Warminster, PA -- (SBWIRE) -- 04/15/2014 -- Abraxis LLC, a supplier of rapid detection solutions to the $1 billion food pathogen market, announced that its non-O157 STEC Latex Agglutination Test (LAT) kits have been reviewed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and have been listed in the USDA Microbiological Laboratory Guidebook (MLG) as the LAT kits to be used in non-O157 STEC testing.

The USDA Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS) conducts and monitors testing the "Big Six" non-O157 STECs consisting of serogroups O26, O45, O103, O111, O121 and O145. As late as February 2014, all of the "Big Six" STECs were implicated in a recall of contaminated beef products in Texas.

Dave Deardorff, Vice-President of Marketing and Sales at Abraxis LLC, said, "The decision by the USDA to incorporate our LAT kits into their MLG validates the performance of Abraxis' antibodies. Working with the USDA, Agricultural Research Service (ARS), Eastern Regional Research Center (ERRC) and the FSIS Eastern Laboratory, we were able to develop and validate our antibodies and kits to meet the market's needs. We expect all our related products including Immunomagnetic Separation (IMS) kits and both monoclonal and polyclonal antibodies to be a valuable tool for the USDA, state and international regulatory agencies, and customers in the beef industry."

Continuing, Mr. Deardorff said, "The MLG is considered the "gold standard guide" to testing methods by many in the food safety industry. Our listing in the MLG should provide testing labs confidence that using the Abraxis LAT kits will ensure that they are complying with the testing requirements of the USDA. Based on customer requests for additional non-O157 STEC testing tools, we have expanded our offering to include both IMS and LAT kits for O157:H7 and O104:H4, monoclonal and polyclonal antibodies for the "Big Six" STECs and polyclonal antibodies for several STEC serogroups of international interest that include O8, O55, O91, O104, O113, O118, O128 and O165."

About Abraxis LLC
Abraxis LLC is a biotechnology company with a core expertise in creating better antibodies and real time test solutions for the food safety market. For over 15 years, Abraxis has been a leading immuno-solutions company developing results-oriented and innovative antibody based solutions that meet the expanding analytical needs of science and industry.

For more information, please visit http://www.abraxiskits.com/.