OxyBlue Anaerobic Indicator
One drop. Blue to white. Visual confirmation your environment went anaerobic.
What it is
OxyBlue is a ready-to-use anaerobic indicator built around a proven methylene blue chemistry. When oxygen is present, the indicator stays blue. When the environment reaches anaerobiosis, it fades to white or pale blue. No guessing whether your system worked. You can see it.
Each OxyBlue dropper dispenses a small drop that goes on the inside of a plate lid, jar, pouch, or any sealed container you’re using to grow anaerobes or make anaerobic.
How it works
OxyBlue uses methylene blue, the standard redox dye for monitoring anaerobic conditions in microbiology. In the presence of oxygen, methylene blue is in its oxidized, blue form. As oxygen is removed from the sealed environment, the dye is reduced and the color disappears. The speed of the color change reflects how quickly your system is pulling oxygen out of the headspace.
That makes OxyBlue useful not just as a pass or fail check, but as a real-time window into your anaerobic workflow.
Who uses it
OxyBlue was designed to pair with OxyPlate plated media, but it works anywhere you need a visual anaerobic indicator:
- Clinical microbiology labs running anaerobic cultures
- Food and beverage microbiology (brewing, fermentation, spoilage testing)
- Research labs working with strict or facultative anaerobes
- Industrial and environmental labs running anaerobic assays
- Teaching labs demonstrating redox chemistry and anaerobic growth
- Any workflow using jars, pouches, bags, or sealed dishes to create a low-oxygen environment
If you’re creating an anaerobic environment and want cheap, fast, visual confirmation it actually happened, OxyBlue is built for it.
How to use it
- Inoculate your plate or set up your container as you normally would
- Uncap the Oxyblue dropper bottle
- Place a single drop on the inside of the lid or container wall
- Close the system and incubate as usual
- Check the indicator during or after incubation. Blue means oxygen is still present. White or very pale blue means you’ve reached anaerobiosis.
- Recap the Oxyblue dropper bottle
The indicator is reusable within the same plate or container once applied, so you can monitor the environment across the full incubation period.
Why labs choose OxyBlue
- Inexpensive. One bottle covers around 150 plates, driving per-test cost to pennies.
- Flexible. Works with plates, jars, pouches, bags, and custom sealed containers.
- Simple. Single-step application. Any bench tech can use it with no training overhead.
- Proven chemistry. Methylene blue has been the go-to redox indicator for anaerobic microbiology for decades. OxyBlue packages it in a form built for convenient use across a multitude of applications.
FAQ Section
What is an anaerobic indicator? An anaerobic indicator is a chemical that changes color to confirm whether a sealed environment has reached anaerobiosis (the absence of oxygen). Most use methylene blue, which is blue when oxidized and colorless when reduced.
How does OxyBlue work? OxyBlue contains a methylene blue solution. When you apply a drop inside a sealed plate, jar, or pouch, the dye stays blue while oxygen is present and turns white or pale blue once oxygen is removed.
Can OxyBlue be used with anaerobic jars and pouches? Yes. While OxyBlue was developed to pair with OxyPlate, it works with any sealed container used to generate an anaerobic environment, including jars, pouches, and bags.
How many plates does one ampule cover? On average, one bottle dots about 150 plates.
How long does OxyBlue last? Oxyrase guarantees a shelf life of 3 months from the shipment date under recommended storage conditions.
Is OxyBlue reusable? Once applied inside a plate or container, the indicator can cycle between blue and white multiple times.
