Use of lipophilic anions for estimation of biomass and cell viability

A method is described to estimate the microbial biomass of a sample, to enu merate the cells, and to distinguish the portion of metabolically active ce lls in the population by measuring the binding of phenyldicarbaundecaborane (PCB-) to the cells. This method can also be used for the analysis of a co mplex population of microorganisms if the cells composing the sample are se nsitive to different biocidal agents. In addition, the analysis of PCB- bin ding is useful for the enumeration of the phage-infected cells and phage pa rticles. (C) 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.