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Selection guides, troubleshooting and research notes on peptones and culture media.

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APPLICATION GUIDES4
TROUBLESHOOTING22
RESEARCH NOTES5

Application guides

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4 min readBiological Treatment of Semiconductor Wastewater: Ammonia, TMAH and the Role of Culture MediaWhy fabs and panel plants grow bacteria: ammonia is removed by nitrification and denitrification, TMAH by dedicated degraders and organics by activated sludge. How to choose media and nitrogen sources for culturing bioaugmentation strains and acclimating or re-seeding biological tanks.Read more
5 min readDehydrated Culture Media (DCM) ApplicationsDCM from STBIO MEDIA is widely used in food microbiology testing, pharmaceutical and biotech quality control, clinical diagnostics, industrial fermentation…Read more
3 min readPeptones and Protein Hydrolysates: Applications by IndustryAn overview of where peptones and protein hydrolysates are used: microbial fermentation, mammalian cell culture, clinical and diagnostic media, probiotics, biopharma and vaccines, agrobiotech, and cosmetic fermentation, with guidance on choosing a nitrogen source.Read more
5 min readProtein Hydrolysates: Plant-Based and Cell-Culture Grade Nitrogen SourcesOur hydrolysates are widely used in cultivated meat and seafood, mammalian cell culture, insect cell culture, monoclonal antibody and recombinant protein (…Read more

Troubleshooting

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9 min readFDA BAM Culture Media Cross-Reference: Which Media Each BAM Chapter Uses and the STBIO EquivalentAerobic plate count, coliforms and E. coli, Salmonella, Listeria monocytogenes, Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus cereus, Vibrio, Clostridium perfringens, yeasts and moulds and Cronobacter: the media named in each FDA Bacteriological Analytical Manual chapter, matched to Taiwan-made dehydrated media for US laboratories qualifying a second source.Read more
13 min readWhich Culture Media Do Taiwan FDA Food Microbiology Methods Specify? Cross-Reference for 21 Announced MethodsAerobic plate count, coliforms, E. coli, Enterobacteriaceae, Salmonella, Staphylococcus aureus, Listeria monocytogenes, lactic acid bacteria, yeasts and moulds, Bacillus cereus, Vibrio parahaemolyticus, Clostridium perfringens and Cronobacter: the media named in each Taiwan FDA (TFDA) announced method, matched to Taiwan-made products.Read more
3 min readWhat Are Casamino Acids? Casamino Acids vs Tryptone vs Casein PeptoneCasamino acids are casein hydrolysed completely with hydrochloric acid, consisting almost entirely of free amino acids. How they differ from tryptone and enzymatic casein peptone in hydrolysis, tryptophan, salt and use.Read more
3 min readLB Broth Recipe and Preparation: Miller, Lennox and Luria Formulations per LitreThe three standard LB (Luria-Bertani) formulations with grams per litre, how much agar for LB Agar, step-by-step preparation and sterilisation, when to add antibiotics, and the usual causes of failure.Read more
4 min readSoy Peptone (Soytone) Guide: How It Is Made, Non-GMO, Filtered Grades and UsesSoy peptone is a plant nitrogen source made by enzymatic hydrolysis of soybean protein, also known as Soytone or papaic digest of soybean meal. Its composition, non-GMO and animal-origin-free claims, filtered versus non-filtered grades, and its use in TSB, lactic acid bacteria and industrial fermentation.Read more
2 min readTryptose vs Tryptone: One Letter Apart, Different JobsTryptose is an enzymatic digest of mixed casein and meat protein used in media for fastidious organisms such as Brucella and Listeria. Tryptone is a pancreatic digest of casein alone, used in LB and TSB. Raw material, hydrolysis, specification and the formulations that call for each.Read more
4 min readWhat Is Peptone? Definition, Types, How It Is Made and How to ChoosePeptone is a mixture of peptides and amino acids made by hydrolysing protein, and the main nitrogen source in culture media. How it is made, the main types, tryptone versus peptone, and how to pick one for your organism.Read more
4 min readYeast Peptone Guide: Production, Specifications, Pairing with Yeast Extract, Fermentation and Probiotic UsesYeast peptone is a plant-based nitrogen source made by enzymatic hydrolysis of yeast protein, high in peptides and free of animal components. How it is made, typical specifications, how to pair it with yeast extract, its use in lactic acid bacteria, probiotic, Bacillus and cell culture work, and what to check when buying.Read more
1 min readWhy is my agar medium soft, not setting, or brittle?Most often the agar was not fully dissolved, an acidic formulation hydrolysed it, or it was remelted. The usual agar concentration is about 1.5% and it sets at roughly 35 to 40 °C.Read more
1 min readHow do I choose a nitrogen source for fermentation? Peptone, yeast extract or soy peptone?Ask three things: what the organism needs (amino acids, vitamins, growth factors), what the process needs (fast growth or secondary metabolites) and what the product needs (plant-based, Halal, cost). Most processes combine two nitrogen sources.Read more
1 min readThe pH of my prepared medium is off. How do I adjust it?First check the measuring conditions: 25 °C, before sterilisation, with a calibrated electrode. Most dehydrated media need no adjustment; when they do, use 1 N NaOH or HCl in small steps.Read more
1 min readHow is a Halal-certified culture medium different from the standard version?The difference is in raw material origin and process traceability: no porcine or non-Halal-slaughtered animal materials, compliant enzymes and processing aids, and audits by a certification body. The formulation and performance are unchanged.Read more
2 min readHow do I prepare and sterilise dehydrated culture media?Weigh, dissolve, check pH, dispense, autoclave at 121 °C for 15 minutes. The common mistakes at each step, and why agar media must be fully dissolved by heating before sterilisation.Read more
1 min readIs it normal for a medium to darken or turn cloudy after autoclaving?Slight darkening is the normal Maillard reaction; obvious caramelisation, precipitate or turbidity usually means sugars and amino acids were overheated, phosphate precipitated with magnesium or calcium, or the water was unsuitable.Read more
1 min readHow should dehydrated media and peptones be stored, and how long after opening can they be used?Unopened powders keep until the labelled expiry at 2 to 30 °C in a dry, dark place; after opening, moisture is the main enemy. Caking, darkening and poor solubility all signal deterioration.Read more
1 min readWhat are a TDS, SDS and COA, and how do I get them from the website?A TDS is the product specification, an SDS the safety data, and a COA the test results of one specific batch. Members can download the TDS and SDS from the product page; a COA is retrieved with the product Ref. and batch number.Read more
1 min readWhat do total nitrogen, amino nitrogen and AN/TN on a peptone COA mean?Total nitrogen reflects protein content; amino nitrogen the share already hydrolysed to small molecules. A higher AN/TN means shorter peptides that cells use directly, but higher is not always better.Read more
5 min readLB Broth Miller vs Lennox vs Miller #4: How to Choose the Right LB Liquid Culture Medium FormulationAll three formulations share the same ingredients and differ by a single number, but that number decides whether your experiment succeeds.Read more
3 min readWhy Are There So Many Different Types of Peptones?Different microorganisms need different nutrients, so peptones are made from animal, plant and yeast sources with enzymatic or acid hydrolysis. How the source and process change growth, yield and compliance, and how to choose.Read more
2 min readWhat is the Difference Between Yeast Extract and Yeast Peptone? Which One Should I Use?When performing microbial cultivation, industrial fermentation, probiotic development, or cell culture, many professionals rely on yeast-derived nitrogen s…Read more
2 min readWhy Does Fermentation Broth Turn Black or Form Precipitates After Sterilization?A common issue encountered during fermentation and microbial cultivation is the sudden discoloration of the culture medium. A previously light-yellow broth…Read more
2 min readWhy Must You Use Food-Grade MRS Broth for Lactic Acid Bacteria Seed Cultures?Many assume that as long as MRS Broth supports the growth of your bacterial strain, it’s good enough. However, if you are manufacturing foods, fermented pr…Read more

