Media for cultivation of bacteria. Type and mechanism of bacteria nutrition.
Types of bacterial respiration. The methods of
creation of anaerobic conditions. Growth and
multiplication of bacteria.
Metabolism refers to all
the biochemical reactions that occur in a cell or organism. The study of
bacterial metabolism focuses on the chemical diversity of substrate oxidations
and dissimilation reactions (reactions by which substrate molecules are broken
down), which normally function in bacteria to generate energy. Also within the
scope of bacterial metabolism is the study of the uptake and utilization of the
inorganic or organic compounds required for growth and maintenance of a
cellular steady state (assimilation reactions). These respective exergonic
(energy-yielding) and endergonic (energy-requiring) reactions are catalyzed
within the living bacterial cell by integrated enzyme systems, the end result
being self-replication of the cell. The capability of microbial cells to live,
function, and replicate in an appropriate chemical milieu (such as a bacterial
culture medium) and the chemical changes that result during this transformation
constitute the scope of bacterial metabolism.
The bacterial cell is a highly specialized energy transformer. Chemical
energy generated by substrate oxidations is conserved by formation of
high-energy compounds such as adenosine diphosphate (ADP) and adenosine
triphosphate (ATP) or compounds containing the thioester bond
O
║
(R –C ~ S – R), such as
acetyl ~ S-coenzyme A
(acetyl ~
SCoA) or succinyl ~ SCoA. ADP and ATP
represent adenosine monophosphate (AMP) plus one and two high-energy phosphates
(AMP ~ P and AMP ~ P~ P, respectively); the energy is stored in these compounds
as high-energy phosphate bonds. In the presence of proper enzyme systems, these
compounds can be used as energy sources to synthesize the new complex organic
compounds needed by the cell. All living cells must maintain steady-state
biochemical reactions for the formation and use of such high-energy compounds.
From a nutritional, or metabolic, viewpoint, three major physiologic types
of bacteria exist: the heterotrophs (or chemoorganotrophs), the autotrophs (or
chemolithotrophs), and the photosynthetic bacteria (or phototrophs) (Table 1).
These are discussed below.
Heterotrophic Metabolism
Heterotrophic bacteria, which
include all pathogens, obtain energy from oxidation of organic compounds.
Carbohydrates (particularly glucose), lipids, and protein are the most commonly
oxidized compounds. Biologic oxidation of these organic compounds by bacteria
results in synthesis of ATP as the chemical energy source. This process also
permits generation of simpler organic compounds (precursor molecules) needed by
the bacteria cell for biosynthetic or assimilatory reactions.
Table 1. Nutritional
Diversity Exhibited Physiologycally Different Bacteria
Required Components for Bacterial Growth |
||||
Physiologic Type |
Carbon Source |
Nitrogen Sourcea Sourceb |
Energy Source |
Hydrogen Source |
Heterotrophic
(chemoorganotrophic) |
Organic |
Organic or inorganic |
Oxidation of organic
compounds |
– |
Autotrophic achemolithotrophic) |
CO2 |
Inorganic |
Oxidation of inorganic
compounds |
– |
Photosynthetic Photolithotrophicb
(Bacteria) |
CO2 |
Inorganic |
Sunlight |
H2S or
H2 |
Cyanobacteria |
CO2 |
Inorganic |
Sunlight |
Photolysis of H2Oc |
Photoorganotrophic
(Bacteria) |
CO2 |
Inorganic |
Sunlight |
Organic compoundsd |
a Common
inorganic nitrogen sources are NO3- or
NH4+ ions; nitrogen fixers can use N2;
b Many prototrophs and chemotrophs are nitrogen-fixing organisms;
c Results in O2 evolution (or oxygenic photosynthesis) as
commonly occurs in plants;
d Organic
acids such as formate, acetate, and succinate can serve as hydrigen donors.
The Krebs cycle intermediate compounds serve as precursor molecules
(building blocks) for the energy-requiring biosynthesis of complex organic
compounds in bacteria. Degradation reactions that simultaneously produce energy
and generate precursor molecules for the biosynthesis of new cellular
constituents are called amphibolic.
All heterotrophic bacteria require preformed organic compounds. These
carbon- and nitrogen-containing compounds are growth substrates, which are used
aerobically or anaerobically to generate reducing equivalents (e.g., reduced
nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide; NADH + H+); these reducing
equivalents in turn are chemical energy sources for all biologic oxidative and
fermentative systems. Heterotrophs are the most commonly studied bacteria; they
grow readily in media containing carbohydrates, proteins, or other complex
nutrients such as blood. Also, growth media may be enriched by the addition of
other naturally occurring compounds such as milk (to study lactic acid
bacteria) or hydrocarbons (to study hydrocarbon-oxidizing organisms).
Respiration
Glucose is the most common substrate used for studying heterotrophic
metabolism. Most aerobic organisms oxidize glucose completely by the following
reaction equation:
C6 H12O6 + 6O2 ® 6CO2 + 6H2O + energy
This equation expresses the cellular oxidation process called respiration. Respiration
occurs within the cells of plants and animals, normally generating 38 ATP
molecules (as energy) from the oxidation of 1 molecule of glucose. This yields
approximately 380,000 calories (cal) per mode of glucose (ATP ~ 10,000
cal/mole). Thermodynamically, the complete oxidation of one mole of glucose
should yield approximately 688,000 cal; the energy that is not conserved
biologically as chemical energy (or ATP formation) is liberated as heat
(308,000 cal). Thus, the cellular respiratory process is at best about 55%
efficient.
Glucose oxidation is the most commonly studied dissimilatory reaction
leading to energy production or ATP synthesis. The complete oxidation of
glucose may involve three fundamental biochemical pathways. The first is the
glycolytic or Embden- Meyerhof-Parnas pathway, the second is the Krebs cycle
(also called the citric acid cycle or tricarboxylic acid cycle), and the third
is the series of membrane-bound electron transport oxidations coupled to
oxidative phosphorylation.
Respiration takes place when any organic compound (usually carbohydrate) is
oxidized completely to CO2 and H2O. In aerobic
respiration, molecular O2 serves as the terminal acceptor of
electrons. For anaerobic respiration, NO3-, SO42-,
CO2, or fumarate can serve as terminal electron acceptors (rather
than 02), depending on the bacterium studied. The end result of the
respiratory process is the complete oxidation of the organic substrate
molecule, and the end products formed are primarily CO2 and H2O.
Ammonia is formed also if protein (or amino acid) is the substrate oxidized.
Metabolically, bacteria are unlike cyanobacteria (blue-green algae) and
eukaryotes in that glucose oxidation may occur by more than one pathway. In bacteria,
glycolysis represents one of several pathways by which bacteria can
catabolically attack glucose. The glycolytic pathway is most commonly
associated with anaerobic or fermentative metabolism in bacteria and yeasts. In
bacteria, other minor heterofermentative pathways, such as the phosphoketolase
pathway, also exist.
Fermentation
Fermentation, another example of heterotrophic metabolism, requires an
organic compound as a terminal electron (or hydrogen) acceptor. In
fermentations, simple organic end products are formed from the anaerobic
dissimilation of glucose (or some other compound). Energy (ATP) is generated
through the dehydrogenation reactions that occur as glucose is broken down
enzymatically. The simple organic end products formed from this incomplete
biologic oxidation process also serve as final electron and hydrogen acceptors.
On reduction, these organic end products are secreted into the medium as waste
metabolites (usually alcohol or acid). The organic substrate compounds are
incompletely oxidized by bacteria, yet yield sufficient energy for microbial
growth. Glucose is the most common hexose used to study fermentation reactions.
For most microbial fermentations, glucose dissimilation occurs through the
glycolytic pathway. The simple organic compound most commonly generated is
pyruvate, or a compound derived enzymatically from pyruvate, such as
acetaldehyde, a-acetolactate, acetyl ~ SCoA, or lactyl ~ SCoA. Acetaldehyde can
then be reduced by NADH + H+ to ethanol, which is excreted by the cell. The end
product of lactic acid fermentation, which occurs in streptococci (e.g., Streptococcus lactis) and many
lactobacilli (e.g., Lactobacillus casei,
L pentosus), is a single organic acid, lactic acid. Organisms that ferment
glucose to multiple end products, such as acetic acid, ethanol, formic acid,
and CO2, are referred to as heterofermenters. Examples of
heterofermentative bacteria include Lactobacillus,
Leuconostoc, and Microbacterium
species. Heterofermentative fermentations are more common among bacteria, as in
the mixed-acid fermentations carried out by bacteria of the family
Enterobacteriaceae (e.g., Escherichia
coli, Salmonella, Shigella, and Proteus
species). Many of these glucose fermenters usually produce CO2 and H2
with different combinations of acid end products (formate, acetate, lactate,
and succinate). Many obligately
anaerobic clostridia (e.g., Clostridium
saccharobutyricum, C. thermosaccha-rolyticum) and Butyribacterium species ferment glucose with the production of
butyrate, acetate, CO2, and H2, whereas other Clostridum species (C. acetobutylicum and C.
butyricum) also form these fermentation end products plus others (butanol,
acetone, isopropanol, formate, and ethanol).
Electron Transport and
Oxidative Phosphorylation
The final stage of respiration occurs through a series of
oxidation-reduction electron transfer reactions that yield the energy to drive
oxidative phosphorylation; this in turn produces ATP. The enzymes involved in
electron transport and oxidative phosphorylation reside on the bacterial inner
(cytoplasmic) membrane. This membrane is invaginated to form structures called
respiratory vesicles, lamellar vesicles, or mesosomes, which function as the
bacterial equivalent of the eukaryotic mitochondrial membrane.
Respiratory electron transport chains vary greatly among bacteria, and in
some organisms are absent. The respiratory electron transport chain of
eukaryotic mitochondria oxidizes NADH + H+, NADPH + H+, and succinate (as well
as the coacylated fatty acids such as acetyl~SCoA). The bacterial electron
transport chain also oxidizes these compounds, but it can also directly
oxidize, via non-pyridine nucleotide-dependent pathways, a larger variety of
reduced substrates such as lactate, malate, formate, a-glycerophosphate, H2,
and glutamate. The respiratory electron carriers in bacterial electron
transport systems are more varied than in eukaryotes, and the chain is usually
branched at the site(s) reacting with molecular O2. Some electron
carriers, such as nonheme iron centers and ubiquinone (coenzyme Q), are common
to both the bacterial and mammalian respiratory electron transport chains. In
some bacteria, the naphthoquinones or vitamin K may be found with ubiquinone.
In still other bacteria, vitamin K serves in the absence of ubiquinone. In
mitochondrial respiration, only one cytochrome oxidase component is found
(cytochrome a + a3 oxidase). In bacteria there are multiple cytochrome oxidases,
including cytochromes a, d, o, and
occasionally a + a3 .
In bacteria cytochrome oxidases usually occur as combinations of a1: d: o and a + a3: o. Bacteria also possess mixed-function
oxidases such as cytochromes P-450 and P-420 and cytochromes c' and c'c', which also react with carbon monoxide. These diverse types of
oxygen-reactive cytochromes undoubtedly have evolutionary significance.
Bacteria were present before O2 was formed; when O2
became available as a metabolite, bacteria evolved to use it in different ways;
this probably accounts for the diversity in bacterial oxygen-reactive
hemoproteins.
Cytochrome oxidases in many pathogenic bacteria are studied by the
bacterial oxidase reaction, which subdivides Gram-negative organisms into two
major groups, oxidase positive and oxidase negative. This oxidase reaction is
assayed for by using N,N,N', N'-tetramethyl-p-phenylenediamine
oxidation (to Wurster's blue) or by using indophenol blue synthesis (with
dimethyl-p-phenylenediamine and
a-naphthol). Oxidase-positive bacteria contain integrated (cytochrome c type:oxidase) complexes, the oxidase
component most frequently encountered is cytochrome o, and occasionally a + a3.
The cytochrome oxidase responsible for the indophenol oxidase reaction complex
was isolated from membranes of Azotobacter
vinelandii, a bacterium with the highest respiratory rate of any known
cell. The cytochrome oxidase was found to be an integrated cytochrome c4:o complex, which was shown to be
present in Bacillus species. These Bacillus strains are also highly oxidase
positive, and most are found in morphologic group II.
