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What is a bacterial genus that has waxy mycolic acid in the cell walls?
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∙ 12y ago
Mycobacterium
Wiki User
∙ 12y ago
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What makes Mycobacterium resistant to staining?
It has a peptidoglycan layer filled with mycolic acids. The acids make the cell wall waxy and impenetrable to stains. They are classified with gram positive cells because of cell wall thickness and genetic similarities.
Is the mycobacterium smegmatis positive to acid-fast?
NO, s. epidermidis does not show up positive in an acid fast stain. The acid fast stain is a differential stain that differentiates cells with mycolic acids in their cells walls with those who do not. cells with mycolic acid are therefore acid fast. s epidermidis does not contain this waxy substance in their cell wall so it doesnt fall into this category.
What is gram positive filamentous forms with mycolic acid in their cell wall?
ray fungi
How does heating the bacterial smear promote entry of carbolfuchsin into the acid-fast cell wall?
Since the acid-fast cell wall contains waxy mycolic acid, heat must be added in order for the carbol fuchsin stain to enter and remain in the cell wall (similar to if you were attempting to color a candle by melting the wax and adding a color dye to the liquefied wax).Once the sample cools, the mycolic acid "hardens," so to say, and the stain remains locked into the cell wall through the acid alcohol wash and the methylene blue counterstain.
What is the purpose of the heat during the acid fast staining procedure?
It acts as the mordant to soften the mycolic acid so that the stain can penetrate the cell.
What lipid is responsible for the acid fastness of acid fast organisms?
High mycolic acid of certain bacterial cell wall
What drugs specifically targets cell walls that contain arabinogalactan-mycolic acid?
Isoniazid.
What chemical is responsible for the acid fast property of mycobacteria?
the cell wall contains mycolic acid. a dye (carbol fuchsin) is applied to the culture, then washed with acid-alcohol. those cells with mycolic acid in their cell wall will retain the dye even after the alcohol rinse. but those cells without mycolic acid will release the dye.
What makes Mycobacterium resistant to staining?
It has a peptidoglycan layer filled with mycolic acids. The acids make the cell wall waxy and impenetrable to stains. They are classified with gram positive cells because of cell wall thickness and genetic similarities.
Is the mycobacterium smegmatis positive to acid-fast?
NO, s. epidermidis does not show up positive in an acid fast stain. The acid fast stain is a differential stain that differentiates cells with mycolic acids in their cells walls with those who do not. cells with mycolic acid are therefore acid fast. s epidermidis does not contain this waxy substance in their cell wall so it doesnt fall into this category.
Does nocardia have mycolic acid?
Yes
What type of lipid can keep a microorganism from drying out?
Mycolic acid helps these cells survive desiccation and makes them difficult to stain. Organisms with mycolic acid are acid fast.
Why is E. coli acid fast negative?
Most acid-fast microorganisms belong to the genus Mycobacterium because organisms of this species have a unique property where they have a lipid rich mycolic acid exterior that prevents ordinary dyes from penetrating.When decolorized and counterstained, they maintain the red of the carbolfushin, thus they are acid fast.E. coli is affected by the decolorization by the acid achohol and counterstain by the methylene blue dye because they lack the mycolic acid layer, thus they are non-acid fast.
What physical component of the bacterial cells enables acid-fast staining to work?
The cell walls of some bacteria eg mycobacteria contain mycolic acids giving the cell walls a high lipid content. To view these cells in samples staining requires higher concentrations of the dye solution and/or a heating period. However, once a stain is introduced into the cell wall, removing it with a decolorising is even more difficult. The expression "acid fast" is derived from the observation that even with the addition of hydrochloric acid to the alcohol decoloriser, some of the stained cells retain the primary stain (carbolfuchsin).
What is gram positive filamentous forms with mycolic acid in their cell wall?
ray fungi
How does heating the bacterial smear promote entry of carbolfuchsin into the acid-fast cell wall?
Since the acid-fast cell wall contains waxy mycolic acid, heat must be added in order for the carbol fuchsin stain to enter and remain in the cell wall (similar to if you were attempting to color a candle by melting the wax and adding a color dye to the liquefied wax).Once the sample cools, the mycolic acid "hardens," so to say, and the stain remains locked into the cell wall through the acid alcohol wash and the methylene blue counterstain.
What is the purpose of the heat during the acid fast staining procedure?
It acts as the mordant to soften the mycolic acid so that the stain can penetrate the cell.
