STUDIES OF ESCHERICHIA-COLI CULTURED ON RAINBOW(TM) AGAR O157 WITH PARTICULAR REFERENCE TO ENTEROHEMORRHAGIC ESCHERICHIA-COLI (EHEC)

Rainbow(TM) Agar O157 is designed for the rapid isolation and identifi cation of enterohaemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EHEC), particularly O15 7, characterised by black colonies. Five-hundred eighty-five E. coli s trains, including O157, O111 and O113 serogroups from many sources wer e examined on Rainbow(TM) Agar O157, EHEC O157 could readily be isolat ed and recognized uniquely by typical black colonies. Some other EHEC also stand out as blue-black, whereas O113 and some other EHEC strains were mauve, red or pink and indistinguishable from SLT-negative strai ns of E. coli.