| Translations available in Spanish. |
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| Lactose Fermentation on MacConkey Agar Plates |
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| Resource Type: Visual: Image |
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| Publication Date: Prior to 1/1/2002 |
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| Authors |
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| Neal Chamberlain |
| Department of Microbiology/Immunology |
| A.T. Still University of Health Sciences/KCOM |
| Kirksville, Missouri 63501 |
| USA |
| Email: nchamberlain@atsu.edu |
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MacConkey agar medium is commonly used to differentiate between various
gram-negative rod-shaped organisms. Many facultative anaerobes in the intestine are
lactose fermenters (e.g., Escherichia coli). Several well-known pathogens are unable to ferment lactose (e.g., Shigella, Salmonella).
MacConkey agar is a medium that is both selective and differential. It is useful
in demonstrating to students these concepts. This medium can differentiate between the
lactose fermenters and nonfermenters. It is also a selective medium that only allows the
growth of gram-negative rod-shaped organisms.
Age of culture is 16 h.
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