Ashima Gupta, Shouvonik Sengupta, Aishwarya Nathan, Arushi Agarwal, Maithili Devadas, Madhumati G, Suneetha V
This study was aimed at investigating the possibility of staining of microbes with a stain prepared from kumkum. A filtered water extract of kumkum, Glycerine (propane- 1, 2, 3-triol) and sodium bicarbonate made. Simple staining procedures to stain E.coli (Escherichia coli) were then carried out. Positive results were observed. E.coli microbes were stained in a light red hue imparted by kumkum which was further fixed by sodium bicarbonate (NaHCo3).This study concluded that the cheap and easily available kumkum stain can be used to stain microbes and study them morphologically. Thus, such novel stains can be prepared and used for staining purposes in microbiology laboratories.
