New, simple medium for selective, differential recovery of Klebsiella spp.

A highly selective, differential medium for the enumeration and isolation of Klebsiella spp. was developed. With pure cultures, 100% recovery of Klebsiella spp. was observed. Recovery of Klebsiella spp. on MacConkey-inositol-potassium tellurite (MCIK) agar was as good as or better than on MacConkey-inositol-carbenicillin agar either with pure cultures or environmental samples. Recovery and percent colony confirmation with MCIK agar were greater and easier to obtain than for other proposed Klebsiella selective media.     

Primary Klebsiella identification with MacConkey-inositol-carbenicillin agar.

MacConkey-inositol-carbenicillin agar has successfully been used as a primary selective medium for Klebsiella enumeration. With pure cultures, nearly 100% recovery of Klebsiella was observed by membrane filtration. With environmental samples using membrane filtration, 95% of typical pink- to red-colored colonies were verified as Klebsiella, as opposed to only 1% of yellow background colonies. Recovery of Klebsiella on MacConkey-inositol-carbenicillin agar was as good or better than on mEndo agar LES (Difco Laboratories). Recovery and percent colony confirmation with MacConkey-inositol-carbenicillin agar were greater than for other proposed Klebsiella selective media.     

Primary Klebsiella identification with MacConkey-inositol-carbenicillin agar.

MacConkey-inositol-carbenicillin agar has successfully been used as a primary selective medium for Klebsiella enumeration. With pure cultures, nearly 100% recovery of Klebsiella was observed by membrane filtration. With environmental samples using membrane filtration, 95% of typical pink- to red-colored colonies were verified as Klebsiella, as opposed to only 1% of yellow background colonies. Recovery of Klebsiella on MacConkey-inositol-carbenicillin agar was as good or better than on mEndo agar LES (Difco Laboratories). Recovery and percent colony confirmation with MacConkey-inositol-carbenicillin agar were greater than for other proposed Klebsiella selective media.     

Comparison of different media for the isolation and enumeration of Aeromonas spp. in foods

Starch ampicillin agar (SA), starch glutamate ampicillin penicillin agar (SGAP) and Aeromonas medium (AM) were evaluated for enumeration of Aeromonas spp. from foods. Recovery from pure cultures of Aer. hydrophila and Aer. caviae was excellent on all media. Recovery of Aer. sobria was best on AM agar, where 95.5% were recovered, compared with 31.9% on SA agar and 33.3% on SGAP medium.     

Pril-ampicillin-dextrin-ethanol agar for the isolation and quantification of Aeromonas spp. from polluted environmental waters

Several selective media were evaluated for their suitability for the isolation and quantification of mesophilic Aeromonas species from naturally polluted samples. Satisfactory recoveries were obtained with most of them but only when densities of background microflora were low. When analysed samples were from highly polluted waters, results were inconsistent because they did not give quantitative recovery of mesophilic aeromonads or they did not permit ready differentiation of Aeromonas species from the competitive bacteria. A new medium was developed on the basis of the combination of some positive aspects of several published media, pril-ampicillin-dextrin-ethanol (PADE) agar. The medium employs dextrin (Merck 3006) as a fermentable carbohydrate and pril, ampicillin and ethanol as inhibitory substances. Recovery on PADE agar from suspensions of 15 tested strains of Aeromonas prepared from pure cultures was excellent. The confirmation rate of typical colonies designated Aeromonas spp. isolated from polluted samples exceeded 90%. Recoveries of stressed aeromonad strains on both PADE agar and a non-selective medium (TSA) did not show any significant difference ( P 0.05). PADE agar was more reliable for quantitative recovery of mesophilic aeromonads than the other selective media because of its characteristics: (i) inhibition of the swarming of Proteus , (ii) good reduction of the background, (iii) inhibition of the over growth of Klebsiella spp., (iv) absence of NaCl makes it unfavourable for the growth of halophilic vibrios, (v) combination of two pH indicators permitted a very easy differentiation between Aeromonas colonies and the competitive microflora. The medium can also be used for isolation of aeromonads from various sources by membrane filtration.     

