Acid fast stain (Ziehl-Neelsen technique): It distinguishes acid fast bacteria such as Mycobacterium spp from non-acid fast bacteria; which do not stain well by the Gram Staining. It is used to stain Mycobacterium species (Mycobacterium tuberculosis, M. ulcerans and M. leprae)
Auramine-Rhodamine technique: This fluorochrome staining method is used to enhance the detection of mycobacteria directly in patient specimens and initial characterization of cells grown in culture.