what reagent or solution i can use to determine the presence of toxic substance in my cell media?

Question

anonymous · Answer

i am missing some details : do you suspect some stock media (like fetal bovine serum), or a standard DMEM or RPMI ot the like. generally speaking:
i am not sure if it is worthwhile to find out. media are usually relatively cheap. for the sake of your cells. your projects and your mental health  - at the possible event of a contamination - replace whatever possible.

anonymous · Answer

Depends what you are looking for, if its contamination try incubating a swab of the media.  If micoplasm bigger problem.  I tend to agree with ttom especially if it is just PBS/MMS etc. If you suspect your FBS harder to test but more expensive to replace.  Sooo one method would be to 'borrow' some FBS from another lab if possible and check if that is ur problem.  Depending what you are doing and your budget I vote for getting fresh media (or mixing more up) depending on what you are doing.