Brain-Heart Infusion Liquid Medium - BioReagent

Cat. No.: B1528601

GRADE & PURITY BioReagent

Storage

Room temperature

Shipped In

Normal

Descripción general

For confirmation of Enterococcus faecalis, and may also be used for enrichment of culture media

Specifications

Especificaciones y pureza

BioReagent

Condiciones de almacenamiento de almacenamiento

Room temperature

Enviado en

Normal

Grado

BioReagent

Product Line

Productos biológicos

Application Protocols

Item-specific, validated protocols are not provided for this SKU; refer to CoA/Spec Sheet. Below are general, literature-based procedures for BHI Liquid Medium (not item-specific):

A. Routine bacterial culture

• Bring medium to room temperature. If sterile, work aseptically; if non-sterile, sterilize by autoclaving per SOP.
• Inoculate with 1–5% v/v culture or a single colony suspended in sterile saline.
• Incubate at organism-appropriate temperature (commonly 30–37 °C) with shaking for aerobes.
• Monitor growth by OD600 or CFU.

B. Growth promotion testing (GPT)

• Inoculate with low CFU counts (per compendial guidance) of challenge organisms.
• Incubate under prescribed conditions and verify recovery/time-to-detection.

C. Biofilm assay (microtiter, overview)

• Inoculate sterile 96-well plates with diluted overnight cultures in BHI.
• Incubate statically (e.g., 24 h at 37 °C), discard supernatant, wash, stain with 0.1% crystal violet, solubilize dye, and read at 570–600 nm.

Always validate conditions for your strains and applications. Use aseptic technique and appropriate biosafety containment.

Biological Roles

As a culture medium, BHI does not possess intrinsic biological “function” like a single biomolecule; instead, it provides nutrients and physicochemical conditions that collectively support microbial metabolism (literature; general guidance):

• Carbon and energy sources: Carbohydrates (e.g., dextrose in typical formulations) fuel glycolysis and fermentation/respiration pathways.
• Nitrogen and growth factors: Peptones and tissue infusions supply amino acids, peptides, vitamins, nucleosides, and minerals critical for biosynthesis, especially in fastidious organisms with auxotrophies.
• Ionic strength and buffering: Sodium chloride maintains osmotic balance; phosphate salts provide mild buffering near neutral pH, stabilizing enzyme function and membrane integrity.
• Phenotypic impacts: Rich media can modulate expression of virulence factors, biofilm formation, and stress responses relative to minimal media, affecting experimental readouts.
• Oxygen dynamics: In shaken/flasked cultures, oxygen transfer and redox balance are influenced by broth viscosity and composition; BHI typically supports vigorous aerobic growth but is also compatible with microaerophilic/anaerobic workflows when combined with appropriate systems (e.g., GasPak, reducing agents).

Note: Exact component concentrations and their biological impacts for this SKU are not specified; consult the CoA/Spec Sheet for lot-specific details if required for metabolic modeling or quantitative studies.

Buffer Applications

BHI Liquid Medium is not intended to serve as a defined buffering agent or precise pH control solution.

• Practical note: Typical BHI formulations include phosphate buffering that stabilizes pH near neutrality during incubation (literature), but buffer capacity is limited and composition-dependent.
• For experiments requiring stringent pH control, prepare dedicated buffer systems (e.g., phosphate, MOPS, HEPES) and, if compatible, combine with media or use controlled bioreactors with pH feedback.

Item-specific buffer specs (pH, buffering ions, capacity): Not specified for this item; refer to CoA/Spec Sheet.

Green Alternatives

Sustainability considerations for complex media often focus on animal-derived inputs, sterilization energy, and single-use plastics. While BHI is traditionally derived from animal tissue infusions, greener strategies can be considered depending on experimental requirements (literature; general guidance):

Options and trade-offs:

• Plant/yeast-based complex media (e.g., soy peptone, yeast extract broths)
  • Pros: Reduced reliance on animal sources; potentially lower environmental footprint.
  • Cons: May not support certain fastidious organisms as effectively as BHI; composition differs (affecting virulence factor expression or phenotype).
• Chemically defined or semi-defined media
  • Pros: Reproducible composition; lower lot-to-lot variability; easier waste classification.
  • Cons: Increased cost and preparation time; may require organism-specific optimization; may not achieve maximal growth rates without supplements.
• Energy-efficient sterilization
  • Pros: Use validated, shorter autoclave cycles or filtration where appropriate; batch efficiently to reduce energy use.
  • Cons: Requires process validation; filtration not feasible for particulate additives (e.g., blood).

