BD Diagnostics announced the launch of the BD BACTEC™ MGIT™ 320 mycobacteria culture system—a new, smaller capacity system to quickly and accurately detect tuberculosis (TB).

Designed for laboratories with smaller volumes, the BD BACTEC MGIT 320 System is half the physical size of the industry-leading BD BACTEC MGIT 960 System—a fully automated system for mycobacterial liquid culture and susceptibility testing. The new, smaller system holds 320 tubes, for an annual capacity of approximately 2,700 specimens per year. It makes optimal use of valuable laboratory space and offers a flexible configuration as either a bench-top or stand-mounted instrument.

With the introduction of the BD BACTEC MGIT 320 System, liquid technology will be more readily available globally in an effort to help reduce TB deaths and decrease transmission rates in high-risk areas. As with the larger model, the new system can dramatically shorten mycobacterial culture recovery time and improve patient management as compared with conventional media or sputa smear approaches.

“The BD BACTEC MGIT 320 System will continue BD’s leadership in fighting TB worldwide through proper detection,” said Philippe Jacon, President of BD Diagnostics – Diagnostic Systems. “Quick, safe, efficient testing is critical in the diagnosis of TB. The BD BACTEC MGIT 320 System offers the same quality and benefits as the BD BACTEC MGIT 960—faster, more accurate detection through liquid culture technology — but in a smaller-scale format that will appeal to laboratories with the appropriate capacity for their workload.”

Offering easy-to-use culture detection, with minimal hands-on time, the BD BACTEC MGIT 320 System employs plastic screw-cap tubes for safe, easy access to the medium and a simple, four-step instrument workflow. As an additional safety measure, the system does not require needles to inoculate or subculture the test tubes, eliminating the risk of needlestick injuries while inoculating tubes or working up positive cultures.

The BD BACTEC MGIT 320 System uses MGIT media and patented sensors, making efficient use of advanced fluorometric technology, which permits highly accurate detection of O2 consumption without sharps that has proven performance in the BD BACTEC MGIT 960 System.

The rapid and accurate diagnosis of symptomatic patients is the cornerstone of global strategies for TB control. BD offers a range of solutions for TB diagnosis from specimen collection to final test result.

Source: BD Diagnostics