Mycoplasma are very small bacteria (0.15–0.3 µm) that lack a cell wall and have a flexible membrane. Their small size lets them pass through standard 0.2 µm sterilising filters, and their lack of a cell wall makes them resistant to common antibiotics such as penicillin and streptomycin. Undetected contamination can alter cell growth, gene expression, protein/RNA/DNA synthesis and morphology — compromising the reliability of your results and the safety of biological products.

Mycoplasma cannot be seen by eye or ordinary microscopy. Detection methods include direct culture (highest sensitivity but slow — up to a month), indirect methods (DNA fluorescence, ELISA, DNA probes) and PCR/qPCR. The MycoGenie Rapid Mycoplasma Detection Kit detects mycoplasma in one hour from 1 µl of culture supernatant by a visual colour change — results are highly consistent with gold-standard PCR, with no PCR, qPCR, electrophoresis or ELISA required.

The kit reliably detects at least 500 cfu of mycoplasma from 1 µl of culture supernatant (5 × 10⁵ cfu/ml). Because a single mycoplasma can grow to ~10⁶ cfu/ml within 3–5 days, it is best to test from the third day after cell passage or after replacing medium, and to test routinely.

Always wear PPE and change gloves often; obtain cells from reliable sources and quarantine and screen new cells before introducing them to the lab (mycoplasma survive in liquid nitrogen); use good sterile technique — watch for pipette drips, change tips frequently and avoid talking over open cells; and keep the lab clean by regularly sterilising work areas and servicing equipment on schedule.

Conventional antibiotics are often ineffective — because mycoplasma lack a cell wall, agents like penicillin don't work, and others tend only to reduce numbers so contamination recurs after treatment. The MycoGenie Mycoplasma Elimination Kit instead disrupts the mycoplasma membrane, removing even antibiotic-resistant mycoplasma from cell culture, serum and medium. It clears intracellular and extracellular mycoplasma over a 3–7 day protocol and is non-toxic to cells.

The MycoGenie Rapid Mycoplasma Detection Kit detects up to 28 mycoplasma species, including the eight species (such as M. hyorhinis, M. orale, M. arginini and M. fermentans) responsible for more than 95% of cell-culture contaminations, across a wide range of suspension and adherent cell lines and media/sera.