Autotrophy
Bacteria that grow solely at the expense of inorganic compounds (mineral
ions), without using sunlight as an energy source, are called autotrophs,
chemotrophs, chemoautotrophs, or chemolithotrophs. Like photosynthetic
organisms, all autotrophs use CO2 as a carbon source for growth;
their nitrogen comes from inorganic compounds such as NH3, NO3-,
or N2 (Table 4-1). Interestingly, the energy source for such organisms
is the oxidation of specific inorganic compounds. Which inorganic compound is
oxidized depends on the bacteria in question. Many autotrophs will not grow on
media that contain organic matter, even agar.
Also found among the autotrophic microorganisms are the sulfur-oxidizing or
sulfur-compound-oxidizing bacteria, which seldom exhibit a strictly autotrophic
mode of metabolism like the obligate nitrifying bacteria (see discussion of
nitrogen cycle below). The representative sulfur compounds oxidized by such
bacteria are H2S, S2, and S2O3.
Among the sulfur bacteria are two very interesting organisms; Thiobacillus ferrooxidans, which gets its energy for autotrophic growth by
oxidizing elemental sulfur or ferrous iron, and T denitrificans, which gets its energy by oxidizing S2O3
anaerobically, using NO3- as the sole terminal electron
acceptor. T denitrificans reduces NO3 to molecular N2,
which is liberated as a gas; this biologic process is called denitrification.
All autotrophic bacteria must assimilate CO2, which is reduced
to glucose from which organic cellular matter is synthesized. The energy for
this biosynthetic process is derived from the oxidation of inorganic compounds
discussed in the previous paragraph. Note that all autotrophic and phototrophic
bacteria possess essentially the same organic cellular constituents found in
heterotrophic bacteria; from a nutritional viewpoint, however, the autotrophic
mode of metabolism is unique, occurring only in bacteria.
Anerobic Respiration
Some bacteria exhibit a unique mode of respiration called anaerobic
respiration. These heterotrophic bacteria that will not grow anaerobically
unless a specific chemical component, which serves as a terminal electron
acceptor, is added to the medium. Among these electron acceptors are NO3,
SO42, the organic compound fumarate, and CO2.
Bacteria requiring one of these compounds for anaerobic growth are said to be
anaerobic respirers.
A large group of anaerobic respirers are the nitrate reducers. The nitrate reducers
are predominantly heterotrophic bacteria that possess a complex electron
transport system(s) allowing the NO3 ion to serve anaerobically as a terminal
acceptor of electrons (NO3 2e- NO2; NO3
5e- N2; or NO3 8e- NH3). The
nitrate reductase activity is common in bacteria and is routinely used in the
simple nitrate reductase test to identify bacteria (see Bergey's Manual of Deterininative Bacteriology, 8th ed.).
The methanogens are among the most anaerobic bacteria known, being very sensitive
to small concentrations of molecular O2. They are also
archaebacteria, which typically live in unusual and deleterious environments.
All of the above anaerobic respirers obtain chemical energy for growth by
using these anaerobic energy-yielding oxidation reactions.
The Nitrogen Cycle
Nowhere can the total metabolic potential of bacteria and their diverse
chemical-transforming capabilities be more fully appreciated than in the
geochemical cycling of the element nitrogen. All the basic chemical elements
(S, O, P, C, and H) required to sustain living organisms have geochemical
cycles similar to the nitrogen cycle.
The nitrogen cycle is an ideal demonstration of the ecologic
interdependence of bacteria, plants, and animals. Nitrogen is recycled when
organisms use one form of nitrogen for growth and excrete another nitrogenous
compound as a waste product. This waste product is in turn utilized by another
type of organism as a growth or energy substrate.
The other important biologic processes in the nitrogen cycle include
nitrification (the conversion of NH3 to NO3 by
autotrophes in the soil; denitrification (the anaerobic conversion of NO3
to N2 gas) carried out by many heterotrophs); and nitrogen fixation
(N2 to NH3, and cell protein). The latter is a very
specialized prokaryotic process called diazotrophy, carried out by both
free-living bacteria (such as Azotobacter,
Derxia, Beijeringeia, and Azomona
species) and symbionts (such as Rhizobium
species) in conjunction with legume plants (such as soybeans, peas, clover,
and bluebonnets). All plant life relies heavily on NO3- as a nitrogen source,
and most animal life relies on plant life for nutrients.
Nutrition and Growth of
Bacteria
Every organism must find in its environment all of the substances required
for energy generation and cellular biosynthesis. The chemicals and elements of
this environment that are utilized for bacterial growth are referred to as nutrients or nutritional requirements. In the laboratory, bacteria are grown in culture media which are designed to
provide all the essential nutrients in solution for bacterial growth.
At an elementary level, the nutritional requirements of a bacterium such as
E. coli are revealed by the cell's
elemental composition, which consists of C, H, O, N, S. P, K, Mg, Fe, Ca, Mn,
and traces of Zn, Co, Cu, and Mo. These elements are found in the form of
water, inorganic ions, small molecules, and macromolecules which serve either a
structural or functional role in the cells. The general physiological functions
of the elements are outlined in the Table 2.
Table
2. Major elements, their sources and functions in bacterial cells.
Element |
% of dry weight |
Source |
Function |
Carbon |
50 |
Organic compounds or CO2 |
Main constituent of cellular
material |
Oxygen |
20 |
H2O, organic
compounds, CO2, and O2 |
Constituent of cell material
and cell water; O2 is electron acceptor in aerobic respiration |
Nitrogen |
14 |
NH3, NO3,
organic compounds, N2 |
Constituent of amino acids,
nucleic acids nucleotides, and coenzymes |
Hydrogen |
8 |
H2O, organic
compounds, H2 |
Main constituent of organic
compounds and cell water |
Phosphorus |
3 |
inorganic phosphates (PO4) |
Constituent of nucleic acids,
nucleotides, phospholipids, LPS, teichoic acids |
Sulfur |
1 |
SO4, H2S,
SO, organic sulfur compounds |
Constituent of cysteine,
methionine, glutathione, several coenzymes |
Potassium |
1 |
Potassium salts |
Main cellular inorganic cation
and cofactor for certain enzymes |
Magnesium |
0.5 |
Magnesium salts |
Inorganic cellular cation,
cofactor for certain enzymatic reactions |
Calcium |
0.5 |
Calcium salts |
Inorganic cellular cation, cofactor
for certain enzymes and a component of endospores |
Iron |
0.2 |
Iron salts |
Component of cytochromes and
certain nonheme iron-proteins and a cofactor for some enzymatic reactions |
The above table ignores the occurrence of trace elements in bacterial
nutrition. Trace elements are metal
ions required by certain cells in such small amounts that it is difficult to
detect (measure) them, and it is not necessary to add them to culture media as
nutrients. Trace elements are required in such small amounts that they are
present as "contaminants" of the water or other media components. As
metal ions, the trace elements usually act as cofactors for essential enzymatic
reactions in the cell. One organism's trace element may be another's required
element and vice-versa, but the usual cations that qualify as trace elements in
bacterial nutrition are Mn, Co, Zn, Cu, and Mo.
In order to grow in nature or in the laboratory, a bacterium must have an energy
source, a source of carbon and other required nutrients, and a permissive range
of physical conditions such as O2 concentration, temperature, and
pH. Sometimes bacteria are referred to as individuals or groups based on their
patterns of growth under various chemical (nutritional) or physical conditions.
For example, phototrophs are organisms that use light as an energy source;
anaerobes are organisms that grow without oxygen; thermophiles are organisms that
grow at high temperatures.
Carbon and Energy Sources for
Bacterial Growth
All living organisms require a source of energy. Organisms that use radiant
energy (light) are called phototrophs.
Organisms that use (oxidize) an organic form of carbon are called heterotrophs or chemo(hetero)trophs. Organisms that oxidize inorganic compounds are
called lithotrophs.
The carbon requirements of organisms must be met by organic carbon (a
chemical compound with a carbon-hydrogen bond) or by CO2. Organisms
that use organic carbon are heterotrophs
and organisms that use CO2 as a sole source of carbon for growth are
called autotrophs.
Thus, on the basis of carbon
and energy sources for growth four major nutritional types of procaryotes may
be defined (Table 3).
Table
3. Major nutritional types of procaryotes
Nutritional Type |
Energy Source |
Carbon Source |
Examples |
Photoautotrophs |
Light |
CO2 |
Cyanobacteria, some Purple
and Green Bacteria |
Photoheterotrophs |
Light |
Organic
compounds |
Some Purple and Green
Bacteria |
Chemoautotrophs or
Lithotrophs (Lithoautotrophs) |
Inorganic compounds, e.g. H2, NH3, NO 2,
H 2S |
CO2 |
A few Bacteria and many
Archaea |
Chemoheterotrophs or
Heterotrophs |
Organic compounds |
Organic
compounds |
Most Bacteria, some Archaea |
Almost all eukaryotes are
either photoautotrophic (e.g. plants and algae) or heterotrophic (e.g. animals,
protozoa, fungi). Lithotrophy is unique to procaryotes and photoheterotrophy,
common in the purple and green Bacteria, occurs only in a very few eukaryotic
algae. Phototrophy has not been found in the Archaea.
This simplified scheme for use of carbon, either organic carbon or CO2,
ignores the possibility that an organism, whether it is an autotroph or a
heterotroph, may require small amounts of certain organic compounds for growth
because they are essential substances that the organism is unable to synthesize
from available nutrients. Such compounds are called growth factors.
Growth factors are required
in small amounts by cells because they fulfill specific roles in biosynthesis.
The need for a growth factor results from either a blocked or missing metabolic
pathway in the cells. Growth factors are organized into three categories:
1. Purines and pyrimidines:
required for synthesis of nucleic acids (DNA and RNA);
2. Amino acids: required for the
synthesis of proteins;
3. Vitamins: needed as coenzymes
and functional groups of certain enzymes.
Some bacteria (e.g E. coli) do
not require any growth factors: they can synthesize all essential purines,
pyrimidines, amino acids and vitamins, starting with their carbon source, as
part of their own intermediary metabolism. Certain other bacteria (e.g. Lactobacillus) require purines,
pyrimidines, vitamins and several amino acids in order to grow. These compounds
must be added in advance to culture media that are used to grow these bacteria.
The growth factors are not metabolized directly as sources of carbon or energy,
rather they are assimilated by cells to fulfill their specific role in
metabolism. Mutant strains of bacteria that require some growth factor not
needed by the wild type (parent) strain are referred to as auxotrophs. Thus, a strain of E.
coli that requires the amino acid tryptophan in order to grow would be
called a tryptophan auxotroph and would be designated E. coli trp-.
Some vitamins that are frequently required by certain bacteria as growth
factors are listed in Table 4. The function(s) of these vitamins in essential
enzymatic reactions gives a clue why, if the cell cannot make the vitamin, it
must be provided exogenously in order for growth to occur.
Table
4. Common vitamins required in the nutrition of certain procaryotes
Vitamin |
Coenzyme form |
Function |
p-Aminobenzoic acid (PABA) |
|
Precursor for the biosynthesis of folic acid |
Folic acid |
Tetrahydrofolate |
Transfer of one-carbon units
and required for synthesis of thymine, purine bases, serine, methionine and
pantothenate |
Biotin |
Biotin |
Biosynthetic reactions that require
CO2 fixation |
Lipoic acid |
Lipoamide |
Transfer of acyl groups in
oxidation of keto acids |
Mercaptoethane-sulfonic acid |
Coenzyme M |
CH4 production by
methanogens |
Nicotinic acid |
NAD (nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide) and NADP |
Electron carrier in
dehydrogenation reactions |
Pantothenic acid |
Coenzyme A and the Acyl Carrier Protein (ACP) |
Oxidation of keto acids and
acyl group carriers in metabolism |
Pyridoxine (B6) |
Pyridoxal phosphate |
Transamination, deamination,
decarboxylation and racemation of amino acids |
Riboflavin (B2) |
FMN (flavin mononucleotide) and FAD (flavin adenine dinucleotide) |
Oxidoreduction reactions |
Thiamine (B1) |
Thiamine pyrophosphate (TPP) |
Decarboxylation of keto acids
and transaminase reactions |
Vitamin B12 |
Cobalamine coupled to adenine nucleoside |
Transfer of methyl groups |
Vitamin K |
Quinones and napthoquinones |
Electron transport processes |
Culture Media for the Growth
of Bacteria
For any bacterium to be propagated for any purpose it is necessary to
provide the appropriate biochemical and biophysical environment. The
biochemical (nutritional) environment is made available as a culture medium, and depending upon the
special needs of particular bacteria (as well as particular investigators) a
large variety and types of culture media have been developed with different
purposes and uses. Culture media are employed in the isolation and maintenance
of pure cultures of bacteria and are also used for identification of bacteria
according to their biochemical and physiological properties. Nutrient media
should be easily assimilable, and they should contain a known amount of
nitrogen and carbohydrate substances, vitamins, a required salt concentration.
