Liver Broth Culture Medium is a liver infusion medium, containing liver particles, for the examination of foods for saccharolytic or putrefactive mesophilic and thermophilic anaerobes. The medium is also recommended for the maintenance of aerobes and anaerobes in pure culture. Gillespie in communication with Scarr¹ recommended Liver Broth for the examination of canners’ sugar for hydrogen swells caused by thermophilic anaerobes (Clostridium thermosaccharolyticum).

A 20% w/v solution of the sugar is steamed for 30 minutes to destroy vegetative forms and inoculated into Liver Broth sealed with agar. The standard proposed was a maximum of one positive tube in six, with 20mL inocula incubated for 72 hours at 56°C.

This medium should be made up only when required for use. Storage of the reconstituted medium is not recommended because air may be absorbed and the re-steaming necessary for the restoration of anaerobic conditions darkens the medium. Liver broth is not an homogeneous medium, consisting of a layer of liver particles and a cloudy supernatant. Growth produces an obvious increase in turbidity and some organisms (e.g. Clostridium thermosaccharolyticum ) also produce gas which often pushes the agar plug towards the top of the tube. Some organisms also digest the solid liver tissue.

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