Ampicillin-dextrin agar medium for the enumeration of Aeromonas species in water by membrane filtration

Published selective media were evaluated for the isolation of Aeromonas spp. from environmental samples by membrane filtration. Satisfactory recoveries were obtained only with mA agar (Rippey & Cabelli) and dextrin-fuchsin-sulphite agar (Schubert), but neither was sufficiently selective. The positive aspects of these two media were combined in a new medium, ampicillin-dextrin agar. Recovery from pure cultures and environmental samples was optimal at an ampicillin concentration of 10 mg/l and incubation for 24 h at 30 degrees C under aerobic conditions, and specificity was high (i.e. confirmation rate usually greater than 90%, no false negative colonies encountered). The medium can also be used for isolation of Aeromonas spp. from sea water provided that the vibriostatic agent 0/129 is added at 50 mg/l.     

The suitability of four media for enumerating Aeromonas spp. from environmental samples

Starch ampicillin agar (SA), dextrin fuchsin sulphite agar (DFS) and blood agar with 10 mg (BA-10) and 30 mg (BA-30) ampicillin/l, respectively, were evaluated for enumeration of Aeromonas spp. from environmental samples. Recovery from pure cultures was excellent on all media except for ampicillin-sensitive strains on the ampicillin-containing media. With natural samples, the ability to differentiate Aeromonas from the background microflora was best on SA agar where 85% presumptive Aeromonas colonies were confirmed, compared with 18% on DFS, 36% on BA-10 and 40% on BA-30. Prolonged incubation caused a decrease in the differentiating ability.     

Ampicillin-dextrin agar medium for the enumeration of Aeromonas species in water by membrane filtration

Published selective media were evaluated for the isolation of Aeromonas spp. from environmental samples by membrane filtration. Satisfactory recoveries were obtained only with mA agar (Rippey & Cabelli) and dextrin-fuchsin-sulphite agar (Schubert), but neither was sufficiently selective. The positive aspects of these two media were combined in a new medium, ampicillin-dextrin agar. Recovery from pure cultures and environmental samples was optimal at an ampicillin concentration of 10 mg/l and incubation for 24 h at 30°C under aerobic conditions, and specificity was high (i.e. confirmation rate usually <90%, no false negative colonies encountered). The medium can also be used for isolation of Aeromonas spp. from sea water provided that the vibriostatic agent 0/129 is added at 50 mg/1.     

Comparison of different media for the enumeration of Aeromonas sp. in freshwaters

I. KERSTERS, N. SMEYERS AND W. VERSTRAETE. 1996. Ampicillin-dextrin agar (ADA), m-Aeromonas agar (mA), starch glutamate ampicillin penicillin C-glucose agar (SGAP-10C), trehalose agar (TRE) and ampicillin bile salts inositol xylose agar (MIX) were evaluated for the isolation of Aeromonas sp. from aquatic environments. Recovery of pure cultures was excellent on all media, except for Aer. sobria on SGAP-10C and MIX agars. Recovery of Aeromonas sp. from freshwaters was comparable on ADA, mA, SGAP-10C and TRE. The most selective media were SGAP-10C and ADA, which yielded an average reduction factor of more than 2.9 log. The ability to differentiate Aeromonas sp. from the background microbiota present in freshwaters was best on ADA. The present findings indicate that ADA is the most adequate medium for the selective isolation of Aeromonas sp. from freshwaters.     

Comparison of culture media and chairside assays for enumerating mutans streptococci

AIM: This study compared several traditional culture-based media and chairside cultural assays for ability to recover mutans streptococci (MS) from pure cultures and from saliva samples. METHODS AND RESULTS: When pure cultures were used with traditional culture-based media, mitis-salivarius bacitracin (MSB) agar demonstrated less support for bacterial recovery than trypticase-yeast extract-cysteine sucrose-bacitracin (TYCSB) agar and the modified medium of Ritz (HLR-S). One species of MS, Streptococcus ferus (c), was not recovered on MSB medium. Chairside cultural tests displayed considerable disparity between tests in recovering bacteria from pure cultures. On the glass adherence assay (Mucount), S. ferus was not detected and Streptococcus criceti was not detected on the dipslide assay (Cariescreen SM) or on the plastic adherence assay (Dentocult SM Strip mutans). The frequency of isolation of pure strains of bacteria other than MS was common. From saliva samples, the frequency of isolation of MS on HLR-S and TYCSB media and the glass adherence assay was 91-97%. The frequency of isolation on MSB medium and on the dip-slide and plastic adherence assays was significantly decreased (37, 47 and 69%, respectively). Recovery scores varied considerably among the culture methods studied and tended to be highest on the HLR-S medium and on the glass adherence assay. CONCLUSIONS: Growth and recovery profiles of pure bacterial cultures and of saliva samples for the MS varied according to different media. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: Caution should be exercised in comparing results between studies that employ different cultural methods for MS enumeration.     

