The goal of this research is to develop a culture dish (OxyDish R) that, together with oxyrase (tm), will support growth of clinically significant, anaerobic microorganisms on an agar-medium surface without using anaerobic bags, jars, or chambers. The use of oxyrase and this dish to grow anaerobes is intended to be transparent to the microbiologist and to the microorganisms. The microbiologist is intended to be able to work with most anaerobic microbes. The combination of oxyrase with the dish is intended to provide an environment that will reliably support the rapid growth of anaerobic microorganisms. No other environmental intervention or special equipment will be needed to grow clinically important microorganisms. The simplicity of the OxyDish is intended to enhance the efficiency of the clinical microbiologist working with anaerobic pathogens. This increased efficiency, together with elimination of special equipment supplies, will reduce the cost of working with anaerobic pathogens.
