The company MicroBioTests Inc. was established in 2001 and is the exclusive producer worldwide of TOXKIT MICROBIOTESTS for detection and quantification of the toxicity of chemicals and/or liquid or solid samples in polluted aquatic and terrestrial environments.
Toxkit microbiotests are used for research and for toxicity screening of chemicals, surface waters (freshwater, estuarine and marine), groundwaters, industrial effluents, sediments and soils. Some of these microbiotests are also suited for the rapid detection of biological toxins contaminating surface waters and water reservoirs.
The unique characteristic and the major asset of Toxkit microbiotests is that these bioassays are totally independent of the (complex and costly) culturing and maintenance of stocks of test-organisms which are needed for the tests.
Toxkit microbiotests make use of “dormant” or “immobilised” stages of selected test species, which can be stored for long periods of time and “activated” at the time of performance of the assays.
This allows application of these low cost and user-friendly toxicity tests “anytime and anywhere” without the need for expensive equipment or facilities.
Toxkit microbiotests are presently used in more than 45 countries worldwide for toxicity detection and quantification of contaminated waters and soils, as well as for research.
Since their commercialisation, more than 200.000 tests have already been performed worldwide with Toxkits, and hundreds of scientific papers and reports have been published on their use.