When grown on LJ medium, M. tuberculosis appears as brown, granular colonies (sometimes called "buff, rough and tough").

The medium is named after the Austrian pathologist Ernst Löwenstein (1878–1950) and the Danish medical doctor Kai Adolf Jensen (16.7.1894-2.5.1971).

[2] The usual composition[3] as applicable to M. tuberculosis is: The original formulation included starch, which was later found to be unnecessary, so omitted.

While LJ medium is the most popular means of culturing mycobacteria, as recommended by the International Union against Tuberculosis, several alternative media have been investigated.

[4] The chief limitation of culture-based techniques is the time it takes to culture positivity, which can be several months.