The Division of Clinical Microbiology at Mayo Clinic offers a broad selection of tests designed for rapid identification of the causative agents of infectious diseases and prompt reporting of results. Through Mayo’s testing practice, our laboratory has developed culture techniques and molecular methods for rapid detection and identification of unusual as well as common microbial pathogens.

Other features:

• Complete range of organism identification and susceptibility testing for bacteria and fungi
• Expert consultants in areas of bacteriology, molecular microbiology, mycology, mycobacteriology, parasitology and virology
• Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis of bacterial isolates (eg, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and vancomycin-resistant enterococci) useful for demonstrating strain differences among isolates and epidemiologic studies of nosocomial infections
• Extensive experience in routine detection of DNA of herpesviruses (cytomegalovirus, Epstein-Barr virus, herpes simplex virus, and varicella-zoster virus) in cerebrospinal fluid by polymerase chain reaction (PCR)
• Rapid detection of most mycobacteria within 7 to 10 days and identification of some species within 1 day using nucleic acid probes (BSL3 facility)
• Qualitative, quantitative detection and genotyping of hepatitis C virus
• Viral load and genotypic determinations of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)
• Consolidated infectious disease serology laboratory (bacterial, fungal, parasitic, and viral infections)
• Rapid identification of dimorphic fungi using nucleic acid probes
• Immunoassays for the diagnosis of parasitic infections including rapid detection of giardia, cryptosporidium and Entamoeba histolytica antigens in stool and antibodies to babesia, taenia (cysticercosis), echinococcus, strongyloides, toxocara, toxoplasma, trichinella, trypanosoma, and visceral leishmania in serum
• Stool antigens, breath test, and serology tests available for detection of Helicobacter pylori infections
• Nucleic acid testing (bDNA, PCR, strand displacement amplification, or transcription-mediated amplification, signal amplification) for several microbial agents:
  • Chlamydia trachomatis (genital)
  • Hepatitis B virus (quantitative, genotyping)
  • Hepatitis C virus (qualitative, quantitative, genotyping)
  • HIV (quantitative, genotyping)
  • Human papillomavirus
  • Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (transcription-mediated amplification)
  • Neisseria gonorrhoeae (genital)
• Identification of selected mycobacteria, aerobic actinomycetes, and bacteria using DNA sequencing
• LightCycler™ PCR for rapid detection of:
  • Babesia microti
  • Bartonella
  • BK virus ([plasma, urine], qualitative, quantitative)
  • Bordetella pertussis/Bordetella parapertussis
  • Borrelia burgdorferi
  • Cytomegalovirus (qualitative, quantitative)
  • Ehrlichia chaffeensis (agent of human monocytic ehrlichiosis), Ehrlichia ewingii/Ehrlichia canis, and Anaplasma phagocytophilum (agent of human granulocytic ehrlichiosis)
  • Enterovirus
  • Epstein-Barr virus (qualitative, quantitative)
  • Herpes simplex virus types 1 & 2 (genital and dermal)
  • Human herpesvirus-6
  • Influenza virus types A and B
  • JC virus (cerebrospinal fluid)
  • Malaria
  • Parvovirus
  • Pneumocystis
  • Toxoplasma gondii (amniotic fluid, cerebrospinal fluid)
  • Tropheryma whipplei (Whipple’s disease)
  • Vancomycin-resistant enterococci
  • Varicella-zoster virus (dermal)
  • West Nile virus