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This medium can be used as a screening method for the differentiation of enterobacteriaceae based on the ability of some species to utilise citrate as a sole source of carbon. It is often used as a screening test for Klebsiella pneumoniae (positive reaction) while Escherichia coli is negative. Species that metabolize citrate as their sole source of carbon and ammonium as the sole source of nitrogen cause an increase in alkalinity of the medium resulting in a colour change from green to blue due to the presence of the pH indicator bromthymole blue. -
Thiosulphate Citrate Bile Salts Sucrose (TCBS) Agar is a selective isolation medium for culture of pathogenic Vibrio spp. from clinical and food samples. The formulation was developed by Kobayashi et al. which was modified from Nakanishi’s formulation. Vibrio species are most widely recognized for their role in human intestinal infections and cholera worldwide. Thiosulphate Citrate Bile Salts Sucrose (TCBS) Agar is recommended by the FDA BAM, the UK Standards for Microbiology Investigations, and complies with the standard laid out by ISO 21872.
