Thermo Scientific™ Oxoid™ Columbia Blood Agar Base (Dehydrated)

Thermo Scientific™ Oxoid™ Columbia Blood Agar Base is a high-performance dehydrated medium designed to cultivate and isolate fastidious microorganisms, delivering superior growth, hemolysis clarity, and colony differentiation. It is commonly used in clinical, research, and industrial laboratories as a base for preparing blood agar, chocolate agar, and various selective media enriched with blood or antimicrobial additives.

Key Features and Benefits

1. Superior Microbial Cultivation

• Efficient Growth of Fastidious Organisms: Promotes the rapid production of large, well-defined colonies, even for challenging microorganisms.
• Clearly Defined Hemolysis: When enriched with defibrinated blood, the medium provides distinct zones of hemolysis, enabling easy interpretation and differentiation of microbial species.
• Optimal Performance: Combines the benefits of casein hydrolysate-based media (fast colony growth) with meat infusion media (clear hemolysis zones) to meet diverse laboratory needs.

2. Versatile Base Medium

• Blood Agar Preparation: Ideal for use with whole defibrinated blood to create a non-selective medium for isolating microorganisms.
• Chocolate Agar Base: Suitable for preparing chocolate agar by heating the blood-enriched medium, supporting organisms that require cooked blood for growth.
• Selective Media Applications: Functions as a foundational medium for the addition of antimicrobial agents, creating selective environments tailored to specific microbial targets.

3. High Performance for Differentiation

• Enables clear differentiation between microbial colonies based on morphology and hemolytic activity.
• Supports large colonies and pronounced hemolytic reactions, making it an excellent choice for diagnostic and research applications.

Applications

• Clinical Microbiology: Used for isolating and identifying pathogenic bacteria from patient samples, such as Streptococcus spp. and Staphylococcus spp.
• Food Microbiology: Supports the detection of foodborne pathogens and spoilage organisms.
• Pharmaceutical and Industrial Testing: Ensures microbial quality control in sterile environments and product manufacturing.

Product Specifications

Preparation Instructions

1. Reconstitution: Dissolve the dehydrated medium in distilled water (per the manufacturer’s guidelines).
2. Sterilization: Autoclave at 121°C for 15 minutes.
3. Enrichment: After cooling to 45–50°C, aseptically add defibrinated blood for blood agar or prepare chocolate agar by heating the blood-enriched medium.

Scientific Foundation

This medium builds on traditional formulations by combining the rapid growth features of casein hydrolysate with the distinct hemolysis clarity and colonial differentiation of meat infusion media. The formulation is based on studies like Ellner et al. (1966), which demonstrated its efficacy for isolating and characterizing a broad range of microorganisms.

Limitations and Availability

• Regional Availability: Not all products are available in every region; contact Thermo Scientific for details.
• Intended Use: Laboratory use only; not intended for direct human or animal application.

Reference

Ellner P.D., Stoessel C.J., Drakeford E., and Vasi F. (1966) Tech. Bull. Reg. Med. Techn. 36, No. 3, reprinted in Amer. J. Clin. Path. (1966) 45, 502–504.

Thermo Scientific™ Oxoid™ Columbia Blood Agar Base is a cornerstone medium for laboratories requiring consistent, high-quality performance in microbial isolation and differentiation.