Practical 1 Flashcards
what does it mean that microorganisms are ubiquitous
found in any environmental condition
what is a pure culture
culture containing a single unadulterated species
what does survival and continued growth of microorganisms require
nutrients and a favourable growth environment
what is a culture medium
soluble low molecular weight substances (derived from enzymatic degredation of complex nutrients)
what is agar
used for solid media, extract of seaweed, is a complex carbohydrate composed mainly of galactose
why is agar a good solidfying agent
liquid at 100c and solid at 40c
what percent of agar is needed to have a solid media
1.5-1.8 percent
what is the main advantage to using agar slants in test tubes
best for maintaining pure cultures
whats the purpose of agar deep tubes
used for the study of gaseous requirements of microorganisms
what is the purpose of agar plates
large surface areas for the isolation and study of microorganisms
what is sterilization
process of rendering a medium or material free of all forms of life
what is the main function of aseptic technique
maintaining sterile where necessary and avoid external contamination
where can you use broth mediums
only in test tubes, never in petri dishes
what is a way to maintain aseptic technique in mediums
plastic lids in petri plates, metal or plastic caps in test tubes (historically cotton plugs)
how must petri dishes be incubated and why
incubated inverted (larger cap down) to prevent condensation from dripping
what is subculturing
microorganisms being transferred from one vessel to another
what are wire loops made of
inert metals such as nichrome or platinum
what is the function of an incubator
maintains a temperature for the microorganisms that is optimal for their growth
what is the function of a fridge
will slow or stop the growth of most microorganisms to be able to use for example as stock cultures
how do you transfer microorganisms from a tube to a petri plate
flame loop, remove cap, flame neck of tube, collect sample, flame neck of tube, cap, open petri plate, spread sample, lid petri plate, flame loop
what is one of the best ways to get a pure culture from a mixed culture
streak plate
what is a colony
individual macroscopically visible masses of microbial growth on solid medium representing replication of single microorganism
what is a streak plate
essentially a dilution series on solid media
what is colony morphology
visible collection of microorganism cells growing on the surface of solidified media
for agar slants what are the terms for abundance of growth
none, slight, moderate, large
for agar slants what are the terms for optical characteristics
opaque, translucent, transparent
for agar slants what are the form types
filiform, echinulate, beaded, effuse, arborescent, rhizoid
what is filiform growth
continuous threadlike growth with smooth edges
what is echinulate growth
continuous threadlike growth with irregular edges
what is beaded growth
nonconfluent to semiconfluent colonies
what is effuse growth
thin spreading growth
what is arborescent growth
treelike growth
what is rhizoid growth
root like growth
what are the consistencies for agar slants
dry, buttery, mucoid
for agar plates what are the form types
circular, irregular, rhizoid
what are the margin types for agar plates
entire, lobate, undulate, serrate, filamentous
what is entire for agar plates
sharply defined and even