mycology

Lacto Phenol Cotton Blue can be used in examining hair, skin, and cultures for fungal elements. The Phenol poisons the cell and furthermore inactivates many biological systems within the cell including the lytic cycle. The inactivation of such lytic cellular enzymes advantageously keeps the cell intact and prevents it from lysing.  Cotton blue is the dye used and stains the chitin within the cell walls of the fungi.