Microbiologics, Inc. has launched UV-BioTAG™, a line of bacterial reference strains containing green fluorescent protein (GFP) markers. Designed for quality control (QC) testing in food safety laboratories, UV-BioTAG cultures visibly fluoresce under ultraviolet (UV) light making them easily distinguishable from natural contaminants isolated from food samples.

Food samples may inadvertently become contaminated with control strains used in the laboratory leading to false-positive results which can have severe financial and regulatory implications. Brad Goskowicz, Microbiologics Chief Executive Officer, commented, “UV-BioTAG allows laboratories to quickly and reliably establish whether a positive test result can be traced back to a control strain cross-contamination issue, or if it is from another source.” Goskowicz added, “Our UV-BioTAG strains are sourced from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and are rigorously tested using proteomic, phenotypic and functional methods to ensure their authenticity, stability and compatibility with common detection technologies.”

Escherichia coli O157:H7, Shigella flexneri, Salmonella Typhimurium and Salmonella Senftenberg are the first strains available in the UV-BioTAG product line. “For each strain, the GFP reporter is controlled by a strong promoter for highly visible fluorescence,” stated Dr. Brian Beck, Microbiologics Vice President of Molecular Product and Services. Dr. Beck added, “The GFP reporter used for UV-BioTAG strains has been integrated into the chromosome to provide superior stability over plasmid-based reporters which may be lost during enrichments designed to recover pathogens from food.”

UV-BioTAG is available in two user-friendly formats. The UV-BioTAG Vial Kit contains six vials of six individually packaged lyophilized microorganism pellets, which are rehydrated in a sterile fluid, such as saline, and then plated on growth medium. The UV-BioTAG Swab Kit contains six all-in-one devices featuring a lyophilized microorganism pellet, ampoule of rehydration fluid and a swab, which allows for direct inoculation of growth medium.

Microbiologics is showcasing their UV-BioTAG product line at the International Association for Food Protection (IAFP) Annual Meeting in St. Louis, Missouri, July 31 - August 3, 2016.

You can also learn more at Microbiologics.com/UV-BioTAG.