Visit Oxyrase at the 2026 SCACM Spring Meeting in Indianapolis

Discover how OxyPlates and OxyPRAS Plus StrictAna Blood Agar are helping clinical microbiology laboratories simplify their anaerobic workflows, improve organism recovery, and reduce costs.

Anaerobic bacteriology is one of the most resource-intensive disciplines in the clinical microbiology laboratory. Between the capital investment in chambers, the recurring costs of gas-paks and sachets, and the workflow bottlenecks that come with batch processing in jars, many labs find themselves spending more time managing equipment than managing patient care.

At Oxyrase, we believe there is a better way. We have been developing enzyme-based anaerobic culture solutions since our founding, and we are excited to showcase two products at SCACM 2026 that are changing the way laboratories approach anaerobic culture.

OxyPlates: A Fundamentally Simpler Approach to Anaerobic Culture

OxyPlates use the Oxyrase enzyme, a cell-membrane fraction that reduces oxygen to water directly in the culture media. This eliminates the need for anaerobic jars, bags, sachets, indicators, and chambers entirely. The workflow is straightforward: inoculate the OxyPlate, incubate it in a standard aerobic incubator, and inspect individual plates on demand. The anaerobic environment regenerates after each opening, so there is no risk of compromising sensitive anaerobes during examination.

In a peer-reviewed head-to-head comparison study conducted at MidMichigan Regional Medical Center, OxyPlates were evaluated against a conventional anaerobic chamber using 212 consecutive wound specimens. Of the 182 anaerobic strains isolated, 129 were recovered by both systems. Notably, 39 strains grew only on OxyPlates and failed to grow in the anaerobic chamber. Cost analysis from that same study estimated annual savings of $2,965 per lab, based on a workload of 1,410 wound cultures and 468 fluid cultures per year.

Beyond the clinical data, technologists in the study reported that OxyPlates were easier to manipulate, allowed clearer viewing of colony growth and morphology, and eliminated the need for aerotolerance testing as a separate step. Aerobic and anaerobic plates could be stacked and incubated together, and total patient workup was performed at the same bench, at the same time, by the same technologist.

OxyPRAS Plus StrictAna Blood Agar: See What You Have Been Missing

For laboratories seeking even greater specificity in their anaerobic culture, we developed OxyPRAS Plus StrictAna Blood Agar. StrictAna is engineered to suppress facultative bacterial overgrowth and swarming organisms that commonly obscure target anaerobes on standard blood agar plates.

In a 60-specimen clinical validation, StrictAna demonstrated a 59% reduction in total facultative growth intensity compared to standard blood agar. Swarming was completely prevented in all cases where it had been observed on standard media. Additionally, StrictAna recovered four anaerobic isolates that were missed entirely on the standard plates.

For laboratories running MALDI-TOF identification systems, StrictAna is particularly valuable. Because MALDI-TOF provides definitive identification from well-isolated colonies, the traditional need for multiple selective media (KVL, PEA, BBE) is reduced. One plate of StrictAna can replace two selective plates, simplifying the workflow while still providing the clean, well-isolated colonies that MALDI-TOF requires.

Stop By Our Booth

Whether your laboratory is currently running an anaerobic chamber, using jars and bags, or looking for ways to modernize your anaerobic workflow, we would welcome the opportunity to walk you through the data, discuss how our products integrate into your current setup, and help you calculate the potential cost savings for your specific specimen volume.

We look forward to seeing you in Indianapolis.

Cannot attend? We are happy to send complimentary trial samples or provide a custom cost analysis for your laboratory. Reach out to us anytime.

Contact Oxyrase, Inc.

Phone: (419) 589-8800

Email: info@oxyrase.com

Web: www.oxyrase.com

3000 Park Avenue West, Mansfield, OH 44906