Nonradioactive colony hybridization assay for detection and enumeration of enterotoxigenic Clostridium perfringens in raw beef.

A DNA probe endolabeled with digoxigenin by PCR was developed to detect and enumerate enterotoxigenic Clostridium perfringens in raw beef. After 2 h of hybridization, membranes were developed by using an anti-digoxigenin-alkaline phosphatase conjugated antibody. The resulting chromogenic reaction allowed us to detect and enumerate < or = 10 CFU of C. perfringens per g.