TEXTURIZED SOY PROTEIN AS AN ALTERNATIVE LOW-COST MEDIA FOR BACTERIA CULTIVATION

Most of the culture media used in bacterial growth is composed of complex ingredients, increasing the value of the product. This makes its acquisition unavailable by educational institutions without sufficient funding, making even more difficult the practical teaching of microbiology. Therefore, the development of an alternative medium of simple composition and low-cost becomes necessary. This work aimed to use texturized soy protein (TSP) as a low cost culture medium that allows the bacterial growth. For the composition of the broths, concentrations between 0.5% and 10% were prepared. Thirty-eight bacteria, including important pathogens associated with food, were inoculated and the concentration of 7.5% TSP allowed the growth of 100% of the tested bacteria, with a production cost of approximately 86% and 68% lower than tryptic soy broth and agar, respectively. This work demonstrates that the use of a culture medium of easy acquisition and low cost is feasible and has good results.