Tags Medical Technologies

Animals & Plants Arts & Entertainment Auto Beauty & Health Books and Literature Business Electronics Engineering & Technology Food & Drink History Hobbies Jobs & Education Law & Government Math People & Society Science Social Studies Sports Travel & Places

0

Subjects>Beauty & Health>Medical Fields & Services

Why are spores more difficult to stain than vegetative cells?

Anonymous

∙ 14y ago

Updated: 11/14/2022

Spores are very hard and dense, dye is not readily absorbed into the endospore. However, one method of staining is the Schaeffer and Fulton method. The stain is malachite green and the proper method entails preparing a heat fixed smear which is covered by a piece of blotting paper, and flooded with the dye. Wait 15 mins then remove blotting paper and wash. Counterstain with 0.5% Safrinin.

Spores appear green.

Wiki User

∙ 14y ago

Still curious? Ask our experts.

Chat with our AI personalities

Steve

Knowledge is a journey, you know? We'll get there.

Chat with Steve

Jordan

Looking for a career mentor? I've seen my fair share of shake-ups.

Chat with Jordan

Beau

You're doing better than you think!

Chat with Beau

Add your answer:

Earn +20 pts

Q: Why are spores more difficult to stain than vegetative cells?

Write your answer...

Submit

Still have questions?

imp

Trending Questions

What is the history of herbal essences shampoo? Average height of a 2 year old boy? When giving an IM injection the nurse must always? How will a medical assistant communicate will a ill patient that have intestinal cancer? What are the function of Remuneration specialists? What kind of living can you make from being a paramedic? What are the advantages of medical imaging? Can you sleep with an eyebrow piercing in? Where is the best nursing home in Maryland? Does a fracture suffered 30 years ago still appear on an xray? What could the teenager do to support herself? Why does a Surgeon powder his hands before pulling on his plastic gloves? Why do they put stickers on a woman's nipples during mammograms? The edges of the sealing material? What are the differences and similarities of Jane and Alyce from the midwifes apprentice? What location in the us has the most oncologist? What subjects do you have to take to become a midwife? How are X-rays used in checking for prostate cancer? Should a dentist cut into the bone to put a crown on a cracked tooth? Arab doctors accomplished?

Related Questions

Of what use is the endospore stain?

The use of endospore stain is to see specialized cell structures. It can tell if some bacterium cells contain higher resistant spores within vegetative cells.

Assume you stain Bacillus by applying malachite green with heat and then counterstaining with safranin Through the microscope the green structures are?

Bacillus cells stained with malachite green and safranin will appear red under the microscope due to the counterstaining with safranin. Malachite green primarily stains the spores of Bacillus while safranin stains the rest of the cell, resulting in red-stained vegetative cells and green-stained spores.

Can you see spores in a gram stain preparation?

Spores are typically not visible in a Gram stain preparation as they are highly resistant structures that require special staining techniques, such as the Schaeffer-Fulton or Malachite green stain, for visualization. Gram staining primarily highlights the cell wall characteristics of bacteria, not spores.

How does culture age affect the results of a sproe stain?

Culture age can lead to decreased accuracy of sputum smear staining results, as older cultures may contain degraded or non-viable bacteria, affecting the visibility of acid-fast bacilli under the microscope. The longer the culture age, the higher the likelihood of false negatives in sputum smear staining for tuberculosis. It is recommended to utilize fresh sputum samples for more reliable test results.

Why are spores so difficult to stain?

Spores are difficult to stain because they have a tough outer protective layer called the spore coat, which makes it challenging for dyes to penetrate and adhere to the spore's surface. Additionally, spores are highly resistant structures designed to withstand harsh environmental conditions, further contributing to their staining difficulty.

What are the properties that differentiate the spore from the vegetative cell?

In the spore stain malachite green is used as a primary stain. This is driven into the cell by heat because of the impermeability of the spore. The stain is allowed to sit for 30 mins to make sure it gets in to the endospores.The stain is then washed and counterstained with safranin red. The endospores retain the green colour from malachite green and of course appear green under the microscope. Whereas the vegetative cells will appear red.

Is endospore staining differencial staining?

Yes, endospore staining is a type of differential staining. It is used to distinguish between bacterial endospores and the vegetative cells of the organism. The endospores appear as green structures against a pink or red background when using the Schaeffer-Fulton staining technique.

Why is it necessary to perform a spore stain when you can see the presence of spores in simple stained cells?

Performing a spore stain is necessary because simple staining may show the presence of spores but does not provide enough contrast to clearly distinguish them from the rest of the cell. Spore staining uses specific dyes and techniques to highlight and differentiate spores from the surrounding cell material, providing clearer visualization and identification of spores.

What is the counterstain in a spore stain?

The counterstain used in a spore stain is usually safranin or basic fuchsin. It is used to stain the vegetative cells or any background material that may be present in the sample, allowing the endospores to stand out and be clearly visible under the microscope.

What prevents the cell from appearing green in the finished endospore stain?

The endospore stain uses malachite green, but this dye is rinsed off the cell during the staining procedure. The endospore itself retains the green color due to its resistance to decolorization, making it appear green against a contrasting counterstain like safranin.

Explain the function of Copper Sulfate in the spore staining procedure?

Copper sulfate acts as a mordant in the spore staining procedure by improving the attachment of the primary stain (malachite green) to the endospores. This helps in enhancing the contrast between the spores and the vegetative cells when observing under the microscope.

What is the riquirement of spore staining?

Spore staining requires using a specific stain called malachite green, heat application to drive the stain into the spores, and a counterstain like safranin to distinguish the spores from other cellular structures. This technique is commonly used to differentiate spores from vegetative cells in bacterial cultures.

Still have questions?

imp

Resources

Top Categories

Product

Company

Copyright ©2025 Infospace Holdings LLC, A System1 Company. All Rights Reserved. The material on this site can not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with prior written permission of Answers.