What is the gram stain

 Danish physician Hans Christian Gram developed the

Gram staining method in 1884. Gram staining
procedure uses four chemicals; crystal violet, iodine,
alcohol, and safranin, to stain bacteriaGram staining is
still the cornerstone of bacterial identification and
taxonomic division. This differential staining technique
separates most bacteria into two groups based on cell
wall composition.Gram-positive bacteria- stains
purpleGram-negative bacteria-stains red/pinkNearly
all clinically important bacteria can be visualized using
the Gram staining technique, the only exceptions being
those organisms;That exists almost exclusively within
host cells, i.e., intracellular
bacteria (e.g., Chlamydia)Those that lack a cell wall
(e.g., Mycoplasma
False gram positive and false gram
negative
 . Sometimes the result might be entirely
different than you have anticipated. Gram-
positive bacteria may lose their ability to
retain crystal violet and stain Gram
negatively for the following reasons:cell wall
damage of bacteria due to antibiotic therapy
or excessive heat fixation of the smear.over-
decolorization of the smearuse of an old
Iodine solution that is yellow in color instead
of brown (always store in a brown glass or
other light opaque containers).preparation of
smears from old culture.A thick smear will
require more decoloration than a thin
smear. When the smear is too thick, Gram-
negative bacteria may not be fully
decolorized during decolorization steps and
appear as Gram-positive