Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 11, 2026

Direct Microbial Identification using An Automated Microbial Identification System to Facilitate the EUCAST RAST Method Without Mass Spectrometry
Published on: May 24, 2024
Use of Vitek 2 antimicrobial susceptibility profile to identify mecC in methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus
Edward J P Cartwright1, Gavin K Paterson, Kathy E Raven
1Department of Medicine, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom.
Abstract:
The emergence of mecC methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) poses a diagnostic challenge for clinical microbiology laboratories. Using the Vitek 2 system, we tested a panel of 896 Staphylococcus aureus isolates and found that an oxacillin-sensitive/cefoxitin-resistant profile had a sensitivity of 88.7% and a specificity of 99.5% for the identification of mecC MRSA isolates. The presence of the mecC gene, determined by bacterial whole-genome sequencing, was used as the gold standard. This profile could provide a zero-cost screening method for identification of mecC-positive MRSA strains.
Related Concept Videos
Automated Microbial Diagnostics
Clinical Significance of Antibiotic Resistance
Mechanism of Antibiotic Resistance in MRSA
Antimicrobial Effectiveness
Staphylococcal Skin Infections
Modern Molecular Taxonomy