In addition they should be isotonic, and sterile, and they should have buffer
properties, an optimal viscosity, and a certain oxidation-reduction potential.
The manner in which bacteria are cultivated, and the purpose of culture
media, vary widely. Liquid media are
used for growth of pure batch cultures while solidified media are used widely
for the isolation of pure cultures, for estimating viable bacterial
populations, and a variety of other purposes. The usual gelling agent for solid
or semisolid medium is agar, a hydrocolloid derived from red
algae. Agar is used because of its unique physical properties (it melts at 100
degrees and remains liquid until cooled to 40 degrees, the temperature at which
it gels) and because it cannot be metabolized by most bacteria. Hence as a
medium component it is relatively inert; it simply holds (gels) nutrients that
are in aquaeous solution.
Culture media may be classified into several categories depending on their
composition or use. A chemically-defined
(synthetic) medium is one in which the exact chemical composition is known.
Defined media are usually composed of pure biochemicals off the shelf;
complex media usually contain complex materials of biological origin such as
blood or milk or yeast extract or beef extract, the exact chemical composition
of which is obviously undetermined. A defined medium is a minimal medium if it provides only the exact nutrients (including
any growth factors) needed by the organism for growth. The use of defined
minimal media requires the investigator to know the exact nutritional
requirements of the organisms in question. Chemically-defined media are of
value in studying the minimal nutritional requirements of microorganisms, for
enrichment cultures, and for a wide variety of physiological studies. Complex
media usually provide the full range of growth factors that may be required by
an organism so they may be more handily used to cultivate unknown bacteria or
bacteria whose nutritional requirement are complex (i.e., organisms that
require a lot of growth factors).
Most pathogenic bacteria of animals, which have adapted themselves to
growth in animal tissues, require complex media for their growth. Blood, serum and
tissue extracts are frequently added to culture media for the cultivation of
pathogens. Even so, for a few fastidious pathogens such as Treponema pallidum, the agent of syphilis, and Mycobacterium leprae, the cause of leprosy, artificial culture
media and conditions have not been established. This fact thwarts the the
ability to do basic research on these pathogens and the diseases that they
cause.
Other concepts employed in the construction of culture media are the
principles of selection and enrichment. A selective
medium is one which has a component(s) added to it which will inhibit or
prevent the growth of certain types or species of bacteria and/or promote the
growth of desired species. One can also adjust the physical conditions of a
culture medium, such as pH and temperature, to render it selective for
organisms that are able to grow under these certain conditions.
A culture medium may also be a differential
medium if allows the investigator to distinguish between different types of
bacteria based on some observable trait in their pattern of growth on the
medium. Thus a selective, differential
medium for the isolation of Staphylococcus
aureus, the most common bacterial pathogen of humans, contains a very high
concentration of salt (which the staph will tolerate) that inhibits most other
bacteria, mannitol as a source of fermentable sugar, and a pH indicator dye.
From clinical specimens, only staphylococcus will grow. S. aureus is differentiated from S. epidermidis (a nonpathogenic component of the normal flora) on
the basis of its ability to ferment mannitol. Mannitol-fermenting colonies (S. aureus) produce acid which reacts
with the indicator dye forming a colored halo around the colonies; mannitol
non-fermenters (S. epidermidis) use
other non-fermentative substrates in the medium for growth and do not form a
halo around their colonies.
An enrichment medium employs a slightly different twist. An enrichment medium contains some component
that permits the growth of specific types or species of bacteria, usually
because they alone can utilize the component from their environment. However,
an enrichment medium may have selective features. An enrichment medium for
nonsymbiotic nitrogen-fixing bacteria omits a source of added nitrogen to the
medium. The medium is inoculated with a potential source of these bacteria
(e.g. a soil sample) and incubated in the atmosphere wherein the only source of
nitrogen available is N2. A selective enrichment medium for growth
of the extreme halophile (Halococcus)
contains nearly 25 percent salt [NaCl], which is required by the extreme
halophile and which inhibits the growth of all other procaryotes.
Thus, nutrient media can be subdivided into three
main groups:
I. Ordinary (simple) media which include meat-peptone broth, meat-peptone agar, etc.
II. Special media (serum agar, serum broth, coagulated serum, potatoes, blood agar,
blood broth, etc.).
Quite often elective
media are employed in laboratory practice in which only certain species of
bacteria grow well, and other species either grow poorly or do not grow at all.
Enriched media are also employed in which the species of interest to the
scientist grows more intensively and more rapidly than the accompanying
bacteria. Thus, for example, on Endo's medium (elective) the growth of the
Gram-positive microbes is inhibited while alkaline peptone water and alkaline
meat-peptone agar serve as enriched media for the cholera vibrio. Nutrient
media containing certain concentrations of penicillin are elective for
penicillin-resistant strains of bacteria, but unfavourable for
penicillin-sensitive strains.
III. Differential diagnostic media: (1) media for the determination of the
proteolytic action of microbes (meat-peptone gelatine); (2) media for the
determination of the fermentation of carbohydrates (Hiss media); media for the
differentiation of bacteria which do and do not ferment lactose (Ploskirev,
Drigalsky, Endo. etc.); (3) media for the determination of haemolytic activity
(blood agar); (4) media for the determination of the reductive activity of
micro-organisms; (5) media containing substances assimilated only by certain
microbes.
Besides, in
laboratory practice conservation media are used. They are used for primary
seeding and transportation of the material under test. They prevent the death
of pathogenic microbes and enhance the inhibition of saprophytes. This group
of media includes a glycerin mixture composed of two parts 0.85 per cent salt
solution, 1 part glycerin, and I part 15-20 per cent acid sodium phosphate, and
also a glycerin preservative with lithium salts, a hypertonic salt solution,
etc.
At present
many nutrient media are prepared commercially as dry powders. They are
convenient to work with, are stable, and quite effective.
Non-protein media are widely used for the cultivation of bacteria, on which
many heterotrophic microbes including pathogenic species grow well. The
composition of these media is complex and includes a large number of
components.
When
cultivating in synthetic media, the use of the method of radioactive tracers
has permitted a more detailed differentiation of microbes according to the
character of their biosynthesis.
Selective
media are widely used for differentiating
prototrophic and ULixotrophic bacteria. Prototrophs grow on a minimum medium
which contains only salts and carbohydrates since they themselves are capable
til' synthesizing the metaholites necessary for their development. Auxo-Irophs.
in distinction, require definite media containing amino acids, vitamins, and
other substances.
In consistency nutrient media may be solid (meat-peptone agar, meat-peptone
gelatine, coagulated serum, potato, coagulated white of Ihc egg), semisolid
(0.5 per cent meat-peptone agar), and liquid (peptone water, meat-peptone
broth, sugar broth, etc.).
Physical and Environmental
Requirements for Microbial Growth
The procaryotes exist in nature under an enormous range of physical
conditions such as O2 concentration, Hydrogen ion concentration (pH)
and temperature. The exclusion limits of life on the planet, with regard to
environmental parameters, are always set by some microorganism, most often a
procaryote, and frequently an Archaeon. Applied to all microorganisms is a
vocabulary of terms used to describe their growth (ability to grow) within a
range of physical conditions. A thermophile grows at high temperatures, an
acidophile grows at low pH, an osmophile grows at high solute concentration,
and so on. This nomenclature will be employed in this section to describe the
response of the procaryotes to a variety of physical conditions.
The Effect of Oxygen. Oxygen is a universal component of cells and is always provided in large
amounts by H2O. However, procaryotes display a wide range of
responses to molecular oxygen O2 (Table 6).
Table 6. Terms used to describe O2
Relations of Microorganisms
Group |
Environment |
O2 Effect |
|
Aerobic |
Anaerobic |
|
|
Obligate Aerobe |
Growth |
No growth |
Required (utilized for
aerobic respiration) |
Microaerophile |
Growth if level not too high |
No growth |
Required but at levels below
0.2 atm |
Obligate Anaerobe |
No growth |
Growth Toxic |
|
Facultative Anaerobe
(Facultative Aerobe) |
Growth |
Growth |
Not required for growth but utilized when
available |
Aerotolerant Anaerobe |
Growth |
Growth |
Not required and not utilized |
Obligate aerobes require O2 for growth; they use O2 as a final
electron acceptor in aerobic respiration.
Obligate anaerobes (occasionally called aerophobes)
do not need or use O2 as a nutrient. In fact, O2 is a
toxic substance, which either kills or inhibits their growth. Obligate
anaerobic procaryotes may live by fermentation, anaerobic respiration, bacterial
photosynthesis, or the novel process of methanogenesis.
Facultative anaerobes (or facultative aerobes) are
organisms that can switch between aerobic and anaerobic types of metabolism.
Under anaerobic conditions (no O2) they grow by fermentation or
anaerobic respiration, but in the presence of O2 they switch to
aerobic respiration.
Aerotolerant anaerobes are bacteria with an exclusively anaerobic (fermentative) type of
metabolism but they are insensitive to the presence of O2. They live
by fermentation alone whether or not O2 is present in their
environment.
The response of an organism to O2 in its environment depends
upon the occurrence and distribution of various enzymes which react with O2
and various oxygen radicals that are invariably generated by cells in the
presence of O2. All cells contain enzymes capable of reacting with O2.
For example, oxidations of flavoproteins by O2 invariably result in
the formation of H202 (peroxide) as one major product and
small quantities of an even more toxic free radical, superoxide or O2.
Also, chlorophyll and other pigments in cells can react with O2 in
the presence of light and generate singlet oxygen, another radical form of
oxygen which is a potent oxidizing agent in biological systems.
In aerobes and aerotolerant anaerobes the potential for lethal accumulation
of superoxide is prevented by the enzyme superoxide dismutase (Table 7).
Table 7. Distribution of
superoxide dismutase, catalase and peroxidase in procaryotes
with different O2
tolerances
Group |
Superoxide dismutase |
Catalase |
Peroxidase |
Obligate aerobes and most
facultative anaerobes (e.g. Enterics) |
+ |
+ |
- |
Most aerotolerant anaerobes
(e.g. Streptococci) |
+ |
- |
+ |
Obligate anaerobes (e.g. Clostridia,
Methanogens, Bacteroides) |
- |
- |
- |
All organisms which can live in the presence of O2 (whether or
not they utilize it in their metabolism) contain superoxide dismutase. Nearly
all organisms contain the enzyme catalase, which decomposes H2O2.
Even though certain aerotolerant bacteria such as the lactic acid bacteria lack
catalase, they decompose H2O2 by means of peroxidase
enzymes which derive electrons from NADH2 to reduce peroxide to H2O.
Obligate anaerobes lack superoxide dismutase and catalase and/or peroxidase,
and therefore undergo lethal oxidations by various oxygen radicals when they
are exposed to O2.
All photosynthetic (and some nonphotosynthetic) organisms are protected
from lethal oxidations of singlet oxygen by their possession of carotenoid
pigments which physically react with the singlet oxygen radical and lower it to
its nontoxic "ground" (triplet) state. Carotenoids are said to
"quench" singlet oxygen radicals.
The Effect of pH on Growth. The pH, or
hydrogen ion concentration, [H+], of natural environments varies from about 0.5
in the most acidic soils to about 10.5 in the most alkaline lakes (Table 8).
