10.22376/ijpbs.2019.10.1.p1-12 Volume 4 Issue 1 2013 (January - March) lessThan i greaterThan Listeria lessThan /i greaterThan sps are ubiquitous in nature. Infection due to lessThan i greaterThan L. monocytogenes lessThan /i greaterThan causes illness in animals and humans worldwide. Aim of the present study was to standardize a multiplex PCR for the identification and differentiation of important lessThan i greaterThan Listeria lessThan /i greaterThan species, in particular, lessThan i greaterThan Listeria monocytogenes lessThan /i greaterThan and to detect toxigenic potential of lessThan i greaterThan L. monocytogenes lessThan /i greaterThan . Employing primers for truncated regions of seven genes namely, lessThan i greaterThan inlC, llo, iap, prs, mpl, mogR, ispD lessThan /i greaterThan with an internal amplification control, a novel mPCR was developed. The mPCR was found to be robust and specific when tested against non-listerial organisms. The sensitivity of the assay for detection of lessThan i greaterThan Listeria lessThan /i greaterThan sps in spiked food samples was 10 lessThan sup greaterThan 2 lessThan /sup greaterThan -10 lessThan sup greaterThan 3 lessThan /sup greaterThan cfu/ml lessThan i greaterThan . lessThan /i greaterThan The assay was evaluated with widely used API listeria kit for identification of 107 lessThan i greaterThan Listeria lessThan /i greaterThan organisms isolated from 238 food/soil samples. The mPCR correctly and promptly identified majority of the isolates. The assay was able to overcome the false positive results of two mutton isolates and two fish isolates that were identified by API listeria kit. Therefore, this mPCR has the potential to be employed as routine food microbiological and epidemiological investigation tool for lessThan i greaterThan Listeria lessThan /i greaterThan sps. SRIVIDYA Y, JOSEPH KINGSTON J, H. S. MURALI AND H.V. BATRA Listeria monocytogenes, Multiplex PCR, PALCAM agar, Specificity, Sensitivity. 106-116