rapid pathogen detection system in May 2012 with the Salmonella assay. The issuance of this certificate, Number 061203 from the AOAC Research Institute, independently confirms the performance of the assay as equivalent to that of the FDA or USDA reference methods for Salmonella detection. The ANSR system uses an innovative isothermal DNA amplification process to amplify DNA to detectable levels and fluorescent molecular beacon technology for detection of the pathogen target. Combined with ANSR´s single enrichment step, Neogen´s new pathogen detection method can provide DNA-definitive results for Salmonella in as little as 10 hours from the time the sample is taken.

'ANSR is the solution for those customers who want fast and accurate results in an extremely easy-to-use format, and this certification is a confirmation of the method and the technology used in the ANSR pathogen detection system,' said Gerry Broski, Food Safety marketing director for Neogen. 'Moving forward, additional assays for the ANSR system are in development for Listeria spp., Listeria monocytogenes and non-O157 STECs. As these tests are developed we will seek relevant global approvals to address the needs of our customers.'

The AOAC approval covers the use of the ANSR system to detect Salmonella in food matrices such as raw ground beef, raw ground turkey, chicken carcass rinse, hot dogs, oat cereal, and sponge or swab samples from stainless steel, plastic, ceramic tile, sealed concrete, and rubber environmental surfaces.

Unlike PCR-based methods, ANSR requires only a single reaction temperature, which completely eliminates the time-consuming heating and cooling cycles of older methods. The ANSR system´s small benchtop footprint, 16 well capacity and extremely simple test procedure make it an easy fit in any laboratory workflow.