# NG-TEST CARBA 5 with BCP Kit detects 134 of 138 carbapenemases directly from spiked blood cultures

- Published: 2026-11-13 23:26 UTC
- Section: Life & Health › Medicine
- Tags: carbapenemase detection, NG-TEST CARBA 5, NG-TEST Blood Culture PREP, bloodstream infections, positive blood cultures, Enterobacterales, rapid diagnostics, antimicrobial resistance, lateral flow assay, diagnostic sensitivity
- URL: https://realtech.media/news/rt-979cf0fd0fcc6d314e975db7_ng_test_carba/

**In a lab study on spiked blood cultures, a rapid test found five main carbapenemases in under 25 minutes with 97.10% sensitivity and 100% specificity.**

![NG-TEST CARBA 5 with BCP Kit detects 134 of 138 carbapenemases directly from spiked blood cultures](https://realtech.media/media/2026/11/b6e0e94221d667e5.jpg)
*bioengineer.org*

A team led by Oueslati, Girlich and Naas evaluated a combination of the NG-TEST Blood Culture PREP (BCP) Kit and the NG-TEST CARBA 5 (NG Biotech) for direct detection of the five main carbapenemases from positive blood cultures. The results were published in Frontiers in Microbiology [1]. The authors report that the workflow gives a result in under 25 minutes [1].

Rapid detection of Gram-negative carbapenemase-producing organisms (CPOs) in bloodstream infections is needed to guide timely therapy. The study was done on blood culture bottles spiked in the laboratory, not on samples from patients [1].

## Panel and method

The researchers used 145 clinical Enterobacterales isolates to spike the bottles. Of these, 124 were CPOs with targeted carbapenemases: 18 NDM, 10 VIM, 28 IMP, 24 KPC, 31 OXA-48-like and 13 with multiple carbapenemases. Another 10 CPOs carried no targeted carbapenemases, and 11 isolates were non-CPOs [1].

The bottles were incubated in the BACT/ALERT VIRTUO system (bioMérieux) until the system detected bacterial growth. Bacteria were then prepared from the culture with the NG-TEST BCP Kit and tested with NG-TEST CARBA 5. The results were compared with those obtained from colonies [1].

## Sensitivity and missed variants

The BCP Kit extracted bacteria reliably irrespective of species [1]. NG-TEST CARBA 5 identified 134 of 138 carbapenemases from bacterial pellets from blood cultures and 136 of 138 from colonies. This corresponds to a sensitivity of 97.10% and 98.55%, respectively [1].

The KPC-31 and KPC-33 variants were missed in both pellets and colonies, as expected. Two VIM-producing Citrobacter freundii isolates were detected only from colonies [1].

CPOs without targeted carbapenemases and non-CPOs gave negative results, which gave 100% specificity [1]. The authors conclude that the combination is a rapid, user-friendly, robust and accurate method for species-independent detection of the five main carbapenemases directly from positive blood cultures, enabling earlier targeted antimicrobial therapy [1].

## Sources

1. [Frontiers in Microbiology](https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2026.1867449)
2. [bioengineer.org](https://bioengineer.org/rapid-assay-detects-major-carbapenemases-directly-from-blood-cultures)

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Source: RealTech, realtech.media — https://realtech.media/news/rt-979cf0fd0fcc6d314e975db7_ng_test_carba/