Identification of Pseudomonas aeruginosa by pyocyanin production on Tech agar

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is the only gram-negative bacillus capable of producing the very distinctive water-soluble pigment pyocyanin. We evaluated the reliability of this characteristic as a unique test for the identification of this organism by using Tech agar (BBL Microbiology Systems, Cockeysville, Md.) medium. A retrospective and prospective analysis was performed with a total of 835 strains of P. aeruginosa; 818 (98%) produced pigment within 48 h of incubation, and 96% of those which produced pigment were positive after overnight incubation. Seventeen strains (2.0%) failed to produce pigment; 15 were mucoid strains from patients with cystic fibrosis. Tech agar is an effective, simple, and inexpensive medium for P. aeruginosa identification and may be used as a unique test for all potential P. aeruginosa isolates (beta hemolytic on blood agar; lactose-negative, oxidase-positive colonies). Nonpigmented mucoid strains, as well as other nonpigmented organisms, will require additional testing to ensure proper identification.