Which statement is true regarding the culture of Acanthamoeba?

Which statement is true regarding the culture of Acanthamoeba?

• A. Chocolate agar supports growth
• B. Non-nutrient agar with heat-killed E. coli is the preferred medium
• C. Thayer Martin agar is used for fungi
• D. Sabouraud agar is used to culture viruses

Answer: (B)

Culturing Acanthamoeba relies on a non-nutrient agar surface overlaid with heat-killed Escherichia coli. The amoebae feed on the bacteria found on the plate, using the E. coli as a food source while the agar itself provides a suitable surface to grow the trophozoites and cysts. This setup is specifically used for free-living amoebae because it supports their growth without supplying nutrients that would encourage other microbes to overgrow or mask their presence. In contrast, chocolate agar is enriched for fastidious bacteria, Thayer-Martin agar targets Neisseria species, and Sabouraud agar is designed for fungi; viruses require living cells and aren’t cultured on these types of agar. So the non-nutrient agar with heat-killed E. coli is the appropriate medium for Acanthamoeba.

Culturing Acanthamoeba relies on a non-nutrient agar surface overlaid with heat-killed Escherichia coli. The amoebae feed on the bacteria found on the plate, using the E. coli as a food source while the agar itself provides a suitable surface to grow the trophozoites and cysts. This setup is specifically used for free-living amoebae because it supports their growth without supplying nutrients that would encourage other microbes to overgrow or mask their presence. In contrast, chocolate agar is enriched for fastidious bacteria, Thayer-Martin agar targets Neisseria species, and Sabouraud agar is designed for fungi; viruses require living cells and aren’t cultured on these types of agar. So the non-nutrient agar with heat-killed E. coli is the appropriate medium for Acanthamoeba.