SSI Diagnostica produces a wide range of products for clinical microbiology, the vaccine industry, veterinary diagnostics, food control, environmental and hygiene control, and quality control. Their products comply with the highest standards of quality and supported by highly qualified product specialists and scientific consultants.

The extensive range of products includes individual polyvalent antisera and antisera pools for the typing of bacterial isolates as well as a select range of specialised kits for clinical microbiology.

Pneumococci are enclosed within a capsule consisting of repeated units of polysaccharides. The composition of the polysaccharides defines the serotype, and 91 pneumococcal serotypes have been described to date, with more on the way. The 91 serotypes are divided into 25 types and 21 groups. Each group consists of 2-5 serotypes which are very similar.

Serotyping of pneumococci is used for surveillance of serotype distribution in connection with pneumococcal vaccination of both children and adults. Following the introduction of the various vaccines, an increased incidence of serotypes which were not previously so dominant has been observed.

Pneumococcal antisera from SSI Diagnostica are intended for in vitro diagnostic testing in clinical microbiological laboratories, in reference laboratories, and in the pharmaceuticals industry for the quality control of vaccines. All antisera are polyclonal and produced by immunising rabbits with well-defined reference strains.

• Pneumococcal pool antisera are a mixture of antisera. Pools A-I contain antisera against all serotypes, while pools P-T are mixtures of antisera against the 23-valent vaccine serotypes. By combining the two Pool systems (the Pneumotest products), the 23 serotypes can be serotyped easily to type/group level.
• Pneumococcal type antisera react specifically with the serotype in question.
• Pneumococcal group antisera are specific antisera reacting with all serotypes in the group in question.
• Pneumococcal factor antisera for the ultimate identification of the serotypes in the group. The combination of the results defines the serotype.

• SSI Pneumococcus
• SSI Book Streptococcus pneumoniae

ImmuLex^TM reagents are available as latex particles coated with purified polyclonal antibodies. These reagents are ready to use and produce results within seconds. The number of ImmuLex products is increasing and includes antisera specificities across the spectrum of the SSI Diagnostica product range.

ImmuLex™ S. pneumoniae Omni is a rapid latex agglutination test for detection of S. pneumoniae. It is a ready-to-use latex test for quick detection of 92 S. pneumoniae serotypes directly from a positive blood culture or from a pure culture. A positive reaction is visible to the naked eye within 5 seconds for blood culture and 10 seconds for pure culture.

• S pneumo Omni

Streptococcus pneumoniae expresses a number of different sugars on the cell surface. Most sugars are in the cell capsule, which defines the 92 different pneumococcal serotypes currently known.

All virulent/pathogenic pneumococci produce a sugar capsule. This sugar capsule is unique and is found in more than 90 different variants. Pneumococcal serotypes are defined on the basis of these capsules.

SSI Diagnostica offers purified pneumococcal capsules for ALL the serotypes described. These can be used in immunological investigations such as ELISA antibody assays, to evaluate whether any vaccination/revaccination is desirable.

All pneumococci also express a group antigen, referred to as the cell wall polysaccharide (CWPS). CWPS is found in two different forms, depending on the quantity of phosphorylcholine (CWPS1 and CWPS2) per sugar unit. The capsule sugars are found in existing vaccines, partly in conjugate vaccine for children, but also in pure sugar vaccines for adults.

Pneumococcal CWPS and CWPS Multi are used as adsorption material in immunological investigations such as ELISA antibody assays, to evaluate whether any vaccination/revaccination is desirable. When CWPS Multi is used, adsorption with the 22F capsule, as recommended by WHO for ELISA, is not required.

• SSI CWPS

E. coli serotyping, is an important tool in diagnosis, monitoring and testing. SSI Diagnostica is the only company in the world to produce E. coli antisera for full serotyping of all O, K and H antigens in addition to the most commonly used E. coli OK O and F antisera, frequent bacteriophages and F antigens. They are a leading company in the research and surveillance of E. coli in both the human and veterinary field, particularly within the fields of VTEC, EPEC and ETEC.

Antisera from SSI Diagnostica are for in vitro use in human, veterinary and food laboratories. All antisera are produced in accordance with internationally recognised methods and all finished products are tested against a large number of strains.

United States now require the meat industry to monitor for six non-O157 Shiga toxin-producing E.coli (STEC) serogroups. The regulation requires testing for the so called “Big Six” STEC (O26, O45, O103, O111, O121, and O145) as these serotypes have been most frequently associated with E. coli outbreaks of food-borne illnesses worldwide.

The OK O pool Big Six is intended for screening of the serotypes O26, O45, O103, O111, O121, and O145 using slide agglutination.

• SSI E coli

The increased incidence of Salmonella infections in recent years has intensified the need for serotyping, which is an important tool for diagnostics and for the monitoring and control of food products.

Full serotyping of Salmonella involves the use of antibodies against somatic O, capsular Vi, and phase 1 and 2 flagellar H antigens. SSI Diagnostica produces more than 200 different Salmonella antisera, which makes it possible to type more than 99% of all Salmonella serotypes. Salmonella antisera from SSI Diagnostica are intended for either slide agglutination or H phase inversion on swarm agar plates.

• SSI Salmonella
• SSI Salmonella Big Five

Salmonella Sero-Quick Group kit is a screening kit designed to identify Salmonella isolates to serogroup level. The kit contains antisera against serogroups A-G and against the capsular antigen Vi.

• SSI Salmonella seroquick Group

Salmonella sero-quick ID kit is intended for complete serotyping of S. Enteritidis (1,9,12:g,m:-) and S. Typhimurium (1,4,[5],12:i:1,2), the two most commonly occurring Salmonella serotypes.

• SSI Salmonella seroquick ID

There are four species of Shigella, S. dysenteriae (15 serotypes), S. flexneri (8 serotypes, with serotypes 1-5 subdivided into 10 sub-serotypes), S. boydii (19 serotypes) and S. sonnei (1 serotype, but this has two phases). The serological identification of Shigella species is important both clinically and epidemiologically.

Shigella antiserum from SSI Diagnostica is intended for in vitro diagnostic testing in clinical microbiological laboratories and reference laboratories. Antisera against S. flexneri, S. boydii and S. dysenteriae are polyclonal O antibodies produced by immunising rabbits with a well-defined reference strain. Antisera are then absorbed for any cross-reactions. S. sonnei consists of monoclonal O antibodies.

• SSI Shigella

Serotyping of streptococci is an important tool in diagnosis, monitoring and control, as streptococci infections can cause serious disease in humans and animals. Antisera from SSI Diagnostica are for in vitro use in human, veterinary and food laboratories. All antisera are produced in accordance with internationally recognised methods and all finished products are tested with a series of strains. SSI Diagnostica offers ImmuLex reagents to identify groups A, B, C, D, F, G, and L, and also to differentiate the 10 Streptococcus B types.

SSI Diagnostica offers a latex serotyping kit for S. suis.

• SSI Streptococcus
• SSI Strep B latex

SSI Diagnostica has an extensive range of bacterial reference strains

• E. coli
• Pneumococcus
• Salmonella
• Streptococcus
• S. aureus

More details can be found on the SSI Diagnostica website