what two physiological tests are significant in the identification of s. agalactiae
Streptococcus agalactiae GBS grows readily on blood agar plates as colonies surrounded by a narrow zone of β-hemolysis. GBS is characterized by the presence in the cell wall of the antigen group B of Lancefield classification (Lancefield grouping) that can be detected directly in intact bacteria using latex agglutination tests.[6] The CAMP test is also another important test for identification of GBS. The CAMP factor produced by GBS acts synergistically with the staphylococcal β-hemolysin inducing enhanced hemolysis of sheep or bovine erythrocytes.[6] GBS is also able to hydrolyze hippurate and this test can also be used to identify presumptively GBS.[6] Hemolytic GBS strains produce an orange-brick-red non-isoprenoid polyene pigment (granadaene) when cultivated on granada medium that allows its straightforward identification.[7] A summary of the laboratory techniques for GBS identification is depicted in Ref 7. [8]