Comparison (general):

• BHI vs. plant-based peptone broths: BHI excels for fastidious organisms and enrichment; plant-based options are preferable when animal-free workflows are mandated. Pilot testing is recommended to balance sustainability with performance.

Pharmaceutical Uses

No therapeutic or clinical claims are made for this product. For research use only.

Contextual information (literature; general guidance):

• Quality control microbiology: BHI is commonly used in pharmaceutical and personal care product QC labs for growth promotion testing (GPT), environmental monitoring recoveries, and disinfectant efficacy testing due to its non-selective, nutrient-rich profile.
• Sterility testing workflows: BHI (broth or agar) is frequently employed as a general recovery medium in method development and laboratory validations, though compendial sterility tests specify particular media; always verify regulatory acceptability for your method and do not assume compliance.
• Bioburden/enrichment: Utilized as an enrichment medium when assessing low-level contamination in raw materials or process waters.

Item-specific regulatory status or pharmacopeial conformance: Not specified for this item; refer to CoA/Spec Sheet and your quality unit for suitability assessment.

Physical Properties

Item-specific properties (from Product Data):

• Appearance: Not specified for this item; refer to CoA/Spec Sheet.
• Grade/Purity: BioReagent
• Physical state: Liquid medium (mixture)

Properties typically reported for BHI (literature; general guidance, not item-specific specifications):

• Typical pH (at 25 °C): ~7.3–7.4 after sterilization (literature)
• Osmolality: Formulation-dependent (literature)
• Color: Clear to light amber, may darken on autoclaving or prolonged storage (literature)
• Sterility: Supplied sterile or non-sterile depending on product; verify on label/CoA (literature)

Solubility and compatibility:

• Fully aqueous; miscible with water. Compatible with common microbiological supplements (e.g., defibrinated blood, serum, antibiotics) when required by protocols. Filter-sterilize supplements through 0.22 μm membranes prior to aseptic addition.

Thermal behavior:

• Do not rely on boiling/autoclaving points for handling—composition is complex and may degrade with excessive heat. If re-sterilization is necessary for non-sterile lots, autoclave using validated cycles appropriate for nutrient media; excessive heat may induce Maillard reactions and nutrient degradation (literature).

If you require exact numeric values (pH target, sterility state, osmolality) for this SKU and lot, consult the CoA/Spec Sheet.

Quality and Grades

• Grade: BioReagent. This designation indicates suitability for biological laboratory applications, including microbiology and cell-based workflows, where composition, sterility, and performance criteria are controlled to research-grade expectations.

What this means in practice:

• Raw material selection and processing are aligned to biological use (e.g., low inhibitory contaminants, consistent nutrient profile) compared with general technical grades.
• Performance is typically assessed via growth promotion testing (GPT) with representative organisms; consult the CoA/Spec Sheet for the organisms and acceptance criteria used for this SKU/lot.
• UV absorbance, trace metal levels, or other analytical chemistry specifications are generally not primary quality markers for complex media and are not specified unless stated on the CoA.

Item-specific notes:

• Composition, sterility status, and pH/appearance specifications: Not specified for this item; refer to CoA/Spec Sheet.
• Stabilizers/preservatives: Not specified for this item; refer to CoA/Spec Sheet.

Recommendations:

• For regulated applications (e.g., environmental monitoring, pharma QC), retain CoA/lot traceability and perform incoming GPT under your SOPs.
• For sensitive organisms, verify lot performance with small-scale pilot cultures before critical experiments.

