MacConkey agar

MacConkey agar is a selective and

differential culture medium for bacteria. It
is designed to selectively isolate Gram-
negative and enteric (normally found in the
intestinal tract) bacteria and differentiate
them based on lactose fermentation.[1]
Lactose fermenters turn red or pink on
MacConkey agar, and nonfermenters do
not change color. The media inhibits
growth of Gram-positive organisms with
crystal violet and bile salts, allowing for
the selection and isolation of gram-
negative bacteria. The media detects
lactose fermentation by enteric bacteria
with the pH indicator neutral red.[2]

With an active bacterial culture

Lactose

The organism on the left is a lactose fermenter, as evidenced by the pink color. The organism on the right produced no
color, so it does not appear to be a lactose fermenter.

Contents
It contains bile salts (to inhibit most Gram-
positive bacteria), crystal violet dye (which
also inhibits certain Gram-positive
bacteria), and neutral red dye (which turns
pink if the microbes are fermenting
lactose).
Composition:[3]

Peptone – 17 g
Proteose peptone – 3 g
Lactose – 10 g
Bile salts – 1.5 g
Sodium chloride – 5 g
Neutral red – 0.03 g
Crystal violet – 0.001 g
Agar – 13.5 g
Water – add to make 1 litre; adjust pH to
7.1 +/− 0.2
Sodium taurocholate
There are many variations of MacConkey
agar depending on the need. If the
spreading or swarming of Proteus species
is not required, sodium chloride is omitted.
Crystal violet at a concentration of
0.0001% (0.001 g per litre) is included
when needing to check if Gram-positive
bacteria are inhibited. MacConkey with
sorbitol is used to isolate E. coli O157, an
enteric pathogen.

History
The medium was developed by Alfred
Theodore MacConkey while working as a
bacteriologist for the Royal Commission
on Sewage Disposal.
Uses
Using neutral red pH indicator, the agar
distinguishes those Gram-negative
bacteria that can ferment the sugar
lactose (Lac+) from those that cannot
(Lac-).

This medium is also known as an

"indicator medium" and a "low selective
medium". Presence of bile salts inhibits
swarming by Proteus species.
Lac positive

By utilizing the lactose available in the

medium, Lac+ bacteria such as Escherichia
coli, Enterobacter and Klebsiella will
produce acid, which lowers the pH of the
agar below 6.8 and results in the
appearance of pink colonies. The bile salts
precipitate in the immediate neighborhood
of the colony, causing the medium
surrounding the colony to become
hazy.[4][5]
Lac negative

Organisms unable to ferment lactose will

form normal-colored (i.e., un-dyed)
colonies. The medium will remain yellow.
Examples of non-lactose fermenting
bacteria are Salmonella, Proteus species,
Yersinia, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and
Shigella.

Slow

Some organisms ferment lactose slowly or

weakly, and are sometimes put in their own
category. These include Serratia[6] and
Citrobacter.[7]
Mucoid colonies

Some organisms, especially Klebsiella and

Enterobacter, produce mucoid colonies
which appear very moist and sticky and
slimy. This phenomenon happens because
the organism is producing a capsule, which
is predominantly made from the lactose
sugar in the agar.

Variant
A variant, sorbitol-MacConkey agar, (with
the addition of additional selective agents)
can assist in the isolation and
differentiation of enterohemorrhagic E. coli
serotype E. coli O157:H7, by the presence
of colorless circular colonies that are non-
sorbitol fermenting.

See also
R2a agar
MRS agar (culture medium designed to
grow Gram-positive bacteria and
differentiate them for lactose
fermentation).

References
1. "tmc.edu" (https://web.archive.org/web/20
081104050132/http://medic.med.uth.tmc.
edu/path/macconk.htm) . Archived from
the original (http://medic.med.uth.tmc.edu/
path/macconk.htm) on 2008-11-04.
2. Anderson, Cindy (2013). Great Adventures
in the Microbiology Laboratory (7th ed.).
Pearson. pp. 175–176. ISBN 978-1-269-
39068-2.
3. "MacConkey Agar Plates Protocols" (http
s://web.archive.org/web/2010120306162
2/http://www.microbelibrary.org/index.ph
p/component/resource/laboratory-test/285
5-macconkey-agar-plates-protocols) .
Archived from the original (http://www.micr
obelibrary.org/index.php/component/resou
rce/laboratory-test/2855-macconkey-agar-
plates-protocols) on 2010-12-03.
Retrieved 2011-03-20.
4. MacConkey AT (1905). "Lactose-
Fermenting Bacteria in Faeces" (https://ww
w.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2236
 133) . J Hyg (Lond). 5 (3): 333–79.
doi:10.1017/s002217240000259x (https://
doi.org/10.1017%2Fs002217240000259
x) . PMC 2236133 (https://www.ncbi.nlm.ni
h.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2236133) .
PMID 20474229 (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.
nih.gov/20474229) .
5. MacConkey AT (1908). "Bile Salt Media and
their advantages in some Bacteriological
Examinations" (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.g
ov/pmc/articles/PMC2167122) . J Hyg
(Lond). 8 (3): 322–34.
doi:10.1017/s0022172400003375 (https://
doi.org/10.1017%2Fs002217240000337
5) . PMC 2167122 (https://www.ncbi.nlm.ni
h.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2167122) .
 PMID 20474363 (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.
nih.gov/20474363) .
6. Luis M. De LA Maza; Pezzlo, Marie T.; Janet
T. Shigei; Peterson, Ellena M. (2004). Color
Atlas of Medical Bacteriology. Washington,
D.C: ASM Press. p. 103. ISBN 1-55581-206-
6.
7. "Medmicro Chapter 26" (https://web.archiv
e.org/web/20080706194735/http://gsbs.ut
mb.edu/microbook/ch026.htm) . Archived
from the original (http://gsbs.utmb.edu/mi
crobook/ch026.htm) on 2008-07-06.
Retrieved 2008-12-11.

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