Leptospira interrogans can be isolated from blood during the first week of illness. Which culture medium is specifically used for its isolation?

• A EMJH (Ellinghausen-McCullough-Johnson-Harris) medium ✓
• B Lowenstein-Jensen medium
• C Thayer-Martin medium
• D Regan-Lowe medium

Explanation

Leptospires are fastidious slow-growing aerobic spirochaetes cultured on enriched semisolid media such as EMJH medium or Korthof's medium, with incubation for several weeks because growth may take up to 4 to 6 weeks. Lowenstein-Jensen is for mycobacteria, Thayer-Martin for Neisseria gonorrhoeae, and Regan-Lowe for Bordetella pertussis. Because culture is slow, diagnosis usually relies on serology (MAT) or PCR during the leptospiraemic phase.

Reference: Ananthanarayan and Paniker's Textbook of Microbiology, 11th ed.

High-yield for: NEET PGINI-CETNExTFMGEUSMLEPLABMRCP

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