Springfield, MA - Researchers say they have developed a rapid test that can find killer E. coli bacteria before tainted food, such as hamburger, leaves the warehouse and gets to consumers.
They say that the test may also be used to detect salmonella, another dangerous food contaminating microbe.
The scientists from Springfield College, Springfield, Mass., say the test can identify the deadly strain of E. coli -- O157:H7 -- in as little as eight to 24 hours. Other tests can take two to four days. They say that meat processing takes about two days.
The test, called a "motility channel pathogen detector" is based on the movement of microbes through a channel in a culture dish.
The scientists told reporters it is faster than currently used genetic probes and culture methods, and will require just a few hours of training for a technician to learn.
Chemist Frank Torre, one of the inventors, says that with widespread use of a rapid test for E. coli, deaths caused by contaminated hamburger "might have been avoided."
Torre made his comments at a press briefing held at the college on Wednesday.
He says the kit could "easily be used in a meat packing plants." He adds that "cattle can be tested before they are slaughtered."
The college has received a U.S. patent and is actively marketing the test. A kit could be on the market by the end of the year, say college officials.
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