Effect of dyes on bacterial growth.

A rapid screening procedure was used to test the effect of 42 dyes on growth of 30 bacteria on solid media. The results indicated that many readily available dyes might have potential application for selective isolation of specific bacterial groups as well as value in differentiating between closely related bacterial taxa. Separation of Enterobacter from Escherichia, Salmonella from Shigella, and Staphylococcus from Micrococcus by selected dyes was also evaluated.