Table 8. Minimum, maximum and optimum pH for growth of
certain procaryotes
Organism |
Minimum pH |
Optimum pH |
Maximum pH |
Lactobacillus acidophilus |
4.0-4.6 |
5.8-6.6 |
6.8 |
Staphylococcus aureus |
4.2 |
7.0-7.5 |
9.3 |
Escherichia coli |
4.4 |
6.0-7.0 |
9.0 |
Clostridium sporogenes |
5.0-5.8 |
6.0-7.6 |
8.5-9.0 |
Erwinia caratovora |
5.6 |
7.1 |
9.3 |
Pseudomonas aeruginosa |
5.6 |
6.6-7.0 |
8.0 |
Streptococcus pneumoniae |
6.5 |
7.8 |
8.3 |
Nitrobacter spp |
6.6 |
7.6-8.6 |
10.0 |
Appreciating that pH is measured on a logarithmic scale, the [H+] of natural
environments varies over a billion-fold and some microorganisms are living at
the extremes, as well as every point between the extremes! Most free-living
procaryotes can grow over a range of 3 pH units, about a thousand fold change
in [H+]. The range of pH over which an organism grows is defined by three cardinal points: the minimum pH, below which the organism
cannot grow, the maximum pH, above
which the organism cannot grow, and the optimum
pH, at which the organism grows best. For most bacteria there is an orderly
increase in growth rate between the minimum and the optimum and a corresponding
orderly decrease in growth rate between the optimum and the maximum pH,
reflecting the general effect of changing [H+] on the rates of enzymatic
reaction.
Microorganisms which grow at an optimum pH well below neutrality (7.0) are
called acidophiles. Those which grow
best at neutral pH are called neutrophiles
and those that grow best under alkaline conditions are called alkaliphiles. Obligate acidophiles, such
as some Thiobacillus species,
actually require a low pH for growth since their membranes dissolve and the
cells lyse at neutrality. Several genera of Archaea, including Sulfolobus and Thermoplasma, are obligate acidophiles. Among eukaryotes, many
fungi are acidophiles, and the champion of growth at low pH is the eukaryotic
alga Cyanidium which can grow at a pH
of 0.
In the construction and use of culture media, one must always consider the
optimum pH for growth of a desired organism and incorporate buffers in order to maintain the pH of
the medium in the changing milieu of bacterial waste products that accumulate
during growth. Many pathogenic bacteria exhibit a relatively narrow range of pH
over which they will grow. Most diagnostic media for the growth and
identification of human pathogens have a pH near 7.
Enzymes and Their Role in
Metabolism
Enzymes, organic catalysts of a
highly molecular structure, are produced by the living cell. They are of a
protein nature, are strictly specific in action, and play an important part in
the metabolism of microorganisms. Their specificity is associated with active
centres formed by a group of amino acids.
Enzymes of microbial origin have
various effects and are highly active. They have found a wide application in industry,
agriculture and medicine, and are gradually replacing preparations produced by
higher plants and animals.
With the help of amylase
produced by mould fungi starch is saccharified and this is employed in beer
making, industrial alcohol production and bread making. Proteinases produced by
microbes are used for removing the hair from hides, tanning hides, liquefying
the gelatinous layer from films during regeneration, and for dry cleaning.
Fibrinolysin produced by streptococci dissolves the thrombi in human blood
vessels. Enzymes which hydrolyse cellulose aid in an easier assimilation of
rough fodder.
Due to the application of
microbial enzymes, the medical industry has been able to obtain alkaloids,
polysaccharides, and steroids (hydrocortisone, prednisone, prednisolone. etc.).
Bacteria play an important role in the treatment of
caoutchouc, collon. silk. coffee, cocoa, and tobacco: significant processes lake place
under their effect which change these substances essentially in the needed
direction. In specific weight the synthetic capacity of microorganisms is very
high. The total weight of bacterial cytoplasm on earth is much higher than that
of animal cytoplasm. The biochemical activity of microbes is of no less general
biological importance than that of photosynthesis. The cessation of the
existence of microorganisms would lead inevitably to the death of plants and
animals.
Enzymes permit some species of
micro-organisms to assimilate methane. butane, and other hydrocarbons, and to synthesize
complex organic compounds from them. Thus, for example, with the help of the
enzymatic ability of yeasts in special-type industrial installations
protein-vitamin concentrates (PVC) can be obtained from waste products of
petroleum (paraffins), which are employed in animal husbandry as a valuable
nutrient substance supplementing rough fodder. Some soil micro-organisms
destroy by means of enzymes chemical substances (carcinogens) which are
detrimental to the human body because they induce malignant tumours.
Some enzymes are excreted by the
cell into the environment (exoenzymes) for breaking down complex colloid
nutrient materials while other enzymes are contained inside the cell
(endoenzymes).
Depending on the conditions of origin
of enzymes there are constitutive enzymes which are constantly found in the
cell irrespective of the presence of a catalysing substrate. These include the
main enzymes of cellular metabolism (lipase. carbohydrase. proteinase, oxydase,
etc.). Adaptive enzymes occur only in the presence of the corresponding
substrate (penicillinase, amino acid decarboxylase, alkaline phosphatase,
B-galactosidase, etc.). The synthesis of induced enzymes in microbes occurs due
to the presence in the cells of free amino acids and with the participation of
ready proteins found in the bacteria.
According to chemical properties
enzymes can be subdivided into three groups:
1 – enzymes composed only of
proteins:
2 – enzymes containing in
addition, to protein metallic ions essential for their activity, and assisting
m the combination of the enzyme with the substrate, and taking part in the
cyclic enzymatic transformations:
3 – enzymes which contain
distinct organic molecules (coenzymes. prosthetic groups) essential for their
activity. Some enzymes contain vitamins.
Bacterial enzymes are subdivided
into some groups:
1. Hydrolases which catalyse the breakdown of the link between the
carbon and nitrogen atoms, between the oxygen and sulphur atoms, binding one
molecule of water (esterases. glucosidases, proteases. amidases, nucleases, etc.).
2. Transferases perform catalysis by transferring certain radicals
from one molecule to another (transglucosidases, transacylases. transaminases).
3. Oxidative enzymes (oxyreductases) which catalyse the oxidation
reduction processes (oxidases, dehydrogenases, peroxidases, catalases).
4. Isomerases and racemases play an important part in carbohydrate
metabolism. They are found in most species of bacteria. Phosphohexoisomerase,
galactovaldenase, phosphoglucomutase,
hosphoglyceromutase pertain to the isomerases.
The absorption of food material
by the cell is a rather complex process. Unicellular protozoa are characterized by a holozoic type of nutrition
in which hard food particles are swallowed, digested and converted to soluble
compounds. Bacteria, algae, fungi, and plants possess a holophytik type of nutrition. They absorb nutrients in a
dissolved state. This difference, however, is not essential because the cells
of protozoa, just like the cells of plant organisms, utilize nutrient
substrates which are soluble in water or in the cell sap, while many bacteria
and fungi can assimilate hard nutrients first splitting them by external
digestion by means of exoenzymes. During diffusion the dissolved substance is
transferred from the region of higher concentration outside the cell into the
bacterial cell until the concentration becomes the same. The passage of a
solvent through the cytoplasmic membrane of bacteria from a region where it is
less concentrated to one where it is more concentrated is performed by osmosis.
The concentration gradient and osmotic power on both sides of the cytoplasmic
membrane are quite different, and depend on the difference in concentration of
many substances contained in the cell and nutrient medium. The transfer of
dissolved substances from the nutrient medium to the cell can take place by
suction together with the solvent if the membrane is sufficiently porous.
It has been established that the
cellular membranes are made up of lipid and protein molecules arranged in a
certain sequence. The charged groups of molecules have their ends directed
towards the surface of the membrane. On these charged ends the protein layers
are adsorbed, composed of protein chains forming a meshwork on the external and
internal surfaces of the membrane. The high selectivity which allows the cells
to distinguish certain substances from others depends on the presence of
enzymatic systems localized on the surface of bacterial cells. Due to the
action of these enzymes, the insoluble substances in the membrane become
soluble.
The cell membranes play an
important role in metabolism. They are capable of changing rapidly their
permeability to various substances and regulating in this way the entry of
substances into the cell and their distribution in it, and the development of
reactions in which these substances participate.
Some bacteria (Salmonella
typhimurium} possess rudiments of memory. They recognize whether the medium is
favourable or unfavourable to them. They 'run away' from an unfavourable one by
means of flagella: when close to a favourable medium (glucose) Salmonella
organisms swim to the 'bait'. This ability to recognize the needed direction is
probably accomplished by the trial-and-error method.
In the process of bacterial nutrition great
importance is attached to exchange adsorption. The active transport of ions takes place due to (he
difference in charges on the surface of membranes in the cell wall and the
surrounding medium of the micro-organisms. Besides, the role of transporters,
as has been suggested, is performed by liposoluble substances X and Y.
Compounds are formed with ions of potassium and sodium (KX and NaY) which are
capable of diffusing through the cell wall, while the membrane remains
unpenetrable for free transporters. Proteins concerned with the transport of
amino acids have been isolated from the membranes of some micro-organisms, and
protein systems responsible for the transfer of certain sugars in general and
glucose in particular have been revealed.
Practical Use of the Fermentative Properties of
Microbes
The widespread and
theoretically founded application of microbiological processes in the
technology of industries involving fermentation, treatment of flax, hides, farming,
and canning of many food products became possible only in the second half of
the 19th century. From the vital requirements of a vigorously developing
industry, especially of the agricultural produce processing industry, there
arose a need for a profound study of biochemical processes. The investigations
by Pasteur in this field were prepared to a great extent by the development of
industry, organic chemistry, and other sciences.
Microorganisms take part in the
cycle of nitrogen (putrefaction), carbon (fermentation), sulphur, phosphorus,
iron, and other elements which are important in the vital activity of
organisms. Therapeutic muds and brine were produced as the result of the
fermentative activity of definite microbial species. Micro-organisms are used
as indicators for determining hydrolytic processes in seas and oceans, the soil
requirements of fertilizers, and the exact amount of vitamins, amino acids and
other substances which cannot be determined by chemical analytical methods.
Certain species of microorganisms synthesize antibiotics, enzymes, hormones,
vitamins, and amino acids which are industrially prepared and used in medicine,
veterinary practice, and agriculture. The synthesis of proteins by means of
special species of yeasts has been mastered.
Some soil bacteria are capable
of rendering harmless (destroying) certain pesticides used in agriculture as
well as chemical carcinogens. Hydrogenous bacteria may be used to produce
fodder protein by cultivation on urea or ammonium sulphate. Some bacterial
species are used for the control of methane in mines. Methanol, a monocarbon
alcohol, is produced from methane by means of microbes.
Of great importance in medical
microbiology is the utilization of the specific fermentative capacity of
pathogenic bacteria for the determination of their species properties. Many
bacteria ferment carbohydrates producing acid or acid and gas, while proteins
are fermented with the production of indole, ammonia, hydrogen sulphide, etc.
Fermentative properties of
microbes are used in the laboratory diagnosis of infectious diseases, and in
studying microbes of the soil, water, and air.
Influence
of Environmental Factors on Microbes Effect of Physical Factors
The effect of temperature. Microbes can withstand low temperatures
fairly well. The cholera vibrio does not lose its viability at a temperature of
-32°C. Some species of bacteria remain viable at a temperature of liquid air (
190°C) and of liquid hydrogen (- 253°C). Diphtheria bacilli are able to
withstand freezing for three months and enteric fever bacteria are able to live
long in ice. Bacillus spores withstand a temperature of –253°C for 3 days. Many
microorganisms remain viable at low temperatures, and viruses are especially
resistant to low temperatures. Thus, for example, the virus of Japanese
encephalitis in a 10 per cent brain suspension does not lose its pathogenicity
at -70°C over a period of one year, the causative agents of influenza and
trachoma at -70 C for 6 months and Coxsackie virus at —WC for 1.5 years. Low
temperatures halt putrefying and fermentative processes. In sanitary-hygienic
practice ice, cellars, and refrigerators for the storage of food products arc
used according to this principle.
