Indican test in urine:

Indican test in urine is a general test used for the determination of indican in urine. The Indican test in urine is also called an obermeyer test. Indican is an indole which is produced when intestinal bacteria in the intestine act on the amino acid, tryptophan.

Reagents:

• 1% alcoholic α-naphthol
• 3% H2O2
• Concentrated HCL

Procedure:

• Take 3 ml urine in a test tube.
• Add 5 drops 1% alcoholic α-naphthol in it.
• And 1 ml of 3% H2O2.
• Mix thoroughly.
• Add 5 ml of concentrated HCL in it.
• Allow it to stand for 5-10 minutes at room temperature.

Observation:

The development of blue colour indicates the presence of indican in the urine.

Note:

The blue colour developed is due to the formation of indoxyl from indican and its condensation with α-naphthol.

Precautions:

To obtain a better result, follow the below steps.

• Before starting the procedure, wash the apparatus before and after the experiment.
• As usual, carefully handle all the chemicals in the laboratory.
• Avoid urine touching with hands while doing the experiment.
• Use fork for holding test tube.
• The test tube used should be clean neatly and free of any dirt and chemicals because we will not get the proper result then, so try to use a clean and clear test tube for a correct result.