定期转种法和低温冷冻法保藏致病真菌活性的能力比较

定期转种法和低温冷冻保存法是临床实验室最常用的两种真菌保存方法,为比较两种方法保藏致病真菌活性的能力,本研究使用两种保藏方法对实验室689株致病真菌保藏5年后进行检测。定期转种法是将菌落接种于马铃薯斜面培养基并将其储存在4℃冰箱,每6个月转种1次。低温冷冻法是挑取马铃薯斜面培养基上生长良好的菌落于无菌10%甘油中,放置在-80℃储存。保藏5年后,将两种方法保藏的菌株转种复苏,比较菌株的复活率。对于念珠菌属Candida、新生隐球菌Cryptococcus neoformans、毛癣菌属Trichophyton、曲霉属Aspergillus和孢子丝菌属Sporothirix真菌,两种方法的菌株复活率无统计学差异;对于小孢子菌属Microsporum真菌和马尔尼菲蓝状菌Talaromyces marneffei,使用低温冷冻法保藏的菌株复活率高于定期转种法保藏的菌株复活率;对于着色霉属Fonsecaea真菌,低温冷冻法保藏的菌株复活率低于定期转种法保藏的菌株复活率。因此,我们认为对于常见致病真菌的长期保藏,使用10%甘油作为保护剂的低温冷冻法优于定期转种法,但其不适用于着色霉属Fonsecaea真菌的长期保藏。     

Comparison of seven plating media for enumeration of Listeria spp.

The suitability of seven media for the enumeration of Listeria spp. was evaluated at 30 degrees C for 48 h. The media tested were (i) the original McBride Listeria agar formulation (with glycine); (ii) modified McBride agar containing glycine anhydride; (iii) LiCl-phenylethanol-moxalactam (LPM) agar; (iv) acriflavine-ceftazidime agar; (v) Rodriguez isolation agar (RISA); (vi) modified Vogel-Johnson (MVJ) agar; (vii) cyclohexanedione-nalidixic acid-phenylethanol agar; and tryptose agar as control. A total of 66 organisms were used including 11 Listeria monocytogenes strains and 5 other Listeria spp. For L. monocytogenes strains only, all media performed highly similarly. Of the other Listeria spp., only two grew on MVJ agar and three each grew on LPM and RISA. Only LPM agar inhibited the 50 non-listeriae, including five yeasts, while MVJ agar inhibited all but one yeast. The McBride Listeria agar formulation that contained glycine anhydride was less selective than the original. When pure cultures of 10 bacteria (including one L. monocytogenes strain) were combined and plated on four media, L. monocytogenes colonies were easiest to enumerate on MVJ agar, followed by LPM and RISA. These media ranked in the same order when plated with homogenates of various foods to which was added L. monocytogenes Scott A, but LPM agar was the best overall since Scott A was inhibited by MVJ. Upon microscopic examination of listerial colonies from the plating media, atypical cell morphology was noted with cells being about twofold in size on LPM, MVJ, and acriflavine-ceftazidime agars. Overall, LPM agar was the most suitable of the media tested even though it was inhibitory to Listeria grayi and Listeria murrayi.     

Evaluation of a new chromogenic agar for the detection of Listeria in food

AIM: Rapid identification of Listeria in food is important in protecting consumers from infection. The development of chromogenic media such as agar Listeria according to Ottaviani and Agosti (ALOA) has allowed more rapid detection of Listeria monocytogenes, with presumptive identification of this pathogenic species after only 24 h of incubation. The aim of this study was to evaluate Oxoid chromogenic Listeria agar (OCLA) in comparison with ALOA and a traditional, nonchromogenic medium, Oxford agar. METHODS AND RESULTS: Media were compared using pure cultures, spiked food samples and naturally contaminated samples. Whilst development of typical colony morphology took 48 h on Oxford agar, Listeria spp. were frequently detected after 24 h of incubation on OCLA and ALOA. There was no significant difference in recovery between the two chromogenic media. CONCLUSIONS: Results indicate that OCLA gives equivalent recovery of Listeria spp. compared with ALOA. Whilst L. monocytogenes was frequently detected after 24 h of incubation, a 48-h incubation time was necessary to ensure detection of both L. monocytogenes and other Listeria spp. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: This study has shown that a commercially available chromogenic medium other than ALOA is appropriate for use in the international standard method. The commercial availability of more than one medium will facilitate the more widespread use of the method, thus increasing confidence in the ability to detect L. monocytogenes in food in the presence of other Listeria spp.     

