Todayβs special stain is πππ«ππ‘π’π§-ππππ«π«π² π¬πππ’π§!
ππ‘ππ π’π¬ π πππ«ππ‘π’π§-ππππ«π«π² π¬πππ’π§?
The Warthin-Starry stain highlights certain types of ππ«ππ¦-π§ππ πππ’π―π bacteria (see last weekβs post on Gram stains!) that donβt absorb Gram stain. These bacteria include π¬π©π’π«π¨ππ‘πππππ¬ (spiral-shaped bacteria) and some small ππππ’π₯π₯π’ (rod-shaped bacteria). The stain dyes these bacteria black, so they stand out against the golden yellow background!
This image is a case of ππ§πππ«π¨ππ¨π±π’π ππ§π’π π. ππ¨π₯π’ in a pig! This strain of E. coli gathers along the surface of the intestinal π―π’π₯π₯π’ (long finger-like projections) and causes diarrhea, without actually damaging the cells.
Photo Β© Noahβs Arkive contributor Miller licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
