To provide a method for detecting viable bacteria from a specimen that contains viable bacteria or is likely to contain viable bacteria by using a fluorescence reagent, which is a method for detecting viable bacteria more accurately than previously known methods, and to provide a viable bacteria counter.
This method is characterized in that a spot at which the revelation amount of a fluorescence emission function of a fluorescence reagent taken into viable bacteria changes over time is determined to be a spot derived from the viable bacteria. The fluorescence reagent is brought into contact with viable bacteria captured on a filter 2 for microbe collection. After the contact, the filter 2 is illuminated with excitation light without delay, and a light spot thus generated is detected. After a lapse of time, a light spot generated by illuminating once again the filter 2 with excitation light is detected to compare its luminance with that of the light spot just after the contact, determining a light spot having changed in luminance to be the light spot derived from the viable bacteria.
Tomoyasu Sakaguchi
Hiroki Naito
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