Proper maintenance of quality control strains is essential for ensuring acceptable performance. Most strains produced by Microbiologics can be used for up to a month after reconstitution when correctly maintained. Follow these best practices and our maintenance plan below to…
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Dear Stanley, I want to make sure I’m using the right atmosphere to get good growth of my microorganisms. Can you explain the differences between aerobic, anaerobic, microaerophilic, and capnophilic atmospheres for microorganism growth? Beth from Salt Lake City, UT Dear…
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You love being a microbiologist. Your passion for understanding microorganisms and the impact they have on every aspect of life fuels your long days in the lab. We know all too well that a busy lab and finicky microorganisms can…
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You’ve identified an organism in your environment. Now what? If you work in a non-sterile pharmaceutical manufacturing laboratory, chances are you’ve encountered this question. You know environmental monitoring doesn’t stop at detection, but what are the correct next steps to…
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Everyone has heard of diphtheria, but this familiar infection caused by a Corynebacterium strain isn’t the only illness laboratories should be concerned about. Sterile manufacturing facilities should also be on the lookout for non-diphtherial Corynebacterium. These strains, commonly found in…
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The pour plate method is an economical way for pharmaceutical, contract and even food laboratories to perform tests focused on a specific number of bacteria. The process may seem simple (melt, pipette, pour, swirl, incubate), but errors have been known…
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Recalling and pronouncing peculiar microorganism names is a skill every microbiologist has mastered. However, the intricate rules for writing about microorganisms may leave even experienced microbiologists second-guessing how to annotate or spell a strain name. Our quiz below will challenge…
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Are you certain the reference stock cultures you use for quality control are identical to the reference cultures you originally purchased? A study performed by Cross, Russel and Desai examined working cultures from eight accredited microbial testing laboratories. Using fluorescent…
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To say our writers were busy in 2017 is an understatement. We shared best practices for growth promotion testing on selective media, asked for your opinion on B. cepacia testing, and reminded you why microbiologists are the coolest people in…
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Dear Stanley, We recently purchased your KWIK-STIK™ product to perform quality control on new lots of ETEST® strips. Do you have any tips for setting up and reading an ETEST®? Mike from Philadelphia, PA Dear Mike, KWIK-STIK is the perfect…
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