Growth and Metabolism of Lactic Acid Bacteria during and after Malolactic Fermentation of Wines at Different pH

A new medium, called novobiocin-brilliant green-glucose (NBG) agar, was developed for the isolation of Salmonella spp. and evaluated against other conventionally used media including bismuth sulfite, xylose-lysine decarboxylase, brilliant green-sulfa, hektoen enteric, and salmonella-shigella agars. NBG had recovery rates comparable to the other enteric media tested with pure cultures as well as with naturally contaminated amphibian and reptile waters and fecal specimens. However, NBG, hektoen enteric, and salmonella-shigella agars failed to differentiate Salmonella typhi from a fecal specimen even after enrichment in selenite F. Although Citrobacter freundii could grow and resembled salmonellae on NBG, at no time was the recovery of Salmonella spp. colonies jeopardized by the presence of C. freundii in either seeded or naturally contaminated samples. Confirmation rates of typical colonies from NBG agar also compared favorably to the other media tested; however, bismuth sulfite, although selective, was found to have varied differential characteristics for Salmonella spp. As a result, many more colonies had to be picked, which caused bismuth sulfite agar to have the lowest confirmation rate of the media tested. The distinct advantage that NBG agar offers over the conventional method tested, including bismuth sulfite, is the consistent differential reaction of all Salmonella subgroups including biochemically atypical strains. The medium is inexpensive, easy to prepare, and can be stored for at least 2 weeks at 4 degrees C without loss of selective or differential properties.     

Growth and Metabolism of Lactic Acid Bacteria during and after Malolactic Fermentation of Wines at Different pH

A new medium, called novobiocin-brilliant green-glucose (NBG) agar, was developed for the isolation of Salmonella spp. and evaluated against other conventionally used media including bismuth sulfite, xylose-lysine decarboxylase, brilliant green-sulfa, hektoen enteric, and salmonella-shigella agars. NBG had recovery rates comparable to the other enteric media tested with pure cultures as well as with naturally contaminated amphibian and reptile waters and fecal specimens. However, NBG, hektoen enteric, and salmonella-shigella agars failed to differentiate Salmonella typhi from a fecal specimen even after enrichment in selenite F. Although Citrobacter freundii could grow and resembled salmonellae on NBG, at no time was the recovery of Salmonella spp. colonies jeopardized by the presence of C. freundii in either seeded or naturally contaminated samples. Confirmation rates of typical colonies from NBG agar also compared favorably to the other media tested; however, bismuth sulfite, although selective, was found to have varied differential characteristics for Salmonella spp. As a result, many more colonies had to be picked, which caused bismuth sulfite agar to have the lowest confirmation rate of the media tested. The distinct advantage that NBG agar offers over the conventional method tested, including bismuth sulfite, is the consistent differential reaction of all Salmonella subgroups including biochemically atypical strains. The medium is inexpensive, easy to prepare, and can be stored for at least 2 weeks at 4 degrees C without loss of selective or differential properties.     

Synthesis of a selective agar medium for Yersinia enterocolitica

A new agar medium for isolation of Yersinia enterocolitica was formulated based on growth studies which defined an optimum basal, and the evaluation of selective chemical agents, dyes, and antibiotics. The final formulation, designated cefsulodin-irgasan-novobiocin(CIN) agar, provided quantitative recovery of 40 different strains of Y. enterocolitica in 24 h using incubation at 32 degrees C or with 48 h of incubation at 22 degrees C. The medium was highly selective, especially against Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Proteus mirabilis. Colony morphology coupled with a differential reaction resulting from mannitol fermentation permitted discrimination of Y. enterocolitica from most of those Gram-negative bacteria that were able to grow on the medium. Recovery and selective characteristics of CIN agar were stable during storage at room temperature for 9 days. CIN agar gave a higher recovery of Y. enterocolitica from feces both direct and with cold enrichment (0.4/1.5%) than Salmonella-Shigella (0.0/0.7%) and MacConkey (0.0/0.9%) agars while significantly reducing the level of background organisms.     

