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Comparative Study
. 2011 Jan 25;6(1):e16424.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0016424.

Matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry for the identification of clinically relevant bacteria

Cinzia Benagli  1 , Viviana Rossi, Marisa Dolina, Mauro Tonolla, Orlando Petrini
Affiliations
Comparative Study

Matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry for the identification of clinically relevant bacteria

Cinzia Benagli et al. PLoS One. .

Abstract

Background: Matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) allows rapid and reliable identification of microorganisms, particularly clinically important pathogens.

Methodology/principal findings: We compared the identification efficiency of MALDI-TOF MS with that of Phoenix®, API® and 16S ribosomal DNA sequence analysis on 1,019 strains obtained from routine diagnostics. Further, we determined the agreement of MALDI-TOF MS identifications as compared to 16S gene sequencing for additional 545 strains belonging to species of Enterococcus, Gardnerella, Staphylococcus, and Streptococcus. For 94.7% of the isolates MALDI-TOF MS results were identical with those obtained with conventional systems. 16S sequencing confirmed MALDI-TOF MS identification in 63% of the discordant results. Agreement of identification of Gardnerella, Enterococcus, Streptococcus and Staphylococcus species between MALDI-TOF MS and traditional method was high (Crohn's kappa values: 0.9 to 0.93).

Conclusions/significance: MALDI-TOF MS represents a rapid, reliable and cost-effective identification technique for clinically relevant bacteria.

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Conflict of interest statement

Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Results of the validation analysis with all isolates.
Figure 2
Figure 2. Efficiency of different methods for the identification of four Staphylococcus species as compared to 16S sequencing.
Figure 3
Figure 3. Sensitivity of different methods for the identification of four Staphylococcus species as compared to 16S sequencing.
Figure 4
Figure 4. Specificity of different methods for the identification of four Staphylococcus species as compared to 16S sequencing.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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