Reaction and Applications

Chemical reaction applications are not relevant for this product. Instead, consider microbiological applications where Brain-Heart Infusion (BHI) Liquid Medium is widely used (literature; general guidance):

• Broad-range cultivation: Supports robust growth of many fastidious and non-fastidious bacteria (e.g., streptococci, pneumococci, enterococci) due to rich nitrogen sources and growth factors.
• Fungal cultivation: Often supports yeasts and some molds; can be adjusted (e.g., with lowered pH or antibiotics) to favor fungi.
• Enrichment: Serves as a non-selective enrichment medium from clinical, environmental, or food samples prior to isolation on solid media.
• Supplementation: Common additions include defibrinated blood (5–10%), serum, hemin, NAD (V factor), sodium bicarbonate, or antibiotics for specific organisms or assays. Always sterile-filter supplements and validate final concentrations.
• Quality control testing: Growth promotion testing (GPT) of media and disinfectant efficacy tests (AOAC/EN methods) frequently use BHI as a recovery medium (literature).
• Biofilm studies: Employed for biofilm formation assays (e.g., microtiter plate crystal violet protocols) because nutrient richness promotes robust biomass.
• Phage work: Used as host growth medium for bacteriophage propagation and titering (literature).

Practical tips:

• Pre-warm to incubation temperature to reduce lag phases.
• Minimize headspace-to-volume ratio and ensure appropriate aeration or agitation for aerobic organisms; use reduced headspace or sealing for microaerophiles/anaerobes as required.

Reaction Conditions

Classical reaction-condition guidance does not apply. Instead, below are general incubation conditions for microbiological use (literature; not item-specific; verify organism-specific requirements):

• Temperature: Common ranges 25–37 °C for many bacteria; thermophiles and psychrophiles require adjusted temperatures.
• Aeration: Shaking at 150–250 rpm for aerobes in baffled flasks at 10–20% working volume improves oxygen transfer; static or reduced headspace for microaerophiles; anaerobic jars/chambers with reducing systems for anaerobes.
• Inoculum: Typically 1–5% v/v from an overnight culture or isolated colony suspension; adjust to target starting OD600.
• Incubation time: 4–24 h for fast growers; longer for slow-growing or fastidious organisms.
• Supplements: Add sterile-filtered additives (e.g., blood 5–10%, antibiotics at validated MIC/MBC ranges) as required by protocol.
• pH: Start near neutrality; monitor if organism produces significant acid/alkali; buffer capacity may be insufficient for high-density cultures.

Item-specific validated conditions or GPT organisms/concentrations: Not specified for this item; refer to CoA/Spec Sheet and internal SOPs.

Safety and Handling

GHS classification and hazard statements: Not specified for this item; refer to the SDS for authoritative information.

General laboratory safety guidance for nutrient media (mixture):

• Primary risk is biological: once inoculated, the medium will contain viable microorganisms. Treat all used media and culture vessels as biohazardous material. Follow institutional biosafety procedures (BSL-appropriate containment).
• Personal protective equipment (PPE): Lab coat, safety glasses, and disposable gloves. Use eye/face protection and biological safety cabinets (Class II) when handling infectious or aerosol-generating procedures.
• Engineering controls: Work aseptically. Use certified biosafety cabinets for manipulations involving pathogens; use appropriate disinfectants (e.g., 70% ethanol, 10% bleach) for decontamination.
• Incompatibilities: Avoid contamination with strong oxidizers or acids/bases during storage; unnecessary chemical additions may alter nutrient composition.
• Sterilization and waste: Autoclave spent or contaminated media and disposables (e.g., 121 °C, ≥15 min; validate locally). Do not dispose of live cultures to drains.
• First aid (general): If splashed in eyes or on skin, rinse with water for several minutes; remove contaminated clothing. If ingested or in case of exposure to pathogenic cultures, seek medical attention per institutional protocols.

Always consult the product SDS and your institutional biosafety guidelines before use.

Solvent Selection

This product is an aqueous liquid microbiological medium; conventional “solvent selection” for chemical reactions is not applicable.

Practical guidance for use with aqueous media:

• Water quality: If dilution or supplementation is needed, use sterile, endotoxin-controlled water (e.g., cell culture–grade or ASTM Type 1/2) to avoid inhibitory contaminants.
• Miscibility: Fully miscible with water; supplements (e.g., blood, serum, carbohydrate solutions, antibiotics) should be sterile and added aseptically. For poorly water-soluble additives, prepare concentrated sterile stocks in biocompatible solvents (e.g., sterile-filtered DMSO or ethanol) and ensure final solvent concentrations are non-inhibitory to target organisms.
• Filtration: Use 0.22 μm PES or PVDF membranes for cold sterilization of heat-labile supplements. Avoid cellulose acetate for solvents/additives incompatible with that polymer.
• Container interaction: Use borosilicate glass or sterile-grade plastics (PP, PETG, PC) validated for media; avoid materials that leach plasticizers.