Comparison of selective agars for the isolation and identification of Klebsiella oxytoca and Escherichia coli from environmental drinking water samples

Various selective media were assessed for their ability to detect and differentiate Klebsiella oxytoca and Escherichia coli in environmental water samples. Only two, Membrane Lauryl Sulphate agar and Deoxycholate Agar, could differentiate the two coliforms from each other and from the 'background' heterotrophs in water and this was a consequence of E. coli's ability to grow at 44°C and 37°C whereas Kl. oxytoca could only grow at 37°C. Modified M-FC medium effectively differentiated Kl. oxytoca but not E. coli in environmental samples. Other media characterized the different coliforms in pure culture but failed to do likewise in environmental samples. For example, pure cultures of E. coli fluoresced when MUG was added to the medium but single colonies on a mixed species plate failed to do so. MT7 agar distinguished the two coliforms from water heterotrophs but not from each other.     

Antimicrobial activity of 2,5-dihydroxy-3-methyl-1,4-benzoquinone from Embelia schimperi

Chromatographic separation of an ethyl acetate extract from Embelia schimperi led to the isolation of a new compound identified as 2,5-dihydroxy-3-methyl-1,4-benzoquinone (1) on the basis of spectroscopic and physical data. The plant's crude extract and pure compound 1 were assayed for in vitro antimicrobial activity against clinical strains of Salmonella spp., Proteus spp., Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Escherichia coli, Cryptococcus neoformans, Shigella dysentriae and Staphylococcus aureus. Disc diffusion method was used and zones of inhibition, after respective incubation periods, were used to quantify antimicrobial activity. Standard antibiotics namely: augmentin, cotrimoxazole, gentamycin, tetracycline and lyncomycin were used as controls. The crude extract was inactive while the pure compound 1 showed significant activities against Salmonella spp., Proteus spp., Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Escherichia coli, Cryptococcus neoformans, Shigella dysentriae and Staphylococcus aureus with zones of inhibition ranging from 10-20 mm. The most sensitive microorganism was P aeruginosa while C. neoformans was insensitive to both the crude extract and compound 1.     

A comparison of a new campylobacter selective medium (CAT) with membrane filtration for the isolation of thermophilic campylobacters including Campylobacter upsaliensis

The newly developed CAT campylobacter selective medium employing the blood-free charcoal-based agar containing cefoperazone (8 mg I⁻¹), amphotericin (10 mg I⁻¹) and teicoplanin (4 mg I⁻¹) was compared with the membrane filtration culture technique for isolation of Campylobacter spp. including Camp. upsaliensis. Nine hundred and fifty human, 275 dog and 65 cat faeces (in which modified CCDA medium was also compared) were tested. In addition, the recovery of Camp. upsaliensis from pure cultures and from spiked human faeces was examined after membrane filtration. A 50-fold reduction in recovery after filtration using the 0·65 μm filters and a 150-fold reduction using the 0·45 μm filters was found. Recovery of Camp. upsaliensis from spiked faeces was considerably improved using the CAT medium compared with filtration, especially with the lower concentration of organisms (approx. 10⁴ cfu ml⁻¹). Campylobacter upsaliensis was recovered from 91 specimens of animal faeces, with CCDA recovering 26 isolates (29%), CAT recovering 76 isolates (84%) and membrane filtration (0·65 μm) recovering 82 isolates (90%). CAT selective agar was found to be a suitable medium for the isolation of thermophilic campylobacters including Camp. upsaliensis from faecal samples.     

The enumeration of sublethally injured populations of Staphylococcus aureus in foods

Substantiating earlier investigations, pure cultures of Staphylococcus aureus were found to be equally well recovered on Baird-Parker agar at 37°C as at 42°C, whereas Micrococcus spp. are suppressed at the latter temperature to an extent exceeding 5 log₁₀ cycles. It was also established that egg yolk dissimilation by Staph. aureus is intensified at 42°C. Heat treated (60°C) populations of Staph aureus were quantitatively recovered on Baird-Parker agar at 42°C, though acid-injured populations were not. Acid-injury (2% lactic acid at 37°C) could be completely restored by solid medium repaiar during at least 6 h at 23°C on tryptone soya peptone yeast extract egg yolk pyruvate agar. Pure culture studies were confirmed in surveys on trade samples of foods.