Question

You conducted the IMViC series on an unknown bacterial culture and the results show that the indole test is positive, Voges-Proskauer is positive and the citrate test is negative. Is the organism in the culture Enterobacter aerogenes?

Select one:
a. yes
b. no

Answer 1

Based on the provided IMViC results, the unknown bacterial culture is not Enterobacter aerogenes as the patterns do not match known results for this organism.

Step-by-step explanation:

The IMViC series is a collection of tests used to identify bacteria in the Family Enterobacteriaceae by analyzing their biochemical characteristics. The indole test, which is part of this series, checks for the production of indole from the amino acid tryptophan, which when positive shows a deep pink color upon the addition of a reagent.

According to the IMViC results given: a positive indole test, a positive Voges-Proskauer test, and a negative citrate test, the pattern does not match the known test results for Enterobacter aerogenes, which typically has a negative indole test and positive results for Voges-Proskauer and citrate test. Therefore, the organism is likely not Enterobacter aerogenes. While Enterobacter aerogenes gives a positive VP result, it contrasts with the positive indole and negative citrate results provided by the unknown culture.