Terrible Luck This Week:

This week’s lab began with collecting our irradiated 26 strains from the incubator. Each strain had a zero, three, six, and sixteen kGy exposed sample. We collected data on the color variation, if the plate was contaminated, and scored the growth of the plates. The colors of the plates were consistent with the colors for our three genera. The color and colony shape varied as the radiation exposure increased. There was contamination on three of our 0 kGy plates and four of our 3 kGy plates. A majority of the 26 strains had plus four growth at 3 kGy, only about half survived the 6 kGy radiation, and we observed no growth at 16 kGy.

Growth after exposure to 0 kGy:

Growth after exposure to 3 kGy:

Growth after exposure to 6 kGy:

Growth after exposure to 16 kGy:

Our next task involved collected our 26 strains plated on their optimal media containing starch. We were trying to determine if any of strains were capable of amylase production, the enzyme needed to breakdown starch. Upon application of ~ 1 ml of iodine solution, there was a visual indication, “Cleared zone of hydrolysis”, where the agar would appear to be lighter where the starch had been broken down. It was shown that a majority of our strains were capable of amylase production with few that were weak or no production of amylase.

Strain 30: Amylase Positive Result:

Strain 45 Amylase Negative Result:

The next we accomplished was collecting our suspected Blastococcus/ Geodermatophilus/ Modestobacter strains taken from our Little Red Hill irradiated and non-irradiated plates of Little Red Hill. Our group noted the color, if the plate was contaminated and scored the growth. The colors observed were in-line with the noted colors of our genera. Growth varied between our plates, with a few believed to be Streptomyces, and a few of our plates were contaminated. We selected twelve of the suspects and extracted their DNA via the MOBIO kit method.
Unfortunately I fell ill and was unable to attend the second class of the week. I believe that the class took the midterm and probably ran the DNA through a gel.

Microbiology Joke of the Week from http://jupiterscientific.org/sciinfo/jokes/biologyjokes.html
The following is a true story about an anatomist. One day after sleeping badly, an anatomist went to his frog laboratory and removed from a cage one frog with white spots on its back. He placed it on a table and drew a line just in front of the frog. "Jump frog, jump!" he shouted. The little critter jumped two feet forward. In his lab book, the anatomist scribbled, "Frog with four legs jumps two feet." Then, he surgically removed one leg of the frog and repeated the experiment. "Jump, jump!" To which, the frog leaped forward 1.5 feet. He wrote down, "Frog with three legs jumps 1.5 feet." Next, he removed a second leg. "Jump frog, jump!" The frog managed to jump a foot. He scribbled in his lab book, "Frog with two legs jumps one foot." Not stopping there, the anatomist removed yet another leg. "Jump, jump!" The poor frog somehow managed to move 0.5 feet forward. The scientist wrote, "Frog with one leg jumps 0.5 feet." Finally, he eliminated the last leg. "Jump, jump!" he shouted, encouraging forward progress for the frog. But despite all its efforts, the frog could not budge. "Jump frog, jump!" he cried again. It was no use; the frog would not response. The anatomist thought for a while and then wrote in his lab book, "Frog with no legs goes deaf."