What types of samples are tested?
Anthrax bacteria can be isolated from blood, fluid from around the lungs, skin samples, or from swabs taken from the surfaces of objects or people (like the nasal swab). Q: How do scientists know if a sample contains anthrax? A: There are several tests capable of detecting and analyzing the anthrax bacteria, including: cultures, PCR, antibody tests, microscopy, and DNA fingerprinting. Cultures — Culturing, or growing, anthrax bacteria is relatively simple, but does take some time. First the sample is plated, or placed, onto a lab petri dish containing a solid layer of gelatin, called agar, which contains nutrients for the bacteria to grow. Once plated, it takes 18 to 24 hours before the bacteria have grown enough to be analyzed. Scientists then study the bacteria that have grown on the plates. PCR: Polymerase Chain Reaction — PCR allows scientists to amplify, or create copies, of small amounts of anthrax DNA into quantities large enough to analyze. The process only amplifies the specif