Culture Media Examples	Components/Comments	Primary Purpose
Bile esculin agar (BEA)	Nutrient agar base with ferric citrate. Hydrolysis of esculin by group D streptococci imparts a brown color to medium; sodium deoxycholate inhibits many bacteria.	Differential isolation and presumptive identification of group D streptococci and enterococci
Bile esculin azide agar with vancomycin	Contains azide to inhibit gram-negative bacteria, vancomycin to select for resistant gram-positive bacteria, and bile esculin to differentiate enterococci from other vancomycin-resistant bacteria that may grow	Selective and differential for cultivation of vancomycin resistant enterococci from clinical and surveillance specimens
Blood agar (BA)	Trypticase soy agar, Brucella agar, or beef heart infusion with 5% sheep blood	Cultivation of nonfastidious microorganisms, determination of hemolytic reactions
Bordet-Gengou agar	Potato-glycerol–based medium enriched with 15%- 20% defibrinated blood; contaminants inhibited by methicillin (final concentration of 2.5 µm/mL)	Isolation of Bordetella pertussis and Bordetella parapertussis
Brain-heart infusion agar or broth	Dextrose, pork brain, and heart dehydrated infusions	Cultivation of fastidious organisms
Buffered charcoal–yeast extract agar (BCYE)	Yeast extract, agar, charcoal, and salts supplemented with L-cysteine HCl, ferric pyrophosphate, ACES buffer, and alpha-ketoglutarate	Enrichment for Legionella spp. Supports the growth of Francisella and Nocardia spp.
Buffered charcoal yeast extract (BCYE) agar with antibiotics	BCYE supplemented with polymyxin B, vancomycin, and ansamycin to inhibit gram negative bacteria, gram-positive bacteria, and yeast, respectively	Enrichment and selection for Legionella spp.
Burkholderia cepacia selective agar	Bile salts, gentamicin, ticarcillin, polymyxin B, peptone, yeast extract	For recovery of B. cepacia from cystic fibrosis patients
Campy-blood agar	Contains vancomycin (10 mg/L), trimethoprim (5 mg/L), polymyxin B (2500 U/L), amphotericin B (2 mg/L), and cephalothin (15 mg/L) in a Brucella agar base with sheep blood	Selective for Campylobacter spp.
Campylobacter thioglycollate broth	Thioglycollate broth supplemented with increased agar concentration and antibiotics	Selective holding medium for recovery of Campylobacter spp. Incubated at 4°C for cold-enrichment
CDC* anaerobe 5% sheep blood agar	Tryptic soy broth with phenyl-ethyl alcohol, 5% sheep blood, and added nutrients	Improved growth of obligate, slowgrowing anaerobes
Cefoperazone, vancomycin, amphotericin (CVA) medium	Blood-supplemented enrichment medium containing cefoperazone, vancomycin, and amphotericin to inhibit growth of most gram negative bacteria, gram-positive bacteria, and yeast, respectively	Selective medium for isolation of Campylobacter spp.
Cefsulodin irgasannovobiocin (CIN) agar	Peptone base with yeast extract, mannitol, and bile salts; supplemented with cefsulodin, irgasan, and novobiocin; neutral red and crystal violet indicators	Selective for Yersinia spp.; may be useful for isolation of Aeromonas spp.
Chocolate agar	Peptone base, enriched with solution of 2% hemoglobin or IsoVitaleX (BD BBLTM Becton Dickenson, Sparks MD)	Cultivation of fastidious microorganisms such as Haemophilus spp., Brucella spp. and pathogenic Neisseria spp.
Chromogenic media	Organism-specific nutrient base, selective supplements, and chromogenic substrate	Designed to optimize growth and differentiate a specific type of organism; routinely used in the identification of yeasts, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), and a variety of other organisms
Columbia colistinnalidixic acid (CNA) agar	Columbia agar base with 10 mg colistin per liter, 15 mg nalidixic acid per liter, and 5% sheep blood	Selective isolation of gram positive cocci
Cystine-tellurite blood agar	Infusion agar base with 5% sheep blood; reduction of potassium tellurite by Corynebacterium diphtheriae produces black colonies	Isolation of Corynebacterium diphtheriae
Eosin methylene blue (EMB) agar (Levine)	Peptone base containing lactose; eosin Y and methylene blue as indicators Isolation and differentiation of lactose fermenting and non lactose fermenting enteric bacilli Gram-negative broth (GN) Peptone-base broth with glucose and mannitol; sodium citrate and sodium deoxycholate act as inhibitory agents	Selective (enrichment) liquid medium for enteric pathogens
Hektoen enteric (HE) agar	Peptone-base agar with bile salts, lactose, sucrose, salicin, and ferric ammonium citrate; indicators include bromthymol blue and acid fuchsin	Differential, selective medium for the isolation and differentiation of Salmonella and Shigella spp. from other gram-negative enteric bacilli
Loeffler medium	Animal tissue (heart muscle), dextrose, egg-and-beef serum, and sodium chloride	Isolation and growth of Corynebacterium spp.
