BioControl Systems, Inc., have developed a revolutionary new solution for pathogen detection. The Assurance GDS™ (Genetic Detection System) combines the latest advancements in molecular technology and food microbiology to provide faster results with the increased accuracy required to meet today’s food and environmental testing challenges.

A key advantage of the Assurance GDS system is its turnaround time. Assurance GDS for E coli O157:H7 has been designed to provide results in a single, 8 hour shift.

In addition to faster results Assurance GDS also offers greater accuracy in the form of multiple layers of specificity. These include Immunomagnetic separation (IMS), highly specific primers, and a patented Probe system which ensure the highest degree of accuracy. These various techniques have helped overcome problems with interference from the food matrix and cross reactions from other organisms present in the sample.

The assays are performed on the Assurance GDS Rotor-Gene, an innovative multi-channel rotary cycler for the amplification and detection of the target. The Assurance GDS Rotor-Gene can read multiple, distinct targets thereby eliminating the need for melt curves, which can be difficult and time consuming to interpret.

E coli O157:H7 and SLT1/SLT2 (Shiga Like Toxin) are the first assays to be developed on the Assurance GDS platform. AOAC Official Method approval is expected soon for both assays. Additional assays for Salmonella, Listeria and L. mono are currently in development.