%0 Journal Article %A Jebb, W. H. H. %A Tomlinson, A. H. %T A Microculture Technique for Observing the Early Growth of Mycobacteria %D 1960 %J Microbiology, %V 22 %N 1 %P 93-101 %@ 1465-2080 %R https://doi.org/10.1099/00221287-22-1-93 %I Microbiology Society, %X Summary: A suspension of isolated cells of Mycobacterium tuberculosis was mixed with melted, watery agar and used to prepare thin films of agar gel suspended in ⅜ in. diameter wire loops. These films were incubated in culture media and at intervals of time sample films were transferred to glass slides, fixed, stained and ‘the mean count per colony’ determined. Some batches of agar inhibited growth, but this .inhibition was reduced by extracting the powdered agar with methanol, and was abolished by adding serum, egg or charcoal to the medium. Strain H37Rv and 5 freshly isolated strains growing in a good medium all showed lag periods of 14–17 hr. and generation times of 13–18 hr. In unfavourable media the lag extended to 10–15 days. %U https://www.microbiologyresearch.org/content/journal/micro/10.1099/00221287-22-1-93