This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowReprints and Permissions
Right arrow Copyright Information
Right arrow Books from ASM Press
Right arrow MicrobeWorld
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Ber, R.
Right arrow Articles by Cohen, S.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Ber, R.
Right arrow Articles by Cohen, S.
Agricola
Right arrow Articles by Ber, R.
Right arrow Articles by Cohen, S.

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

Applied and Environmental Microbiology, October 2003, p. 5787-5792, Vol. 69, No. 10
0099-2240/03/$08.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/AEM.69.10.5787-5792.2003
Copyright © 2003, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Development of an Improved Selective Agar Medium for Isolation of Yersinia pestis

Raphael Ber, Emanuelle Mamroud, Moshe Aftalion, Avital Tidhar, David Gur, Yehuda Flashner, and Sara Cohen*

Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, Israel Institute for Biological Research, Ness-Ziona 74100, Israel

Received 14 March 2003/ Accepted 9 July 2003

Existing media designed for selective isolation of clinically important members of the genus Yersinia were found to be unsatisfactory for the growth and isolation of Yersinia pestis. We report the development of a new selective agar medium (termed BIN) that supports the growth of Y. pestis. The development of the formulation of this medium was based on a fluorescence screening system designed for monitoring bacterial growth on semisolid media, using a green fluorescent protein-expressing strain. High-throughput combinatorial experiments can be conducted for the quantitative evaluation of the effect of different medium components on growth. Generation of fluorescence plots in this system, using microplates, allowed the quantitative evaluation of the growth rate of Y. pestis EV76 cultures in different agar compositions. The final BIN formulation is based on brain heart infusion agar, to which the selective agents irgasan, cholate salts, crystal violet, and nystatin were introduced. It was found that BIN agar is more efficient in supporting colony formation and recovery of Y. pestis than are the conventional semisolid media MacConkey agar and Yersinia-selective agar (cefsulodin-irgasan-novobiocin agar). The advantage of BIN over other media has been also demonstrated in recovering virulent Y. pestis from the mixed bacterial populations found in decaying carcasses of infected mice. The BIN medium is suggested as a selective medium for isolation and recovery of Y. pestis from various backgrounds.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, Israel Institute for Biological Research, Ness-Ziona 74100, Israel. Phone: 972-8-9381718. Fax: 972-8-9401404. E-mail: cohens{at}iibr.gov.il.

Applied and Environmental Microbiology, October 2003, p. 5787-5792, Vol. 69, No. 10
0099-2240/03/$08.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/AEM.69.10.5787-5792.2003
Copyright © 2003, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Velan, B., Bar-Haim, E., Zauberman, A., Mamroud, E., Shafferman, A., Cohen, S. (2006). Discordance in the Effects of Yersinia pestis on the Dendritic Cell Functions Manifested by Induction of Maturation and Paralysis of Migration. Infect. Immun. 74: 6365-6376 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Zauberman, A., Cohen, S., Mamroud, E., Flashner, Y., Tidhar, A., Ber, R., Elhanany, E., Shafferman, A., Velan, B. (2006). Interaction of Yersinia pestis with Macrophages: Limitations in YopJ-Dependent Apoptosis.. Infect. Immun. 74: 3239-3250 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Flashner, Y., Mamroud, E., Tidhar, A., Ber, R., Aftalion, M., Gur, D., Lazar, S., Zvi, A., Bino, T., Ariel, N., Velan, B., Shafferman, A., Cohen, S. (2004). Generation of Yersinia pestis Attenuated Strains by Signature-Tagged Mutagenesis in Search of Novel Vaccine Candidates. Infect. Immun. 72: 908-915 [Abstract] [Full Text]  


Copyright © 2009 by the American Society for Microbiology.   For an alternate route to Journals.ASM.org, visit: http://intl-journals.asm.org | More Info»