Biolog Bacteria Identification

The Biolog® system can be used for identification of human pathogens, plant pathogens, and a variety of environmental bacteria. The core of the system is a 96-well microplate that is preloaded with metabolic tests for characterizing and/or identifying microbes. Each well of the microplate contains a different carbon source and a redox chemistry indicator. The chemistry is rehydrated by inoculation with a cell suspension of the unknown bacteria

After incubation, a pattern of positive and negative reactions appears on the microplate. Because there are 4x1028 possible patterns of reactions, a computer program is used to match the similarity of patterns to a database of nearly 2000 bacteria species. Different strains of bacteria will give distinct patterns of reactions and different species will yield distinct families of patterns that can be recognized by the software.

A specialized Dangerous Pathogens Database exists for bacteria that are potential biological weapons. Among the bacteria identified by the system that public health officials have identified as being of primary importance are: Bacillus anthracis (anthrax), Brucella melitensis (Brucellosis), Yersinia pestis (plague), Francissella tularensis (Tularemia), and Burkholderia mallei and B. psedomallei (melioidosis).