Evaluation of the Carba NP Test for the Detection of Carbapenemase Activity in Bacteroides Species

Abstract

We evaluated the usefulness of the Carba NP test for rapid detection of carbapenemase activity in Bacteroides spp. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) for imipenem was determined with gradient test strips, and cfiA gene was investigated by polymerase chain reaction for 27 clinical Bacteroides spp. isolates. Carba NP test was performed according to recommendations of the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute. Among three cfiA gene harboring clinical isolates, two imipenem resistant isolates were Carba NP test positive, while the imipenem intermediate isolate was negative. Our preliminary results suggest that the Carba NP test can be useful as a rapid test to detect carbapenemases in Bacteroides species.

Keywords

• Bacteroides fragilis
• carbapenemase
• cfiA
• Carba NP
• imipenem