LB Agar Plates (Miller formulation) with 100 µg/mL Carbenicillin are used for the growth and maintenance of E. coli containing recombinant plasmids. LB Miller media is nutritionally rich, which allows for rapid growth.
Carbenicillin is used to select for mutated or transformed cells that carry the β-lactamase (bla) gene, which confers resistance to ampicillin (Amp or AmpR) and carbenicillin. Carbenicillin is a semi-synthetic ampicillin analog that does not allow formation of satellite colonies. Typically, low-copy-number plasmids require less carbenicillin than high-copy-number plasmids. 100 µg/mL carbenicillin is the most commonly used concentration.
Typically, 100 mm round plates are for growth/selection, while 150 mm round plates are for screening. Rectangular plates can be used with automated systems. Grids can be helpful when counting colonies.
Contains 1.0% (10 g/L) tryptone, 0.5% (5 g/L) yeast extract, 1.0% (10 g/L) sodium chloride, 100 µg/mL carbenicillin, and 1.5% agar.