First-generation, freeze-dried QC discs — 86 strains, 30 genera — now available to US clinical, pharmaceutical, food, and veterinary laboratories from domestic fulfillment
GEORGETOWN, TX, May 2026 — Pro-Lab Diagnostics USA today announced the US availability of Pro-Cult®, a line of freeze-dried quality control (QC) organisms manufactured exclusively from authenticated strains held by the NCTC® (National Collection of Type Cultures) and NCPF® (National Collection of Pathogenic Fungi) under a manufacturing licence from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) Culture Collections. Pro-Cult offers clinical microbiology laboratories, pharmaceutical QC departments, and food and environmental testing facilities a documented, first-generation alternative or second-source QC organism for CLSI M100, EUCAST, USP, Ph.Eur., CAP IQCP, and FDA BAM applications.
First-Generation Traceability — Not a Multi-Passage Derivative
Every Pro-Cult disc is a first-generation (P1) subculture directly from the NCTC or NCPF master strain, leaving laboratories the full four-passage working-stock budget recommended by CLSI and ASM convention before genetic drift becomes a risk. Each lot is tested for identification and characterization attributes in UKAS-accredited Lab #2496 (TCS Biosciences), with a per-lot Certificate of Analysis available online by Code, Lot, Strain, or Strain Designation — eliminating the audit-day delay of requesting documentation from a vendor.
Both the NCTC number and the ATCC equivalent are printed on every Pro-Cult label and COA where applicable, so existing CLSI M100, EUCAST, and CAP IQCP SOPs require only an addendum line — not a rewrite.
86 Strains Across 30 Genera
The Pro-Cult catalog covers the reference organisms required for the most common QC workflows, including:
• CLSI M100 / EUCAST AST QC: E. coli NCTC 12241 (≡ATCC 25922), S. aureus NCTC 12973 (≡ATCC 29213), P. aeruginosa NCTC 12903 (≡ATCC 27853), E. faecalis NCTC 12697 (≡ATCC 29212), K. pneumoniae NCTC 13368 (≡ATCC 700603)
• USP <61>/<62> Growth Promotion: Candida albicans NCPF 3179, Aspergillus brasiliensis NCPF 2275, Bacillus subtilis NCTC 10400
• USP <71> Sterility Method Suitability: Clostridium sporogenes NCTC 532
• FDA BAM / Food Safety: Salmonella Typhimurium NCTC 12023, E. coli O157 (non-toxigenic) NCTC 12900, Listeria monocytogenes NCTC 11994, Campylobacter jejuni NCTC 11168
• Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance: MRSA NCTC 13373, CRE K. pneumoniae NCTC 13440, mcr-1 E. coli NCTC 13846
• Fastidious Organisms: Neisseria gonorrhoeae NCTC 12700, Haemophilus influenzae NCTC 11931, Streptococcus pneumoniae NCTC 12977
The full catalog of 86 strains is available at pro-lab-direct.com/pro-cult.
Supply Continuity and Procurement
Pro-Cult ships from US domestic fulfillment as UN3373 Category B refrigerated — the same logistics profile as other QC organism suppliers, with no hazardous materials surcharge. Pro-Lab matches existing GPO tier pricing on equivalent SKUs and provides a complete vendor-onboarding packet including ISO 13485:2016, ISO 9001, and ISO 14001 manufacturer certificates; ISO/IEC 17025 (UKAS Lab #2496) batch-testing accreditation; the NCTC/NCPF licence statement; a supply-continuity SLA; and a 30-day parallel-run SOP template to support switching without disrupting current CAP or IQCP documentation.
“US clinical and pharmaceutical labs have operated with a single authenticated-source QC organism supplier for decades. Pro-Cult provides a documented, first-generation NCTC/NCPF-sourced alternative that slots into existing CLSI M100 and CAP IQCP frameworks without requiring a QC plan rewrite. First-generation source traceability and online UKAS-accredited COA access are the two things we hear most from QC supervisors facing audit findings on supply-continuity risk.”
— Robert Rae, CEO, Pro-Lab Diagnostics USA
About Pro-Lab Diagnostics USA
Pro-Lab Diagnostics USA is the North American operating unit of the Pro-Lab Group, a diagnostics and laboratory supply organization with manufacturing, laboratory services, and software operations in Canada, Europe, and the United States. Pro-Lab Diagnostics distributes Pro-Cult® QC organisms, McFarland turbidity standards, Pro-Loops™ inoculating loops, TestOxidase™ reagents, and other clinical and industrial microbiology consumables to US laboratories through pro-lab-direct.com. The Pro-Lab Group also operates labtest.bio (a CLIA-certified reference laboratory) and Pro-LIMS (a laboratory information management SaaS platform).
About TCS Biosciences Ltd
TCS Biosciences Ltd is the UK manufacturer of Pro-Cult®, holding a manufacturing licence from PHE/UKHSA Culture Collections and certified to ISO 13485:2016, ISO 9001, and ISO 14001. Batch testing is conducted under ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation by UKAS-accredited Lab #2496, with per-lot Certificates of Analysis publicly accessible via the TCS Biosciences COA portal.
Pro-Cult® products are intended for professional laboratory quality control use only. They are not intended for direct use on patient specimens, for self-testing, or for diagnosis, treatment, mitigation, or prevention of disease.
Pro-Cult® is a registered trademark of Pro-Lab Diagnostics.
NCTC® and NCPF® are trademarks of the UK Health Security Agency. ATCC® is a registered trademark of the American Type Culture Collection. ATCC®, NCTC®, and NCPF® identifiers, where shown, are provided solely for strain identification, equivalence, traceability, and reference purposes. Pro-Lab Diagnostics is not affiliated with, sponsored by, endorsed by, or authorized by ATCC or UKHSA unless expressly stated in writing.
Media Contact:
Pro-Lab Diagnostics USA
Georgetown, TX | 512-832-9145
pro-lab-direct.com/pro-cult
###
