In this Unit, we will explore four key areas of Microbiology:
Did You Know...
All of the above are living organisms except for viruses. Although viruses carry genetic material, reproduce and evolve through natural selection, they lack key characteristics (such as cell structure) that are generally considered necessary to be considered a life form. (This is why you won't find them on the diagram on the right.)
- Prokaryotes (Bacteria & Archaea)
- Protists
- Fungi
- Viruses
Did You Know...
All of the above are living organisms except for viruses. Although viruses carry genetic material, reproduce and evolve through natural selection, they lack key characteristics (such as cell structure) that are generally considered necessary to be considered a life form. (This is why you won't find them on the diagram on the right.)
Focus on the microbes!
After Gram staining, we were now equipped with slides showing our microscopic microbes. But we couldn't get a good look at them without an oil-immersion microscope. Check out the link above to learn how this microscope works. |
Unit Two Laboratory Experiments
Aseptic Technique Transfer of E.coli from broth/agar plate to broth/slant/plate Gram Staining Are microbes everywhere? Testing surfaces on campus to see what kinds of bacteria are living among us! Germ Spread What kind of greeting is best to avoid the spread of microbes and pathogens? In this experiment, we tested the handshake, "touch" and wave to see how effective each would be in the avoidance of Alex the lab technician's germs! We found that, of course, the wave was the least germ spreading. The "touch" and the handshake produced very healthy colonies of bacteria. Conclusion: Greet people with a friendly wave and walk on by! |
References
Virus info. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virus#cite_note-ReferenceA-8
Petri Dish Transfer Photo. University of Toronto, U of T News. Retrieved from http://www.news.utoronto.ca/categories/research?page=5
Escherichia Coli Photo. By Y_tambe (Own work) [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
Staphylococcus Photo. By Bob Blaylock (Own work) [CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0) or GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html)], via Wikimedia Commons
Virus info. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virus#cite_note-ReferenceA-8
Petri Dish Transfer Photo. University of Toronto, U of T News. Retrieved from http://www.news.utoronto.ca/categories/research?page=5
Escherichia Coli Photo. By Y_tambe (Own work) [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
Staphylococcus Photo. By Bob Blaylock (Own work) [CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0) or GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html)], via Wikimedia Commons