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A very nutritious isotonic general-purpose medium with a low concentration of Glucose to stimulate early growth, Brain Heart Infusion Broth is suitable for the isolation of most micro-organisms including many fastidious organisms and, with enrichment as appropriate, is suitable as a base for blood culture medium. A phosphate buffer is incorporated to help neutralise any acids produced as a result of Glucose utilisation and thus maintain viability of the organisms. This particular formulation also has added Glycerol to act as cryopreservative if the medium is used for the long term frozen storage of microorganisms. NB: Organisms that produce large amounts of acid in the medium may overwhelm the buffering system and as a result ‘auto-sterilise’ the culture. -
A highly nutritious medium enriched with Horse Blood, where the blood has been ‘chocolated’ by heating the medium to 60°C. Suitable for the cultivation of most pathogens including many fastidious organisms and is particularly suitable for Haemophilus and Neisseria spp. -
A medium for the selective isolation of group B streptococci. This information has been obtained directly from the HPA files at the customers request. -
Approved by the Clinical & Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI formerly known as the NCCLS) in USA this medium can be considered as an alternative to Iso-Sensitest Broth for antimicrobial sensitivity testing and MIC determinations by tube dilution methods. It is low in Thymine and Thymidine and is therefore suitable for use in testing Sulphonamides & Trimethoprim. It is sometimes used in conjunction with Mueller-Hinton Agar. -
This is an aqueous solution of Oxalic acid (5%) suitable for use in the digestion and neutralisation of Sputum that may be contaminated with Pseudomonas like organisms prior to culture. -
This is one of the large group of media, affectionately known as ‘Peptone Water Sugars’, that are generally used in the screening and/or identification of organisms particularly the enterobacteriacae. A positive fermentation of the substrate is clearly indicated by the medium turning pink due to the inclusion Andrade’s Indicator. -
A nutritious broth medium formulated by Todd and Hewitt for the production of antigenic streptococcal haemolysin. The broth is also used to cultivate streptococci prior to serological grouping. Normally the use of fermentable sugars in the broth would inactivate the haemolysin due to acid production. This is prevented by the use of buffers to maintain the pH in this broth. -
This medium is based on the formula described by Kupferburg, Johnson and Sprince for the selective isolation of Trichomonas spp. The medium is selective due to the inclusion of the broad spectrum antibiotic, chloramphenicol, to inhibit a wide range of Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial species. This medium does not contain an antifungal agent and Candida spp. will not be suppressed. However, the growth of Candida spp. does not interfere with that of Trichomonas spp. The inclusion of methylene blue as a redox indicator allows for the visualisation of any significant oxygen diffusion in the medium. Cultures may be examined microscopically after 48 hours incubation at 37°C for the presence of flagellate protozoans. If a negative result is obtained then the culture may be re-incubated for a further 72 hours. -
Tryptone Water is an alternative medium to Peptone Water and more reliable for the testing of Indole production. The medium has a high content of Tryptophan that many organisms, particularly coliforms, break down to form Indole. After incubation add a few drops of Indole reagent to determine the Indole reaction (Red colour is Positive). -
Based on Christensen’s Medium this medium is generally used to detect rapid urease activity of Proteus spp although it can be used to detect urease activity of other Enterobacteriaceae. When used for the later purpose it is necessary to increase the incubation time to as long as 48 hours. -
A modification of Christensen’s Medium by Maslen this medium is generally used to detect rapid Urease activity of Proteus spp although it can be used to detect Urease activity of other Enterobacteriaceae including Urease producing Salmonella and Shigella. Unlike Christensen’s Medium when used for the later purpose it is not necessary to increase the incubation time.
