Fluorescent gram stain
AssigneeBecton, Dickinson and Company
InventorJames D. Mansour
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method to determine the Gram sign of microorganisms includes staining the microorganisms with a plurality of fluorescent dyes, applying excitation energy to the stained microorganisms, and observing the color of the fluorescence emission of the stained microorganisms. Gram-positive and Gram-negative microorganisms stain different colors, and assignment of the Gram sign may be made on the basis of the color of the stained microorganisms.
Claims19
A method for the rapid determination of the Gram sign of microorganisms in a fluid sample comprising adding ethidium bromide and another fluorescent dye to the sample to provide a mixture including fluorescently stained microorganisms, applying excitation energy to said mixture, observing the color of the fluorescence emission of said stained microorganisms, and assigning the positive Gram sign to said stained microorganisms which fluoresce substantially orange and the negative Gram sign to said stained microorganisms which fluoresce substantially green.
A method for the rapid determination of the Gram sign of microorganisms in a fluid sample comprising adding ethidium bromide to the sample to provide a first mixture, incubating said first mixture, adding acridine orange to said first mixture to provide a second mixture, incubating said second mixture so that it includes fluorescently stained microorganisms, applying excitation energy to said second mixture, observing the color of the fluorescence emission of the stained microorganisms, and assigning the positive Gram sign to said microorganisms which fluoresce substantially orange and the negative Gram sign to said microorganisms which fluoresce subtantially green.
A method for the rapid determination of the Gram sign of microorganisms in a fluid sample comprising adding ethidium bromide and thioflavin T to the sample to provide a mixture, incubating said mixture so that it includes fluorescently stained microorganisms, applying excitation energy to said mixture, observing the color of the fluorescence emission of the stained microorganisms, and assigning the positive Gram sign to said microorganisms which fluoresce substantially orange and the negative Gram sign to said microorganisms which fluoresce substantially green.
A method for the rapid determination of the Gram sign of microorganisms comprising adding a fluorescent dye selected from the group of dyes consisting of ethidium bromide, 3,3'-dipentyloxacarbocyanine iodide, rhodamine 123, and rhodamine B to the microorganisms to provide a mixture wherein Gram-positive microorganisms become fluorescently stained and Gram-negative microorganisms remain substantially unstained, observing said mixture under light microscopy means and fluorescence microscopy means, and assigning the positive Gram sign to said microorganisms which are observed to be stained and the negative Gram sign to said microorganisms which are observed to be unstained.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.