Eenvoudige Kleuringstechniek

Staining in microscopy enhances the visibility of microorganisms by distinguishing their internal and external structures.

Simple staining uses a single dye to highlight the size, shape, and basic features of a cell.

Fixation is a crucial step that preserves cell morphology and immobilizes structures before staining.

Heat fixation is commonly used for bacterial and archaeal samples in light microscopy.

To perform simple staining, a thin smear of microbial culture is spread on a slide, air-dried, and heat-fixed.

The slide is then stained with a basic dye—such as crystal violet, methylene blue, or safranin—for 1 to 2 minutes.

After staining, the slide is rinsed with water to remove excess dye and blotted dry with absorbent paper.

Basic dyes with positively charged chromophores bind to negatively charged cell components, such as nucleic acids and cell walls, through electrostatic attraction.

This produces a brightly colored cell against a clear background, making microbial morphology and arrangement easier to observe.