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Product category: Culture media
News Release from: Lab M | Subject: Harlequin
Edited by the Laboratorytalk Editorial Team on 25 March 2004

Chromogenic media improve isolation of
organisms

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Range of chromogenic media provides a more specific identification of the target organism which in turn can reduce or eliminate the need for subculture and confirmatory tests

Lab M has developed the Harlequin chromogenic culture media range to improve the isolation and identification of an increasing range of organisms The Harlequin range of chromogenic media provides a more specific identification of the target organism which in turn can reduce or eliminate the need for subculture and confirmatory tests for some organisms

Traditional culture media methods still remain the most reliable way of detecting salmonella spp.

However, most isolation media are relatively non-specific and consequently place a heavy burden on the laboratory in terms of biochemical and serological confirmation of suspect colonies.

With improved specificity, the Harlequin salmonella ABC medium (Hal001) dramatically reduces the need for false positive screening, saving labour and reducing consumable costs.

Data published in a recent study (British Journal of Biomedical Science 2003, 60, (4)) has confirmed the significantly higher specificity (98%) of the ABC medium when compared with DCLS (67%) and XLD (78%) agars, has identified a significant reduction in workload and illustrates a reduction in cost per test (reflecting the extra work entailed in false positive follow up when using traditional media).

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