-
The principle use for this product is in the testing of disinfectants and antiseptics. In 1989, the European Committee for Standardisation (CEN) set up a technical committee to produce harmonised test methods for disinfectants and antiseptics. The CEN standards provide a useful basis for disinfectant validation, and although alternative methods could be used for assessing disinfectant efficacy, following the same basic methods allows not only direct comparison between products but also comparison across various different laboratories. The adaptability of the methods - numerous validation studies based on the CEN methods have been accepted by both the European and US regulatory authorities - allows end- users to customise the methods to their specific requirements. Lecithin and polysorbate 80 (Tween 80) inactivate surface disinfectants (lecithin neutralises quaternary ammonium compounds and Tween 80 neutralises phenols, formalin, hexachlorophene and in combination with the lecithin ethanol). L-histidine, in combination with lecithin and Tween 80, neutralises aldehydes and formaldehyde generating agents. Sodium thiosulphate neutralises iodine and chlorine. -
Mueller-Hinton Agar is a defined medium used primarily in Antimicrobial Sensitivity Testing using the disc diffusion technique described by Bauer-Kirby. It has been approved as the definitive medium for this purpose by the European Committee on Anitmicrobial Susceptibility Testing (EUCAST). This medium contains low levels of thymidine and thymine and controlled levels of calcium and magnesium ions. Additional supplementation of the Mueller Hinton medium using 5% Horse Blood and 20mg/L of Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) makes it suitable for use with the more fastidious organisms such as Streptococcus pneumoniae and Haemophilus influenzae. -
Mueller Hinton Agar Chocolate is used for the isolation and cultivation of fastidious bacteria from clinical specimens. It may also be used for the susceptibility testing of Neisseria gonorrhoeae. Mueller Hinton Agar Chocolate is an enriched, non-selective medium on which fastidious and non-fastidious bacteria, including normal flora, will grow. Therefore, it is recommended to inoculate specimens also onto appropriate selective media. The term “fastidious bacteria” relates to bacteria that do not grow or do not grow well on normally used primary isolation media containing sheep blood. -
Approved by the Clinical Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) in USA this medium can be considered as an alternative to Iso-Sensitest Agar for antimicrobial sensitivity testing by disc diffusion methods. It is low in Thymine and Thymidine and is therefore suitable for use in testing Sulphonamides & Trimethoprim without the addition of Lysed Blood. -
Approved by the National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards (NCCLS) in USA this medium is approved for use in antimicrobial sensitivity testing by the disc diffusion method and is recommended particularly for use with the Bauer-Kirby Technique It is low in Thymine and Thymidine and is therefore suitable for use in testing Sulphonamides & Trimethoprim and controlled to ensure correct zone sizes with Tetracyline and Aminoglycoside antibiotics. It can be considered as an alternative to Iso-Sensitest Agar. This particular formulation has an additional 2% Sodium Chloride added to the medium making it suitable for the detection of resistance to Methicillin in staphylococci and it is included in the recommendations of British Society for Antimicrobial Chemotherapy (BSAC) for this purpose. It is not however recommended for testing of organisms requiring a CO2 enriched environment due to the pH effect on the medium. If incubation in a CO2 enriched environment is essential control organisms should be included to confirm that results have not been altered.
