AN EFFICIENT GENERAL-PURPOSE CULTURE MEDIUM FOR AEROBES AND ANAEROBES

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Abstract
Thirty-three microbial strains (all but one freshly isolated from human pathologic material) and comprising aerobes, anaerobes, and CO2-dependent bacteria, were used to compare the growth capabilities of a new general-purpose medium, with two commonly used media; a heart infusion and a soy agar.The author"s new medium proved superior since it grew organisms (for example a pneumococcus) that failed to grow, even from massive inocula, on the two other media. A strictly anaerobic streptococcus from a bacteremia grew aerobically on the surface of the author"s medium while massive inocula of the same anaerobe failed to grow even anaerobically on the two other agar media. When colony size was compared (2070 colonies were measured) the author"s medium proved superior for 29 of the33 organisms tested.The soy agar medium gave poor α-hemolysis with pneumococci and viridans streptococci when compared with the two other media. The synergistic effect of both liver digest and yeast extract used in the author"s medium, and the heat-stable growth factors derived from them, are believed to be responsible for its superiority as a general-purpose medium for both aerobes and anaerobes.

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