Introduction

Acinetobacter is a genus that comprises a group of opportunistic pathogens responsible for a variety of nosocomial infections. The Acinetobacter calcoaceticus–Acinetobacter baumannii (Acb) complex includes some species of clinical importance, mainly A. baumannii, A. pittii and A. nosocomialis, which share phenotypic similarities that make it very difficult to distinguish between them using a phenotypic approach. The aim of this study was to evaluate two commercial matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) systems for the identification of different Acinetobacter species, with a special focus among those belonging to the Acb complex.

Methods

One hundred and fifty-six Acinetobacter spp. clinical strains, identified by amplified ribosomal DNA restriction analysis (ARDRA) and rpoB gene sequencing, were analysed by two different MALDI-TOF systems.

Results

Considering only the 144 strains of the Acb complex evaluated in this study, the Vitek-MS™ and Microflex LT™ systems correctly identified 129 (89.6%) and 143 (99.3%) strains, respectively.

Conclusion

After analysing 156 strains belonging to Acinetobacter spp., both Vitek-MS™ and Microflex LT™ proved to be rapid and accurate systems for the identification of Acb complex species showing a good correlation. However, both manufacturers should improve their databases to include new species in them.

中文翻译：

---

评估 Vitek-MS™ 和 Microflex LT™ 商用系统，用于鉴定醋酸钙-鲍曼不动杆菌复合物。

介绍

不动杆菌属包括一组引起各种医院感染的机会性病原体。在不动杆菌，鲍曼不动杆菌（ACB）包括复杂的临床意义一些物种，主要是鲍曼不动杆菌，A. pittii和A. nosocomialis，其份额表型相似，使得它很难在它们之间运用表型的方法区别开来。本研究的目的是评估两种商用基质辅助激光解吸电离飞行时间质谱 (MALDI-TOF MS) 系统，用于鉴定不同的不动杆菌属物种，特别关注属于 Acb 复合物的那些。

方法

一百五十六个不动杆菌属。通过扩增核糖体 DNA 限制性分析 (ARDRA) 和rpoB基因测序鉴定的临床菌株，通过两种不同的 MALDI-TOF 系统进行分析。

结果

仅考虑本研究中评估的 144 种 Acb 复合物菌株，Vitek-MS™ 和 Microflex LT™ 系统分别正确识别了 129 (89.6%) 和 143 (99.3%) 种菌株。

结论

在分析了属于不动杆菌属的156 株菌株后，Vitek-MS™ 和 Microflex LT™ 被证明是用于鉴定 Acb 复杂物种的快速准确系统，显示出良好的相关性。然而，两家制造商都应该改进他们的数据库以在其中包含新物种。