NUTRIENT AGAR

Nutrient Agar is a general-purpose, non-selective culture medium used for routine cultivation and enumeration of microorganisms not requiring complex nutritional conditions. It is suitable for maintenance of microbial cultures, for purity checks before biochemical or serological testing and for examination of micro-organisms from clinical and water samples. It was initially developed for use in the Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Wastewater.
Peptone, beef extract and yeast extract furnish nitrogenous compounds, carbon, vitamins and other vital nutrients needed for bacterial growth. Sodium chloride maintains the osmotic equilibrium of the medium and agar is the solidifying matrix.
Nutrient Agar can also be enriched with biological fluids such as horse or sheep blood, serum or egg yolk so as to support the cultivation of related fastidious organisms. Its versatile formulation makes it suitable for routine microbiological applications where a basic, reliable growth medium is required.

Suitable for routine cultivation, maintenance and enumeration of less fastidious microorganisms, with the flexibility to support more demanding organisms when supplemented with biological fluids.