Only certain species of pathogenic
bacteria are very sensitive to low temperatures (e. g. meningococcus,
gonococcus, etc.). During short periods of cooling these species perish quite
rapidly. This is taken into account in laboratory diagnosis, and materials
under test for the presence of meningitis or gonorrhoea are conveyed to the
laboratory protected from cold.
At low temperatures the
processes of metabolism are inhibited, the bacteria die off as a result of
ageing and starvation, and the cells are destroyed under the effect of the
formation of ice crystals during freezing. Alternate high and low temperatures
are lethal to microbes. It has been established, for instance, that sudden
freezing as well as sudden healing
causes a decrease in the life activities of pathogenic microbes.
Most asporogenic bacteria perish
at a temperature of 58-60 0C within 30-60 minutes. Bacillus spores
are more resistant than vegetative cells. They withstand boiling from a few
minutes to 3 hours, but perish under the effect of dry heat at 160-170°C in 1.0-1.5
hours. Heating at 120.6°C at 2 aim steam pressure kills them within 20-30
minutes, Individual and specific variations in the resistance of microbes to
high temperatures have different limits and a rather large temperature range.
The inhibition of the activity
of catalase. oxydase, dehydrogenase, protein denaturation, and an interruption
of the osmotic barrier are the principles of the bacterial action of high
temperatures. High temperatures cause a rather rapid destruction of viruses,
but some of them (viruses of infectious hepatitis. poliomyelitis, etc.) are
resistant to environmental factors. They remain viable long in water, in the
faeces of sick people or carriers, and are resistant to heat at 60°C and to
small concentrations of chlorine in water.
The Effect of Temperature on
Growth. Microorganisms have been found growing in virtually all environments where
there is liquid water, regardless of its temperature. In 1966, Professor Thomas
D. Brock at Indiana University, made the amazing discovery in boiling hot
springs of Yellowstone National Park that bacteria were not just surviving
there, they were growing and flourishing. Boiling temperature could not
inactivate any essential enzyme. Subsequently, procaryotes have been detected
growing around black smokers and hydrothermal vents in the deep sea at
temperatures at least as high as 115 degrees. Microorganisms have been found
growing at very low temperatures as well. In supercooled solutions of H2O as
low as -20 degrees, certain organisms can extract water for growth, and many
forms of life flourish in the icy waters of the Antarctic, as well as household
refrigerators, near 0 degrees.
A particular microorganism will exhibit a range of temperature over which
it can grow, defined by three cardinal points in the same manner as pH.
Considering the total span of temperature where liquid water exists, the
procaryotes may be subdivided into several subclasses on the basis of one or
another of their cardinal points for growth. For example, organisms with an optimum
temperature near 37 degrees (the body temperature of warm-blooded animals) are
called mesophiles (Table 9).
Table 9. Terms used to
describe microorganisms in relation to temperature requirements for growth
Group |
Minimum |
Optimum |
Maximum |
Comments |
Psychrophile |
Below 0 |
10-15 |
Below 20 |
Grow best at relatively low
T |
Psychrotroph |
0 |
15-30 |
Above 25 |
Able to grow at low T but
prefer moderate T |
Mesophile |
10-15 |
30-40 |
Below 45 |
Most bacteria esp. those living
in association with warm-blooded animals |
Thermophile |
45 |
50-85 |
Above 100
(boiling) |
Among all thermophiles is
wide variation in optimum and maximum T |
Organisms with an optimum T between about 45 degrees and 70 degrees are thermophiles. Some Archaea with an
optimum T of 80 degrees or higher and a maximum T as high as 115 degrees, are
now referred to as extreme thermophiles
or hyperthermophiles. The
cold-loving organisms are psychrophiles
defined by their ability to grow at 0 degrees. A variant of a psychrophile
(which usually has an optimum T of 10-15 degrees) is a psychrotroph, which grows at 0 degrees but displays an optimum T in
the mesophile range, nearer room temperature. Psychrotrophs are the scourge of
food storage in refrigerators since they are invariably brought in from their
mesophilic habitats and continue to grow in the refrigerated environment where
they spoil the food. Of course, they grow slower at 2 degrees than at 25
degrees. Think how fast milk spoils on the counter top versus in the
refrigerator.
Psychrophilic bacteria are
adapted to their cool environment by having largely unsaturated fatty acids in
their plasma membranes. Some psychrophiles, particularly those from the
Antarctic have been found to contain polyunsaturated fatty acids, which
generally do not occur in procaryotes. The degree of unsaturation of a fatty
acid correlates with its solidification T or thermal transition stage (i.e.,
the temperature at which the lipid melts or solidifies); unsaturated fatty acids
remain liquid at low T but are also denatured at moderate T; saturated fatty
acids, as in the membranes of thermophilic bacteria, are stable at high
temperatures, but they also solidify at relatively high T. Thus, saturated
fatty acids (like butter) are solid at room temperature while unsaturated fatty
acids (like canola oil) remain liquid in the refrigerator. Whether fatty acids
in a membrane are in a liquid or a solid phase affects the fluidity of the
membrane, which directly affects its ability to function. Psychrophiles also
have enzymes that continue to function, albeit at a reduced rate, at
temperatures at or near 0 degrees. Usually, psychrophile proteins and/or
membranes, which adapt them to low temperatures, do not function at the body
temperatures of warm-blooded animals (37 degrees) so that they are unable to
grow at even moderate temperatures.
Thermophiles are adapted to temperatures above 60 degrees in a variety of
ways. Often thermophiles have a high G + C content in their DNA such that the melting
point of the DNA (the temperature at which the strands of the double helix
separate) is at least as high as the organism's maximum T for growth. But this
is not always the case, and the correlation is far from perfect, so thermophile
DNA must be stabilized in these cells by other means. The membrane fatty acids
of thermophilic bacteria are highly saturated allowing their membranes to
remain stable and functional at high temperatures. The membranes of
hyperthermophiles, virtually all of which are Archaea, are not composed of
fatty acids but of repeating subunits of the C5 compound, phytane, a branched,
saturated, "isoprenoid" substance, which contributes heavily to the
ability of these bacteria to live in superheated environments. The structural
proteins (e.g. ribosomal proteins, transport proteins (permeases) and enzymes
of thermophiles and hyperthermophiles are very heat stable compared with their
mesophilic counterparts. The proteins are modified in a number of ways
including dehydration and through slight changes in their primary structure,
which accounts for their thermal stability.
The
effect of desiccation
Micro-organisms have a different resistance to
desiccation to which gonococci, meningococci. treponemas, leptospiras. haemoglobinophilic
bacteria, and phages are sensitive. On exposure to desiccation the cholera
vibrio persists for 2 days. dysentery bacteria — for 7, plague — for 8.
diphtheria — for 30, enteric fever — for 70, staphylococci and tubercle bacilli
— for 90 days. The dry sputum of tuberculosis patients remains infectious for
10 months, the spores of anthrax bacillus remain viable for 10 years, and those
of moulds for 20 years.
Desiccation is accompanied with
dehydration of the cytoplasm and denaturation of bacterial proteins.
Sublimation is one of the methods used for the preservation of food. It
comprises dehydration at low temperature and high vacuum, which is attended
with evaporation of water and rapid cooling and freezing. The ice formed in the
food is easily sublimated, by-passing the liquid phase. The food may be stored
for more than two years. In drying by sublimation all the sugars, vitamins,
enzymes, and other components are preserved. Desiccation in a vacuum at a low
temperature does not kill bacteria, rickettsiae. or viruses. This method of
preserving cultures is employed in the manufacture of stable long-storage, live
vaccines against tuberculosis, plague, tularaemia. brucellosis, smallpox,
influenza, and other diseases.
Quick freezing of bacterial and
viral suspensions at very low temperatures provokes conditions at which
crystals do not form, and subsequent disruption of the micro-organisms does not
occur.
The effect of light. Some
bacteria (purple) withstand the effect of light fairly well. while others are
injured. Direct sunlight has the greatest bactericidal action.
Investigations have established
that different kinds of light have a bactericidal or sterilizing effect. These
include ultraviolet rays (electromagnetic waves with a wave length of 200-300
nm). X-rays (electromagnetic rays with a wave length of 0.005-2.0 nm),
gamma-rays (short wave X-rays), beta- particles or cathode rays (high speed
electrons). alpha-particles (high speed helium nuclei) and neutrons.
The experiments in which short
waves were used for the disinfection of wards, infectious material, for the
conservation of products, the preparation of vaccines, for treating operating
rooms and maternity wards. etc., have demonstrated that they have a rather high
bactericidal effect. Viruses are very quickly inactivated under the effect of
ultraviolet rays with a wave length of 260-300 nm. These waves are absorbed by
the nucleic acid of viruses. Longer waves are weaker and do not render vi-
ruses harmless.
Viruses in comparison to
bacteria are less resistant to X-rays, and gamma-rays. Beta-rays are more
markedly viricidal. Alpha-, beta-, and gamma-rays in small doses enhance
multiplication but in large doses they are lethal to microbes. Viruses which
are pathogenic to animals are inactivated by 44000-280000 roentgens.
Thiobacteria which live in uranium ore deposits are highly resistant to
radioactive rays. Bacteria were found in the water of atomic reactors at
ionizing radiation concentration of 2-3 million rads.
Ionizing radiation can be used
for practical purposes in sterilizing food products, and this method of cold
sterilization has a number of advantages. The quality of the product is not
changed as during heat sterilization which causes denaturation of its component
parts (proteins, polysaccharides, vitamins). Radiation sterilization can be
applied in the practice of treating biological preparations (vaccines, sera.
phages, etc.).
Of interest is the phenomenon of
photoreactivation described in 1949 by A. Kelner. If a suspension of bacteria
is preliminarily exposed to visible light radiation, it becomes more resistant
to ultraviolet radiation. If after exposure to strong ultraviolet light a
suspension of colibacilli is irradiated with visible light, marked growth of
the bacteria is observed when they are seeded on nutrient media.
The effect of high pressure and
mechanical injury on microbes. Bacteria withstand easily atmospheric pressure.
They do not noticeably alter at pressure from 100 to 900 aim at marine and
oceanic depths of 1000-10000 m. Yeasts retain their viability at a pressure of
500 aim. Some bacteria, yeasts, and moulds withstand a pressure of 3000 aim and
phytopathogenic viruses withstand 5000 aim.
The movement of liquid media has
a harmful effect on microbes. The movement of water in rivers and streams,
undulations in stagnant waters are factors important in self-purification of
reservoirs from microbes.
Ultrasonic oscillation (waves
with a frequency of about 20000 hertz per second) has bactericidal properties.
At present this is used for the sterilization of food products, for the
preparation of vaccines, and the disinfection of various objects.
The mechanism of the
bactericidal action of ultrasonic oscillation is that in the cytoplasm of
bacteria found in an aquatic medium a cavity is formed which is Filled with
liquid vapours. A pressure of 10000 atmospheres occurs in the bubble, which
leads to disintegration of the cytoplasmic structures. It is possible that
highly reactive hydroxyl radicals originate in the cavities formed in the
sonified water medium.
Of certain significance in
rendering the air harmless is aeroionization. The negatively charged ions have
a more lethal effect on the microbes.
Effect
of Chemical Factors
Depending on the physicochemical
composition of the medium, concentration, the length of contact and temperature
chemical substances have a different effect on microbes. In small doses they
act as stimulants, in bactericidal concentrations they paralyse the
dehydrogenase activity of bacteria.
According to their effect on
bacteria, bactericidal chemical substances can be subdivided into
surface-active substances, dyes, phenols and their derivatives, salts of heavy
metals, oxidizing agents, and the formaldehyde group.
Surface-active substances change
the energy ratio. Bacterial cells lose their negative charge and acquire a
positive charge which impairs the normal function of the cytoplasmic membrane.
Bactericidal substances with
surface-active action include fatty acids and soaps which harm only the cell
wall and do not penetrate into the cell.
Phenol, cresol, and related
derivatives first of all injure the cell wall and then the cell proteins. Some
substances of this group inhibit the function of the coenzyme
(diphosphopiridine nucleotide) which participates in the dehydrogenation of
glucose and lactic acid. Dyes are able to inhibit the growth of bacteria. The
basis of this action is the marked affinity for the phosphoric acid groups of
nucleoproteins. Dyes with bactericidal properties include brilliant green. rivanol,
tripaflavine, acriflavine, etc.
