Stain employed for mycoplasma is: September 2011
Ans. B: Giemsa stain Mycoplasma are gram negative but are better stained by Giemsa stain Mycoplasma Genus of bacteria that lack a cell wall. Without a cell wall, they are unaffected by many common antibiotics such as penicillin or other beta-lactam antibiotics that target cell wall synthesis. M. pneumonine, which is an impoant cause of atypical pneumonia Mycoplasma is by definition restricted to veebrate hosts. Cholesterol is required for the growth of species of the genus Mycoplasma. Their optimum growth temperature is often the temperature of their host if warmbodied (e. g. 37deg C in humans) or ambient temperature if the host is unable to regulate its own internal temperature. Mycoplasmas are unusual among bacteria in that most require sterols for the stability of their cytoplasmic membrane. Sterols are acquired from the environment, usually as cholesterol from the animal host. Mycoplasmas generally possess a relatively small genome of 0.58-1.38 megabases Additionally they use an alternate genetic code where the codon UGA is encoding for the amino acid tryptophan instead of the usual opal stop codon. They have a low GC-content (23-40 mol %). Mycoplasma cells are physically small - less than 1 - and they are therefore difficult to detect with a conventional microscope. Mycoplasmas are Gram negative but are better stained by Giemsa stain Colonies are typically biphasic, with a fried egg appearance Detection techniques include DNA Probe, enzyme immunoassays, PCR, plating on sensitive agar and staining with a DNA stain
Acid fast
Giemsa stain
Methylene blue
Congo red