Development of an adhesive sheet for direct counting of bacteria on solid surfaces

An adhesive sheet was developed for direct counting of microorganisms on solid surfaces. The sheet consists of a polyurethane film base and water insoluble adhesive. SYBR Green II (for total direct counting) or 6-carboxyfluorescein diacetate (6CFDA) (for fluorescent vital staining) was used for fluorescent microscopy of bacteria collected on the adhesive face of the sheet. Adhesive sheet sampling showed a higher recovery rate for microbial enumeration than conventional swab method or stamp agar. This method is simple, rapid, inexpensive and reproducible.