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The letter published in Clinical Chemistry & Laboratory Medicine discusses a simple flow cytometry method using a myeloma panel to identify clonal proliferation of mature B-cells in patients initially diagnosed with plasma cell myeloma. Two cases of mature B-cell lymphoma with plasmacytic differentiation were presented, highlighting the importance of evaluating monoclonality of mature B-cells using anti-IgL-κ and IgL-λ antibodies. The study emphasizes the need to consider mature B-cell malignancy in cases of plasma cell proliferation, especially when CD19-positive/CD56-negative plasma cells are detected in flow cytometry analysis. [Extracted from the article]

The rapid and accurate identification of Neisseria meningitidis, a pathogen that causes invasive infections and meningitis, is crucial for its effective clinical management and infection control. However, identification using matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry may misidentify other Neisseria species as N. meningitidis, thus necessitating confirmatory tests based on biochemical properties. These tests require high bacterial concentrations that are achieved through subculturing, which can increase biosafety risks in laboratories. In this study, we developed a real-time polymerase chain reaction detection system for N. meningitidis using the BD MAX automated genetic testing platform. We then evaluated its accuracy using 25 strains of clinically isolated Neisseria species, including N. meningitidis. Our detection results were in full agreement with those of sequencing-based identification, with a minimum detection sensitivity of 10 CFU/mL. The BD MAX system completes all measurements in a closed system, allowing for the rapid and precise identification of N. meningitidis while reducing laboratory biosafety risks., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest HM has previously received grant funding from Beckton, Dickinson, and Company that was unrelated to this study., (Copyright © 2025 Japanese Society of Chemotherapy, Japanese Association for Infectious Diseases, and Japanese Society for Infection Prevention and Control. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)