Question:easy

In nutrient agar, the concentration of agar is:

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Standard solidifying concentration of agar in routine solid media.
Updated On: Jun 24, 2026
  • 1%
  • 1.5%
  • 3%
  • 4%
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The Correct Option is B

Solution and Explanation

Step 1: Solid culture media are made by gelling a liquid broth with agar, a seaweed polysaccharide that sets the surface for colony growth without feeding the microbes.

Step 2: For standard nutrient agar the recipe fixes the agar at 1.5% added to nutrient broth, giving a firm plate suitable for streaking and isolation.

Step 3: The nutritive part of the broth supplies peptone near 0.5%, meat or yeast extract near 0.3% and salt near 0.5%, balanced to neutral pH around 7.4.

Step 4: A 1% concentration leaves the medium too soft, while 3% or 4% overgels it without benefit, so the routine working figure is 1.5%.

\[\boxed{1.5\%}\]
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