Salts of heavy metals (lead,
copper, fine, silver, mercury) cause coagulation of the cell proteins. When the
salts of the heavy metal interact with
the protein a metallic albuminate and a free acid are produced.
A whole series of metals
(silver, gold, copper, zinc, tin. lead, etc.) have an oligodynamic action
(bactericidal capacity). Thus, for example. silverware, silver-plated objects,
silver-plated sand in contact with water render the metal bactericidal to many
species of bacteria. The mechanism of the oligodynamic action is that the
positively charged metallic ions arc adsorbed on the negatively charged
bacterial surface. and alter the permeability of the cytoplasmic membrane. It
is possible that during this process the nutrition and reproduction of bacteria
are disturbed. Viruses also are quite sensitive to the salts of heavy metals
under the influence of which they become irreversibly inactivated.
Oxidizing agents act on the sulphohydryl
groups of active proteins. More powerful oxidizing agents are harmful also to
other groups (phenol, thioelhyl, indole. amine).
Oxidizing agents include
chlorine which impairs dehydrogenases, hydrolases. amylases and proteinases of
bacteria and which is widely used in decontaminating water, and chloride of
lime and chloramine used as disinfectants. In medicine iodine is used
successfully as an anti-microbial substance in the form of iodine tincture
which not only oxidizes the active groups of the proteins of bacterial
cytoplasm, but brings about their denaturation. Potassium permanganate,
hydrogen peroxide, and other substances also have oxidizing properties.
Many species of viruses are
resistant to the action of ether, chloroform, ethyl and methyl alcohol, and
volatile oils. Almost all viruses survive for long periods in the presence of
whole or 50 per cent glycerin solution, in Ringer's and Tyrode's solutions.
Viruses are destroyed by sodium hydroxide, potassium hydroxide, chloramine,
chloride of lime, chlorine, and other oxidizing agents.
Formaldehyde is used as a 40 per
cent solution known as formalin. Its antimicrobial action can be explained, as
presumed, by its being united to the amino groups of proteins which causes
their denaturation. Formaldehyde kills both the vegetative forms as well as the
spores. It is applied for decontaminating diphtheria and tetanus toxins as a
result of which they are transformed into antitoxins Some viruses (phages,
tobacco mosaic virus) inactivated by formalin can sometimes renew their
infectivity.
Fabrics possessing an
antimicrobial effect have been produced, in which the molecules of the
antibacterial substance are bound to the molecules of the material. The fabrics
retain the bactericidal properties for a long period of time even after being
washed repeatedly. They may be used for making clothes for sick persons,
medical personnel, pharmaceutists, for the personnel of establishments of the
food industry and for making filters for sterilizing water and air.
Effect
of Biological Factors
In nature microorganisms
constitute a component of the biocoenosis (a community of plants and animals
living in a part of the habitat with more or less homogenous conditions of
life).
Microbes are found in nature in
associations among which there is a constant struggle for existence. Certain
species which adapted themselves to a given medium have more marked
antagonistic properties in relation to other species which have fallen into a
new habitat. Thus, for example, lactic acid bacteria are antagonistic in
relation to the causative agents of dysentery, plague, etc. Blue-pus bacteria
inhibit the growth of dysentery, enteric fever microbes, anthrax bacilli,
cholera vibrio, causative agents of plague, glanders, and staphylococci. meningococci.
etc. The normal inhabitants of the human body (e. g. Colibacilli. enterococci,
lactobacilli, microflora of the skin and nasopharynx, etc.) have especially
potent antagonistic properties.
For many years a controversy
raged on the possibility of intra-species antagonism among microbes. At the
present time many scientists have established the antagonistic relationships
not only between virulent and non-virulent strains of the same species. These
properties are found in certain strains of colibacilli. Streptococcus
pneumoniae, enteric fever, and dysentery bacteria, staphylococci. etc.
In certain conditions
antagonistic properties appear in microbes due to a lack of nutrients, as a
result of which some microbes are forced to feed at the expense of others. This
phenomenon was named forced antagonism by I. Schiller. Antagonistic relations
have been established by viruses when one virus protects the organism from
penetration by another virus. In virology this has been called viral
interference.
Among various groups of microbes
there are several types of relationships: symbiosis, metabiosis, satellism,
synergism, and antagonism. Symbiosis
represents an intimate mutually beneficial relation of organisms of different
species. They develop together better than separately. Sometimes the adaptation
of two organisms becomes so profound that they lose their ability to exist
separately (symbiosis of the fungus and blue-green algae, nitrogen-fixing
bacteria and cellulose-decomposing bacteria, symbiosis of nodule bacteria with
legume plants, various fungi with the roots of plants, yeast-like fungi and
lamblias).
Metabiosis
is that type of relationship in which one organism continues the process
caused by another organism, liberating it from the products of life activities,
and thus creating conditions for its further development (nitrifying and
ammonizing bacteria).
During satellism one of the symbionts known as the favourable microbe
incites the growth of the other (some yeasts and sarcinae producing amino
acids, vitamins, etc., enhance the growth of microbes more strict in relation
to nutrient media).
Synergism
is characterized by the increase in the physiological functions of the
microbial association (yeasts, lactobacilli, fusobacteria, and Borrelia
organisms).
One of the
forms of symbiosis is a virus-carrying form ~ a communal existence of some
bacteria and protozoa with viruses (lysogenic bacteria retain the corresponding
phages for long periods in their cells, during chronic tonsillitis besides the
α-haemolytic streptococci, the adenoviruses take part in the infectious
process, etc.).
During antagonistic relationships there is a struggle for oxygen,
nutrients, and a habitat. Modern understanding of the problems of microbiology unfolds
complex relationships among organisms and the essence of biological laws.
Biological factors have received
widespread application in treating many infectious diseases with the products
of the life activities of bacteria, fungi, higher plants, and animal tissues
known as antibiotics. These effective drug preparations include penicillin,
streptomycin. chloramphenicol. tetracycline, and many others.
In decontaminating the
environment from pathogenic microorganisms by antagonism an important role is
played by phages widespread in the soil and water and by phytoncides, volatile
substances of many plants.
The
influence of the environment is taken into account by the physician in
combating harmful micro-organisms (sterilization, disinfection), vectors of causative
agents of infectious disease (disinsection) and rodents — reservoirs of
pathogenic microorganisms (deratization).
Forms of Symbiosis. According to the character of
interrelationship with the plant and animal world, microbes can be subdivided into
two groups: saprophytes and parasites. Saprophytes include micro-organisms
unable to cause disease.
Parasites are microbes which
live at the expense of plant and animal bodies. All kinds of associations of
the macro-organisms and microorganisms constitute symbiosis in its broadest
sense. Symbiosis has different forms: commensalism, mutualism and parasitism.
Commensalisin is a kind of
symbiosis (association) of organisms in which one of them lives at the expense
of the other without causing it any harm. The overwhelming majority of
representatives of the normal microflora of the human body belong to
microbe-commensals.
Mutualism is that kind of
symbiosis in which both organisms concerned receive mutual benefit from their
association. For example, the symbiosis of nodule bacteria with legume plants
is characterized by typical mutualism. Nodule bacteria live in plant roots,
while the legumes for their nutrition utilize nitrogenous compounds produced by
the bacteria from atmospheric nitrogen A commonly encountered mutualism are the
numerous lichens (the Arctic reindeer lichen and many others) which are formed
of green or blue-green algae and Ascomycetes or Basidiomycetes fungus By means
of photosynthesis, the algae provide themselves and the fungus with nutrition,
while the fungus protects the algae, supplies them with water and mineral salts
Some species of bacteria from the group of intestinal microflora live in
symbiosis with animal organisms which they inhabit These microbe- mutualists
feed on food remains which enter the lower part of the intestine, while the
vitamins which they produce are used by the animals for biocatalytic reactions.
Parasitism is that state of
symbiosis in which one organism (parasite) lives at the expense of another
(host) and is harmful to it Many microbe-parasites are capable of causing
infectious diseases in plants and animals.
Disease-producing species of
micro-organisms are known as pathogenic organisms They have adapted themselves
in the process of evolutionary development to a parasitic type of nutrition in
tissues and fluids of the animal body The susceptible infected organism
responds to the entry of the pathogenic microbe by non-specific and specific
biological reactions. These are expressed in atypical or typical manifestations
of the disease, and also in a variety of defense adaptations.
At one time J. Henle and then R.
Koch (1878. 1882) formulated three conditions in the presence of which the
given microbe can be recognized as a causative agent of a disease. Henle-Koch's
triad consists in the following: (1) the microbe-causative agent should be
discovered in all cases during a given disease, and is found neither in healthy
persons nor in patients with other diseases; (2) the microbe-causative agent
should be isolated from the patient's body in a pure culture: (3) the pure
culture of the isolated microbe should cause the same disease in susceptible
animals. At present this triad has lost its significance to a considerable
degree.
For the origination and
development of the infectious process three conditions are necessary. (I) the
presence of d pathogenic microbe, (2) its penetration into a susceptible
macro-organism, and (3) certain environrnental conditions in which the
interaction between the micro-organism and macro-organism takes place.
The interrelationship of the
pathogenic micro-organism and the susceptible macro-organism takes place under
the complex conditions of the parasite coenosis, that is. in various
relationships with other microbes and protozoa
The results of the penetration
of pathogenic microbes into the human body depend not only on the reactivity of
the macro-organism, but on the normal microflora of the human body), which can
express itself antagonistically as well as synergistically
Besides pathogenic organisms,
there is a comparatively large group of micro-organisms known as conditionally
pathogenic micro-organisms living on the skin, in the intestine, in the
respiratory tract and urogenital organs.
Pasteur discovered many of the
basic principles of microbiology and, along with R. Koch, laid the foundation
for the science of microbiology. In 1857 Napoleon III was having trouble with
his sailors mutinying because their wine was spoiling after only a few weeks at
sea. Naturally Napoleon was distraught because his hopes for world conquest
were being scuttled (pardon the pun) over a little spoiled wine, so he begged
Pasteur for help. Pasteur, armed with his trusty microscope, accepted the
challenge and soon recognized that by looking at the spoiled wines he could distinguish
between the contaminants that caused the spoilage and even predict the taste of
the wine solely from his microscopic observations. He then reasoned that if one
were to heat the wine to a point where its flavor was unaffected, but the
harmful microbes were killed it wouldn't spoil. As we are aware this process,
today known as pasteurization,
worked exactly the way he predicted and is the foundation of the modern
treatment of bottled liquids to prevent their spoilage. It is important to realize
that pasteurization is NOT the same as sterilization. Pasteurization only kills
organisms that may spoil the product, but it allows many microbes to survive,
whereas sterilization kills all the living organisms in the treated
material.
Pasteur also realized that the
yeast that was present in all the wine produced the alcohol in wine.
When he announced this, a number of famous scientists were enraged, because the
current theory of wine production was that wine formation was the result
of spontaneous chemical changes that
occurred in the grape juice. Pasteur was attacked furiously at scientific
meetings, to the point where certain scientists did humorous skits about
Pasteur and his tiny little yeast "stills" turning out alcohol.
Pasteur had the last laugh however as people all over the world soon realized
that if he was right they could control the quality of wine by controlling the
yeast that made it. In a short period many others verified his observations and
the opposition sank without a sound.
Sterilization of instruments, needles, syringes, etc., is carried
out by boiling. Dressings, glassware, and salt solutions are treated in
autoclaves.
Pasteurization is widely employed to render
milk harmless by heating it at 63°C for 30 minutes or at 71.6-80°C for 15-30
seconds and then cooling it. Pasteurization is also used to prevent the
development of harmful microbes which turn wine, beer, and fruit juices sour;
it does not destroy vitamins and does not deprive the beverages of their
flavour.
DRY HEAT
Incineration. This is an excellent procedure for disposing of
materials such as soiled dressings,
used paper mouth wipes, sputum cups, and garbage. One must remember
that if such
articles are infectious,
they should be thoroughly wrapped in newspaper with additional paper or sawdust to absorb the excess moisture. Disposable plastic liners for waste
containers are inexpensive and may be easily
closed on top to prevent scattering of
refuse. The wrapping protects
persons who must empty the trash
cans, and it assures that the objects do not escape the fire, but it may also protect the
microorganisms if incineration is not complete.
