An Improved Screening Method for the Detection and Isolation of Escherichia coli 0157:H7 From Meat, Incorporating the 3M Petrifilm™ Test Kit - HEC - for Hemorrhagic Escherichia coli 0157:H7

A screening method was devised incorporating a commercially available reactive disc blot ELISA for Escherichia coli 0157 antigen, into a cultural screening program for the isolation of E. coli 0157:H7 from meat and poultry products. The method includes the inoculation of a raw or cooked meat sample into an enrichment broth, incubation with shaking at 37°C for 6 to 8 h, followed by inoculation of 3M Petrifilm™ E. coli Count plates with dilutions of the enrichment culture. The Petrifilm plates were incubated at 42°C for 18 h and tested for the presence of the 0157 antigen. The enrichment cultures were reincubated static at 35°C after the initial shaken incubation. Isolation was attempted from the positive Petrifilm plates by both a direct picking and streaking method and by the 3M Prompt™ isolation method. Isolation also was attempted from the 24-h enrichment cultures by spread plating serial dilutions on 150 × 15 mm MacConkey sorbitol agar (MSA) and MSA with 5-bromo-4-chloro-3-indoxyl-β-D-glucuronic acid cyclohexylammonium salt (BCIG). This fast and efficient screening procedure identifies negative and presumptive positive samples in 26–28 h. Isolation and confirmation of the presumptive positive isolates require an additional 3 to 4 d.