Alternatives: For specific experimental needs, consider selective or differential media (e.g., TSA, MHB, Columbia broth with blood). Choose based on organism physiology and test objectives (e.g., susceptibility testing vs. routine cultivation).

Storage and Reconstitution

Storage conditions (from Product Data):

• Storage: Room temperature
• Shipped: Normal

Item-specific details:

• Appearance, sterility, preservatives, and shelf life: Not specified for this item; refer to CoA/Spec Sheet.

Handling guidance for liquid media (general):

• Protect from light and excessive heat. Avoid repeated temperature cycling; store in tightly closed, sterile containers to minimize evaporation and contamination.
• If sterile and opened, practice strict aseptic technique. Consider aliquoting into sterile bottles to reduce contamination risk.
• Do not freeze unless the CoA/label indicates stability upon freezing; freeze–thaw can precipitate components or reduce performance.
• If contamination is suspected (turbidity, gas, pellicle) without inoculation, discard per biohazard procedures.
• Supplement addition: Warm to room temperature, aseptically add sterile-filtered supplements, mix gently. Record final concentrations and lot traceability.

Reconstitution: Not applicable—this SKU is a liquid medium. If dilution to working strength is required for a specific protocol, use sterile, high-purity water and validate sterility post-dilution by membrane filtration or control incubations.

For precise storage duration and any special precautions, consult the product label and CoA/Spec Sheet.

Structure and Identity

Brain-Heart Infusion (BHI) Liquid Medium is a complex, undefined microbiological growth medium prepared from animal tissue infusions, peptones, carbohydrates, and salts. It is a formulation/mixture rather than a single chemical entity.

• Product type: Complex nutrient broth (liquid)
• Composition: Not specified for this item; refer to CoA/Spec Sheet.
• Molecular formula: Not applicable (mixture)
• Molecular weight: Not applicable (mixture)
• SMILES, InChI, InChIKey: Not applicable (mixture)
• Structural features: The medium consists of heterogeneous macromolecular and small-molecule components (proteins/peptides, amino acids, nucleosides, vitamins, minerals, carbohydrates, and phosphate/salt buffer). No discrete 2D/3D molecular structure can represent the product.

Literature context (general, not item-specific):

• Typical BHI formulations include brain–heart tissue infusions, proteose peptone/tryptone, dextrose, sodium chloride, and disodium phosphate for mild buffering. Exact sources and concentrations vary by manufacturer and lot.

Implications for use:

• As a complex medium, BHI supports robust growth of a broad range of bacteria and some fungi, including fastidious organisms, due to rich nitrogen and growth factor content. Batch-to-batch variability is controlled via manufacturer specifications; consult the CoA for lot-specific identity and quality attributes.

Synthetic Utility

This product is not a synthetic organic reagent and is not typically used as a substrate, catalyst, or solvent in chemical synthesis.

Relevant laboratory utility (literature; general guidance):

• Biomaterial conditioning: BHI can be used to pre-condition surfaces or devices to develop microbial biofilms for materials testing (e.g., antimicrobial coatings, fouling studies).
• Assay matrix: Serves as a complex aqueous matrix for evaluating antimicrobial agent activity (MIC/MBC), disinfectant performance, or preservative efficacy.

For chemical synthesis workflows, consider switching to appropriate reagents/solvents described in your reaction methodology. If biological evaluation of synthetic compounds is the goal, BHI can be used as the test medium with proper controls to account for media interactions (e.g., protein binding, chelation).

Target Specificity

Not applicable. This product is a general-purpose microbiological medium and does not have target specificity in the sense of antibodies, enzymes, or affinity reagents.

• No antigen/epitope specificity, clone, isotype, or species reactivity data are relevant to this item.

Preguntas frecuentes

How should this product be stored?

Store at room temperature.