Use of preserved organisms for individual test-use quality control of bacterial typing antisera.

Bacterial antigens representing 14 of the most common clinical isolates requiring serological confirmation for identification were prepared. These antigens were stable for periods in excess of 5 months, readily available, and sero-specific. Use of these antigens for quality control of bacterial typing antisera increased the accuracy, reduced the technician time, and obviated the delay which otherwise occurred while stock isolates were subcultured to provide a sero-specific control for this procedure.