Acid-Fast Staining Lab Activity
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Acid-fast stain is used primarily in the identification of pathogenic organisms like the tuberculosis bacillus, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, and the leprosy microbe, Mycobacterium leprae. In this activity, students perform an acid-fast stain procedure on nonpathogenic cultures of Mycobacterium nonchromogenicum, an acid-fast rod found in soil, and Staphylococcus epidermidis, a nonacidfast coccus that normally inhabits your skin. In the process, students will learn to use sterile techniques, one of the most crucial components of microbiology