Use of the EntericBio Gastro Panel II in a diagnostic microbiology laboratory: challenges and opportunities

We sought to verify the performance of the EntericBio real-time Gastro Panel 2 (GP2; Serosep, Ireland) assay targeting Salmonella, Shigella, Campylobacter, verotoxin producing E. coli (VTEC), Giardia, and Cryptosporidium in a high-throughput diagnostic laboratory. Following a technical verification period where 237 faecal samples were tested in parallel, guided culture and discrepancy analysis were performed. A total of 13,223 faecal samples were screened by the GP2 assay. During technical verification, sensitivity, specificity, negative and positive predictive value of the GP2 assay compared with conventional methods were 100% (83-100%), 98% (96.7-98.2%), 100% (98.5-100%), and 82.6% (69-83%), respectively. With guided culture, specificity (99.4-100%) and positive predictive value (15-100%) varied by target. Challenges with interpretation of results, particularly for VTEC, Shigella and Salmonella, are discussed.