Iron-Modified Blood Culture Media Allow for the Rapid Diagnosis and Isolation of the Slow-Growing Pathogen Francisella tularensis

Abstract

In this study, we evaluated bacterial growth rates of Francisella tularensis strains in iron (Fe)-enriched blood cultures as a means of improving and accelerating bacterial growth. The shortening of the culturing time should facilitate rapid pathogen detection and isolation, positively impacting clinical diagnosis and enabling prompt onset of efficient therapy.