In recent times, molecular diagnostics has transformed microbiology from reporting the probable cause of disease several days after onset to providing real-time accurate diagnoses. The increased prospect of immediate intervention has resulted in saving lives or preventing the development of serious illness.

As with any field of diagnostics, the key to accurate results is a high-quality specimen that is stable and provides the essential markers to allow the test to be performed without ambiguity.

MWE’s SIGMA liquid medium range provides the tools for specimen collection for all areas of molecular diagnostics. Collection of the specimen into transport medium allows it to be converted into a uniform suspension providing multiple aliquots for testing by molecular and conventional culture based techniques. Immediate testing is possible on point of care test systems, while the remainder of the specimen is transported safely to the laboratory for any confirmations required.

• Σ-TRANSWAB^®
  Liquid Amies medium for recovery of bacteria without overgrowth for culture or molecular analysis. This medium is compliant with CLSI M40-A2* with certified performance with the specified panel of 10 organisms including aerobes, anaerobes and fastidious bacteria. Many studies have also been performed confirming performance for bacteria and viruses with the leading PCR and NGS systems including multiplex. The absence of protein based additives prevents interference, and ensures optimum CT values for target microorganisms.
• FECAL TRANSWAB^®
  Liquid Cary Blair medium for recovery of enteric bacteria and viruses without overgrowth. This medium is compliant with the requirements of CLSI M40-A2* for Fecal Transport Devices. In addition, it has been validated for an extended range of fecal bacteria, viruses and parasites. Performance has been demonstrated on the leading PCR and NGS systems.
• Σ-VIROCULT^®
  Liquid VIROCULT^® medium has long been recognised as the leading formulation for the recovery of live viruses for culture. This has been essential not only for the diagnosis of viral infections, but for epidemiological studies to characterise virus species and strains, particularly in times of outbreak including pandemics. It has also proved to be a vital tool in the molecular era, allowing the study of coinfections of respiratory viruses in infants and children. More recently it has been used for whole genomic studies of SARS-CoV-2 during the Covid-19 pandemic, enabling the rapid discovery of variants of concern.
• Σ-VCM™
  Liquid VCM medium extends the range of VIROCULT® to allow the recovery and identification of viruses, chlamydia and mycoplasmas, therefore being particularly suited for work with respiratory and sexually transmitted disease. For these diseases, molecular techniques have become the standard methods.
• Σ-MM™
  When cultural analysis will not be required, Σ-MM™ provides a very safe method for transporting specimens which are suspected of harbouring deadly pathogens, or unknown potentially dangerous agents. The liquid medium kills bacteria and viruses in less than a minute, but stabilises any DNA or RNA. It achieves this by denaturing all proteins, including nucleases. Thus, all the protein based systems vital for the microorganism’s survival and replication are removed at a stroke. Nucleases which may be released by the host cells are also destroyed, preventing any degradation of the chromosomal DNA or RNA. As a result, the organisms can be quickly identified on PCR and NGS based systems.

For more information on our SIGMA range, please contact us by using the Request Information button below. Independent studies for all of these products are available in our website’s Knowledge Hub.

*CLSI M40-A2 Quality Control of Microbiological Transport Systems;Approved Standard – Second Edition