MacConkey agar	Peptone base with lactose; gram-positive organisms inhibited by crystal violet and bile salts; neutral red as indicator	Isolation and differentiation of lactose fermenting and non lactose fermenting enteric bacilli
MacConkey sorbitol agar	A modification of MacConkey agar in which lactose has been replaced with D sorbitol as the primary carbohydrate	For the selection and differentiation of E. coli O157:H7 in stool specimens
Mannitol salt agar	Peptone base, mannitol, and phenol red indicator; salt concentration of 7.5% inhibits most bacteria	Selective differentiation of staphylococci
New York City (NYC) agar	Peptone agar base with cornstarch, supplemented with yeast dialysate, 3% hemoglobin, and horse plasma; antibiotic supplement includes vancomycin (2 µg/mL), colistin (5.5 µg/mL), amphotericin B (1.2 µg/mL), and trimethoprim (3 µg/mL)	Selective for Neisseria gonorrhoeae; also supports the growth of Ureaplasma urealyticum and some Mycoplasma spp.
Phenylethyl alcohol (PEA) agar	Nutrient agar base; phenylethyl alcohol inhibits growth of gram-negative organisms	Selective isolation of aerobic gram positive cocci and bacilli and anaerobic gram-positive cocci and gram-negative bacilli
Regan Lowe	Charcoal agar supplemented with horse blood, cephalexin, and amphotericin B	Enrichment and selective medium for isolation of Bordetella pertussis
Salmonella-Shigella (SS) agar	Peptone base with lactose, ferric citrate, and sodium citrate; neutral red as indicator; inhibition of coliforms by brilliant green and bile salts	Selective for Salmonella and some Shigella spp.
Schaedler agar	Peptone and soy protein base agar with yeast extract, dextrose, and buffers; addition of hemin, L-cysteine, and 5% blood enriches for anaerobes	Nonselective medium for the recovery of anaerobes and aerobes Selective for Campylobacter spp. and Helicobacter spp.
Selenite broth	Peptone-base broth; sodium selenite toxic for most Enterobacteriaceae	Enrichment of isolation of Salmonella spp.
Skirrow agar	Peptone and soy protein–base agar with lysed horse blood; vancomycin inhibits gram positive organisms; polymyxin B and trimethoprim inhibit most gram-negative organisms	Selective for Campylobacter spp.
Streptococcal selective agar (SSA)	Contains crystal violet, colistin, and trimethoprimsulfamethoxazole in 5% sheep blood agar base	Selective for Streptococcus pyogenes and Streptococcus agalactiae
Tetrathionate broth	Peptone-base broth; iodine and potassium iodide, bile salts, and sodium thiosulfate inhibit grampositive organisms and Enterobacteriaceae	Selective for Salmonella and Shigella spp., except Salmonella enterica Typhi
Thayer-Martin agar (TM) (modified Thayer Martin [MTM])	Blood agar base enriched with hemoglobin and supplement B; contaminating organisms inhibited by colistin, nystatin, vancomycin, and trimethoprim	Selective for N. gonorrhoeae and N. meningitidis. Supports the growth of Francisella and Brucella spp.
Thioglycollate broth	Pancreatic digest of casein, soy broth, and glucose enrich growth of most microorganisms; includes reducing agents thioglycollate, cystine, and sodium sulfite; semisolid medium with a low concentration of agar reducing oxygen diffusion in the medium	Supports growth of anaerobes, aerobes, microaerophilic, and fastidious microorganisms
Xylose lysine deoxycholate (XLD) agar	Yeast extract agar with lysine, xylose, lactose, sucrose, and ferric ammonium citrate; sodium deoxycholate inhibits gram-positive organisms; phenol red as indicator	Isolation and differentiation of Salmonella and Shigella spp. from other gramnegative enteric bacilli
Todd-Hewitt broth supplemented with antibiotics (LIM)	Supplemented with nalidixic acid and gentamicin or colistin for greater selectivity; thioglycollate and agar reduce redox potential	Selection and enrichment for Streptococcus agalactiae in female genital specimens
Thiosulfate citrate bile salts (TCBS) agar	Peptone base agar with yeast extract, bile salts, citrate, sucrose, ferric citrate, and sodium thiosulfate; bromthymol blue acts as indicator	Selective and differential for Vibrio spp.
Trypticase soy broth (TSB)	All-purpose enrichment broth that can support the growth of many fastidious and nonfastidious bacteria	Enrichment broth used for subculturing various bacteria from primary agar plates