Research notes

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4 min readA yeast peptone scale-up example from the patent literature: one nitrogen source from 3 L to 500 LA granted US patent uses 2.0% Yeast Peptone GLS as the fermentation nitrogen source in its examples, across three culture stages of 3 L, 50 L and 500 L. This note sets out the formulation and conditions the patent discloses, and what such literature can and cannot tell you about scale-up.Read more
2 min readTrends in Plant- and Microbial-Derived Protein Hydrolysates for Cell Culture: Toward Reduced Serum and Sustainable Media DevelopmentA Virginia Tech study tested plant- and microbial-derived protein hydrolysates in a fish embryonic stem cell model, showing how they support proliferation at reduced serum levels and what that means for sustainable media design.Read more
2 min readInvestigating the Proliferative and Serum-Reducing Effects of Various Protein Hydrolysates on Vero Cells for ATMP BioproductionInserm and Organotechnie screened protein hydrolysates from different sources on Vero cells, measuring proliferation and how far serum could be reduced for ATMP and vaccine bioproduction.Read more
2 min readOptimization of Umbilical Cord Mesenchymal Stromal Cell-Derived EVs Production Using EVs-Free Fetal Bovine Serum and Vegetal PeptoneInserm researchers raised extracellular vesicle yields from umbilical cord MSCs by combining EV-depleted fetal bovine serum with a plant peptone coating, pointing to a scalable route for cell-therapy EV production.Read more
1 min readOptimisation of Protein Production in HEK293 Cells with Different PeptonesOrganotechnie R&D compared plant-derived peptones with Tryptone N1 for IL-4 expression in HEK293 cells, to find peptones that raise recombinant protein titres after transfection.Read more