Adequate
instructions should be given to workers responsable for burning disposable
materials to insure complete burning. For example, a sputum cup containing
secretions from a patient who has active tuberculosis is filled with paper or
sawdust to absorb excess moisture. The cup is then placed in a plastic bag with shredded absorbent paper to prevent
spilling If it is burned only on the outside, a soggy mass of dangerous
infective material is left on the inside. Other possibilities will occur to the
imaginative student
Ovens. Ovens are often used for sterilizing dry materials such as glassware, syringes and needles, powders, and gauze
dressings. Petrolatum and other oily substances must also be sterilized with dry
heat in an oven because moist heat (steam) will not penetrate materials
insoluble in water.
In order to insure
sterility the materials in the oven
must reach a temperature of 165 to
170 C (329 to 338 t), and this
temperature must be maintained for 120 or
90 minutes, respectively. This destroys all microorganisms, including spores.
However, the oven must be maintained at that temperature for the entire time.
This means that the oven door must remain closed during the sterilizing time opening the door will cool the
articles below effective temperatures so that sterilization cannot
be assured. Also, hot glassware will
shatter immediately) in contact with
cool air It is usual practice in a
microbiology laboratory to let an oven cool completely before it is opened
It is practical to load the oven with glassware, pipettes, and so forth in the afternoon or
evening and turn it on. In the morning, the oven is turned off and by lunchtime it is unloaded. This
routine assures sterile glassware, once the setting of the temperature is
regulated. A home oven, set at 330 t (model ate temperature), can be used as
well as an oven built for laboratory or hospital equipment. It is wise to check the temperature in the oven
with an oven thermometer (available
at household supply stores)
Items may be secured in brown wrapping paper with a sting,
but never with a lubber band. Some types of plastics, like the one used in
connecting hoses, are heat-stable in an oven, but most plastics cannot be
sterilized in this way.
MOIST HEAT
Boiling
Water. Boiling water can never be trusted for absolute sterilization procedures because its
maximum temperature is 100 C (at sea level).
As indicated
previously, spores can resist this temperature Boiling water
can generally be used for contaminated dishes, bedding, and bedpans: for
these articles neither sterility nor the destruction of spores is necessary)
except under very unusual
circumstances. All that is desired is disinfection or sanitization. Exposure to boiling water kills all pathogenic
microorganisms in 10 minutes 01 less, but not bacterial spores or
hepatitis viruses. At altitudes over 5,000 feet the boiling time should be
increased by 50 per cent or moiré because water there boils at temperatures of only about 95 C or below.
Live Steam. Live
steam (free flowing) is used in the laboratory in the preparation of culture media or in the home for processing
canned foods. It must be remembered that steam does not exceed the temperature of 100 C unless it is under
pressure.
To use free flowing steam
effectively for sterilization, the fractional method must be used fractional sterilization, or
tyndalization, is a process of exposure of
substances (usually liquids) to live
steam for 30 minutes on each of
three successive days, with
incubation during the intervals. During
the incubations, spores germinate into vulnerable vegetative forms that are killed during the heating periods. This
is a time-consuming process and is not used in modern laboratories. The use of
membrane (Millipore) filters or similar rapid methods makes the preparation of
heat-sensitive sterile solutions much
easier.
Compressed Steam. In older to sterilize with steam
certainly and quickly, steam under pressure in the autoclave is used (fig. 1). An autoclave is essentially a metal chamber with a door that can be
closed very tightly. The inner chamber
allows all air to be replaced by steam until the contents reach a temperature far above that of boiling water or
live steam. The temperature depends on the pressure, commonly expressed in
pounds per square inch, often written as psi. Steam under pressure
hydrates rapidly and therefore coagulates very efficiently.
Also, it brings about chemical changes
somewhat like digestion, called hydrolysis. These characteristics give it special
advantages in sterilization.
. An autoclave
By first allowing all
the an in the chamber of the autoclave to escape and be replaced by the
incoming steam, the spaces in the interior of masses of material may be brought quickly into contact with the steam. The escape
of air is absolute!) essential since sterilization depends on the water
vapor. Whenever an is trapped in the autoclave, sterilization is inefficient.
One must be sure that:
1 All the air is allowed to escape and is
replaced by steam
2 The pressure of the steam
reaches at least 1 5 pounds to the square inch (psi) and remains there (In most automatic autoclaves it is now 18 pounds, permitting sterilization to be accomplished in less time )
3. The thermometer reaches at least 121 C
without downward fluctuation for
15 minutes (Less time is required when 18 pounds of pressure is used).
If these conditions are met and if the
masses 01 bundles are well separated
and not too large, the
autoclaved material will be sterile
The actual amount of
water present as steam in the pressure
chamber is usually small, consequently,
the articles sterilized are not wet with
much condensed steam when they are removed from the autoclave.
All modern autoclaves are arranged
so that all the steam is removed by vacuum after the sterilization period, to prevent dampening the articles inside.
The automatic
autoclave is used in many laboratories, has the following settings:
1 Manual—used
when the electrical power is off I he
operator must then set and time all cycles
2 Slow
exhaust—used for a wet load, for media or water (for dilutions)
3 Fast
exhaust—used for killing microorganisms quickly on and in glassware that
is to be washed
4 Fast
exhaust and dry—used for pipettes,
Petri plates, or dressings, a so-called
dry loud.
After closing
the door tightly, the operator sets the autoclave control to the desired setting, to the time interval that is necessary for the maximum preset temperature
and pressure, and to ON. Lights go on
as the autoclaving moves from pretimed
cycle to cycle finally a
bell rings, and the operator turns the
setting to OFF and opens the door
carefully Asbestos gloves protect the
hands, when hot sterile materials are unloaded, but watch
the right elbow—the inside of
the open door is very hot.
The exhaust trap inside the autoclave must always be cleaned before starting a load, since dirt in the trap
may delay the time needed for the various cycles.
It is best to do this when the autoclave is still cold.
Since the effectiveness of an autoclave is dependent
upon the penetration of steam into
all articles and substances, the
preparation of packs of dressings is very
important, and the correct placement of articles in the
autoclave is essential to adequate sterilization
Substitution of an autoclave
for an oven by admitting steam only to
the jacket and keeping the
chamber dry is
not advisable when
sterilization is necessary because
the temperature thus achieved
(100 C)
does not kill spores. The
dryness of such
an atmosphere may actually preserve
some pathogens that would be quickly
killed in a moist atmosphere
Cleaning Instruments. When
sterilizing solutions, the pressure must
be allowed to fall gradually so
that the solutions will not boil. If the pressure falls rapidly, violent boiling occurs. Advantage is taken of this fact in autoclaving used surgical instruments. They are immersed in water in a perforated tray. After autoclaving the pressure is
reduced suddenly. The water boils
violently and washes the instruments clean.
Cleaning by Ultrasonic Energy. Machines
are now available for cleaning
surgical instruments, syringes, and so on by extremely rapid (ultrasonic)
vibrations. These can clean and dry
hundreds of instruments (perfectly) every five
to ten minutes. They do not sterilize.
Indicators. Many institutions always include
some sort of indicator inside bundles
being sterilized, such as dyes that change color when the necessary temperature
has been maintained for the required time. On glassware and bundles, labels are
placed that read Not sterile before autoclaving or after insufficient autoclaving but read STERILE if
sterilization has been fully effective. Another device, similar in
principle, is cellulose tape having on it a chemical indicator that changes
color when properly heated in the autoclave. One car use wax pellets that melt only at the necessary temperature but may not
indicate lapse of time. Strips of paper containing bacterial spores can
be dropped into broth in culture
tubes after the sterilizing procedure. If the sterilizer has been properly operated, these broth cultures
should remain sterile, even after seven days
of incubation, since all spores have been lulled 1 hrs method does not give immediate
indication of faulty operation, but it does constitute an absolute and
permanent record.
Most modern
autoclaves have a self-recording thermometer that plots the temperature the
instrument has reached and the time of sterilization required for each
"load". A permanent record provided in this way often proves to be verve valuable.
STERILIZATION WITHOUT HEAT
For many years heat was the only dependable and
practicable means of destroying
bacterial endospores. Now, at least three other means of killing microorganisms
are available. These are use of the gas ethylene oxide, the vapors of beta propiolactone (BFL), and certain electromagnetic
radiations (especially electron
beams or cathode rays). The method of ultrasonic vibrations, although quite effective in destroying certain
microorganisms, is not a practical means of large scale sterilization. Besides,
it produces a heating effect. At present, we can
only dream of an ultrasonic "dishwasher" that sanitizes duty dishes, preferably without any water.
Ultraviolet
Light. This is satisfactory for the sterilization of smooth sin faces and of air in operating looms,
unfortunately, UV radiation has virtually no power of penetration.
Mercury-vapor lamps emitting 90 per cent UV radiation at 254 nm are used to
decrease airborne infection. Ultraviolet lamps are also used to suppress surface-growing molds and other
organisms in meat packing houses, bakeries, storage warehouses, and
laboratories Sunlight is a good,
inexpensive source of ultraviolet rays, which can induce genetic mutations in
microorganisms. In excess, it can cause burns and even cancer
X-Rays. X-rays penetrate well but
require very high energy and are costly and inefficient for sterilizing. Their use is therefore mostly for
medical and experimental work and the production of mutants of microorganisms
for genetic studies
Neutrons. Neutrons
are very effective in killing microorganisms but are expensive and hard to
control, and they involve dangerous radioactivity
Alpha Rays (Particles).
Alpha rays are effective
bactericides but have almost no power of penetration
Beta Rays (Particles). Beta
rays have a slightly greater power of penetration than alpha lays but are still not practical for use
in sterilization
Gamma Rays. These rays are high-energy radiations now mostly emitted from radioactive isotopes such as cobalt-60 or cesium-137,
which are readily available by-products of atomic fission Gamma rays resemble
x-rays in many respects. The U S Army Quartermaster Corps has used gamma rays
and other radiations to sterilize food for military use X rays or gamma rays
must be applied in 2 mrad (one mrad is 1/1 000 of a rad; a rad is 100 ergs of
absorbed energy per gram of absorbing material)
to 4 mrad doses to become a reliable sterilizing treatment of food. Foods
exposed to effective radiation sterilization, however, undergo changes in color,
chemical composition, taste, and sometimes even odor These problems are only
gradually being overcome by temperature control and oxygen removal
Cathode
Rays (Electrons). These are used mainly to kill microorganisms on sin faces of foods, fomites, and industrial
articles. Since electrons have limited powers
of penetration, they are at present not very useful for surgical sterilization.
However, as a result of research on
proper dosage and packaging, cathode lays are
being developed for genial purposes such as
food processing. This may completely revolutionize the food canning and
frozen food industries as well as
surgical sterilization techniques.
Pharmaceutical and medical
products are adequately sterilized by treatment with a radiation dose
of 2,5 mrad . The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry has reported that benzylpenicillin, streptomycin sulfate, and other antibiotics are satisfactorily sterilized by this method In addition, package radiation at dose levels of 2,5 mrad has
become common procedure for the sterilization of disposable Petri plates,
pipettes, syringes, needles, rubber gloves, tubing, and so on
Sterilization with Chemicals
Ethylene Oxide. This is a gas with
the formula CH2CH2O.
It is applied in special autoclaves under carefully controlled
conditions of temperature and humidity Since pure ethylene oxide is explosive and
irritating, it is generally mixed with carbon dioxide or another diluent in
various proportions 10 per cent ethylene oxide to 90 per cent carbon dioxide
(sold as Carboxide), 20 per cent ethylene oxide to 80 per cent carbon dioxide
(sold as Oxyfume), or 11 per cent ethylene
oxide to 89 per cent halogenated hydrocarbons (sold as Cryoxcide and
Benvicide). Each preparation is effective when properly used. Oxyfume is very
rapid in action but is more inflammable and moiré toxic than Carboxide,
however, Carboxide requires high pressure Cryoxcide is more toxic and more
expensive, but it is more convenient and requires less pressure. Other mixtures
of ethylene oxide (e.g. , with Freon) are also commercially available All are
mote costly and time-consuming than autoclaving with steam
Ethylene oxide is generally measured in terms of
milligrams of the pure gas per liter of space. For sterilization,
concentrations of 450 to 1,000 mg of gas/liter are necessary. Concentrations of
500 mg of gas/liter are generally effective in about four hours at
approximately 1% F (58 C) and a relative humidity of about 40 per cent.
Variations in any one of these factors require adjustments of the others For
example, if the concentration of gas is increased to 1,000 mg/liter, the time may
be reduced to two hours. Increases in temperature, up to a limit, also decrease
the time required. At a relative humidity of 30 per cent, the action of
ethylene oxide is about 10 times as rapid as at 95 per cent. The use of
ethylene oxide, although as simple as autoclaving, generally requires special
instructions (provided by the manufacturers) for each particular
situation. At present ethylene oxide is
used largely by commercial companies that
dispense sterile packages of a variety of products
In general, seven
steps are invoked after loading and closing the sterilizing chamber:
1 Draw out nearly
all air with a vacuum pump
2 Admit a
measured amount of water vapor
3 Admit the requires amount of
ethylene oxide gas mixture
4 Raise the temperature
to the required degree
5 Hold for the
required time, turn off the heat
6 Draw out the
gas with the vacuum pump
7 Admit
filtered and sterilized air to the chamber
A fully automatic
ethylene oxide autoclave requiring only proper supervision is available.
Beta-propiolactone
(BPL). At about 20 C this substance is a colorless liquid It
has a sweet but very irritating odor
It is unstable at room temperatures but may be refrigerated at 4 CG for months without deterioration. Aqueous solutions
effectively inactivate some viruses, including those of poliomyelitis and rabies, and also kill bacteria and bacterial spores. The vapors, in concentrations of about 1,5 mg of lactone per liter
of air with a high relative humidity (75 to 80 per cent), at about 25 C, kill spores in a few minutes. A decrease in
temperature, humidity, or concentration of the lactone vapors increases the time required to kill
spores
Beta-propiolactone is
not inflammable under ordinary conditions of use. It is, however, very irritating and may cause blisters if
allowed in contact with skin for more than a few minutes. It is not
injurious to most materials. BPL appeal s to
act by forming chemical compounds with cell proteins. The necessity for high
humidities during its use and also its cost are disadvantages Its activity at
loom temperatures is a distinct
advantage BPL does not penetrate as well as ethylene oxide and is therefore
more suitable for disinfecting surfaces (e g , looms, buildings, and furniture)
by fumigation
Aqueous solutions of
BPL can be used to sterilize biological materials such as virus vaccines,
tissues for grafting, and plasma.
Sterilization by Filtration
Many fluids may be sterilized without the use of heat,
chemicals, or radiations. This is
accomplished mechanically by passing the fluids to be sterilized through
very fine filters Only fluids of low viscosity that do not contain numerous fine particles in
suspension (e.g., silt,
erythrocytes), which would clog the filter
pores, can be satisfactorily sterilized in this way The method is applicable to
fluids that are destroyed by heat and cannot be sterilized in any other way, such as fluids and medications for hypodermic or
intravenous use, as well as culture
media, especially tissue culture media and their liquid components, e g , serum.
Several types of
filters are in common use. The Seitz filter, consisting of a mounted asbestos pad,
is one of the older filters used. Others consist of diatomaceous earth (the
Berkefeld filter), unglazed porcelain (the Chamber-land-Pasteur filters), or sintered glass of several varieties. The Sterifil aseptic filtration system consists of a tubelike arrangement that sucks up
fluid around all sides of the tube into a Teflon hose-connected
receiving flask. The advantage of this
is that the filter is very
inexpensive and can be thrown away when it clogs up
A widely used and
practical filter is the membrane, molecular, or Millipore filter. It
is available in a great variety of pore sizes, ranging
from 0,45 mcm for virus studies to 0,01 mcm. These filters consist of
paper-thin, porous membranes of material resembling cellulose acetate (plastic)
One common form of these special filters is shown in Figure 9—11 In general,
the porcelain, clay, paper, or plastic filtering element is held in some
supporting structure, and the fluid to be filtered is forced through the filter
into a receptacle by a vacuum or by pressure The filter, support, and
receptacle are assembled and autoclaved before use Further details concerning
these procedures need not be given here, since sterilization by filtration is
rarely used without adequate information pertaining to the specific filtration
problem, which would describe the advantages of one type of filter over
another.
Summary.
The most complete way to dispose of infectious materials is incineration,
although precautions must be taken to prevent spilling and to assure that
everything is fully burned. Things that cannot be incinerated are sterilized to
free them not only of pathogens but of all living organisms. For dry materials,
glassware, syringes, dressings, filters, and pipettes, this may be done in a
sterilizer oven at 165 °C (329 F) for 2 hours This treatment destroys fungi,
bacteria, spores, and viruses
Boiling water cannot
be expected to kill bacterial spores, unless applied according to the tyndalization
method (fractional sterilization) In order to sterilize with steam certainly
and quickly, steam under pressure in an autoclave may be used at 15 psi for 15
minutes The temperature reached should be at least 121 °C, sufficient to destroy all bacteria, their spores,
and all other microorganisms
The modern automatic
autoclave is really only a glorified pressure cooker. It can be used manually,
for a "wet load" of liquid materials, for a "dry load"
containing glassware, or with fast exhaust—to kill microorganisms quickly so
that contaminated dishes, plates, flasks, and pipettes can be safely washed
Ethylene oxide (in a
mixture with carbon dioxide called Carboxide) and beta-propiolactone (BPL) are
used routinely in hospitals for gas sterilization of all types of surgical and
other materials
Ultraviolet light, employed routinely for
sterilization of the air in operating rooms, cannot penetrate like x-rays into
materials, but it is readily available in sunlight, which therefore has great bactericidal
powers. Commercially, the use of UV in restaurants and so forth is impressive,
but, like x-rays, they are inefficient for
effective sterilization
Although they are highly bactericidal, neutrons are expensive to produce
and difficult to control. Alpha and beta rays are not practical for use, but
gamma rays are used widely to sterilize foods and pharmaceuticals Cathode rays
(electrons) are applied to food canning, frozen food, and surgical sterilization,
and are also used to sterilize disposable Petri plates, pipettes, tubing, and
most packaged materials
Many fluids may be sterilized
without the use of heat, chemicals, or radiation by means of filters. Several
types of filters are in common use, such as the Seitz, the Berkefeld, the Chamberland-Pasteur, sintered glass
of many varieties, and membrane filters such as the Millipore The great
advantage of modern bacterial filters is that they are disposable.
Antiseptics
is of great significance in medical practice. The people of Africa in ancient
times knew the methods of treating wounds with the aid of ant bites which
healed the edges of the wound no worse than if it had been stitched by modem
medical techniques. Sunlight took the place of antiseptic substances. Yet in
1865. N. Pirogov pointed out the necessity of destroying the source of
intrahospital infection and tried chlorine water, silver nitrate, iodine and
other antiseptic substances in combating wound suppurations. In 1867-J. Lister
used phenol extensively as an antiseptic.
The science of antiseptics
played a large role in the development of surgery. The practical application of
microbiology in surgery brought a decrease in the number of postoperative
complications, including gangrene, and considerably diminished the death rate
in surgical wards. J. Lister highly assessed the importance of antiseptics and
the merits of L. Pasteur in this field.
This trend received further
development after E. Bergman and others who introduced aseptics into surgical
practice representing a whole system of measures directed at preventing the
access of microbes into wounds. Aseptics is attained by disinfection of the air
and equipment of the operating room, by sterilization of surgical instruments
and material, and by disinfecting the hands of the surgeon and the skin on the
operative field. Film and plastic isolators are used in the clinic for
protection against the penetration of micro-organisms. Soft surgical Him
isolators attached to the operative field fully prevent bacteria from entering
the surgical wound from the environment, particularly from the upper
respiratory passages of the personnel of the operating room. A widespread use
of aseptics has permitted the maintenance of the health and lives of many
millions of people.
Modem methods of aseptics have
been perfected to a considerable extent. Consequently almost all operations are
accompanied with primary healing of wounds without suppuration, while the
incidence of postoperative septicaemia has been completely eliminated.
Controls
of sterilization. We use chemical and biological
controls of sterilzation products with
the purpose of checking of effectivity its. The matter of these procedures
consist of some steps (actions). There are three knids of media which we use
for control of sterilization, whereas sugar broth of Hotinger, thiglicol media,
Saburo broth. We put into these media (sugar broth of Hotinger, thiglicol
media, Saburo broth) some products have been sterilized before and put into
thermostat till 14 days. But there are one exception, all innoculated media we
keep in thermostat 14 days at 37 0C (centigrate) and just
innoculated with checking products Saburo media at 22 0C
(centigrate). After this period of 14 days we examine growth on these media.
For example, when growth on media are absent we might make conclusion about
effective sterilization process.
Now, some words about chemical controls of
sterilization. There are some chemical substances, which have certain point of
smelt. Fe., powder of serum (point of smelt is 119 0C (centigrate)), benzoic acid (point of smelt is 120-122 0C
(centigrate)), beta naphthol (point of smelt is 123 0C
(centigrate)), mannose (point of smelt is 132 0C (centigrate)). We
sterilized products with steam and pressure into autoclave we put into its
the closed test-tubes with these
chemical substances and some quantity of aniline dyes. The even colored
contents of these test-tubes show that
the temperature get according level and process of sterilization was effective.
The
treating (processing) of arms before operation. The treating of arms of medical personnel which take part in the
operation are necessary, The different
chemical substances are used for surgical treating of arms, f.e., mixture of 1.71 ml per litre of hydrogen
peroxide (H2O2)
30-33% and 0.81 ml per litre of
formic acid 85%, which call “C-4”, chlorhexidini solution.
Before
treating arms we are washing them with soap (without brush) during 1minutes and
drying out. After that we are treating
arms with “C-4”, and drying with napkin,
and put gloves on arms. With regards to method of arms treating with
chlorhexidini: we are performing the
same washing procedure underlighted upon and processing arms for first by
sterile cotton napkin for second by wads with 0.5% spirituosae solution of
chlorhexidini during 2-3 minutes.
Respiration
in Bacteria
Respiration in bacteria is a complex process which is
accompanied with the liberation of energy required by the micro-organism for the
synthesis of different organic compounds. Many microbes similar to vertebrates
and plants utilize the molecular oxygen in the air for respiration.
The concept of respiration as a process of oxidation
of organic substances with the production of energy has undergone considerable
changes due to the discovery of anaerobic microbes unable to exist in the
presence of oxygen. Pasteur established that the energy necessary for the life
activity of some species of microbes is obtained in the process of fermentation
(liberation of energy without the participation of oxygen).
All microbes according to type of respiration can be
subdivided into obligate aerobes, facultative anaerobes and obligate anaerobes.
1. Obligate aerobes which develop well in an
atmosphere containing 21 per cent of oxygen. They grow on the surfaces of
liquid and solid nutrient media (brucellae, micrococci, tubercle bacilli,
etc.).
2. Facultative anaerobes which can reproduce even in
the absence of molecular oxygen (the majority of pathogenic and saprophytic
microbes).
3. Obligate anaerobes for which the presence of
molecular oxygen is a harmful growth-inhibiting factor (causative agents of
tetanus, botulism, anaerobic infections, etc.).
Aerobic bacteria in the process of respiration
oxidize different organic substances (carbohydrates, proteins, lipids,
alcohols, organic acids, and other compounds). During complete oxidation of one
gram-molecule of glucose a definite number of calories is liberated which
corresponds to the potential energy store accumulated in the carbohydrate
molecule during its photosynthesis in green plants from carbon dioxide and
water
During incomplete (partial) aerobic oxidation, less
energy is released corresponding to the degree of oxidation
A typical representative of the facultative aerobes
is the colibacillus which in a carbohydrate medium begins to develop first as
an anaerobe breaking down the carbohydrates by fermentation. Then it begins to
utilize oxygen and grows like an aerobe, oxidizing the products of fermentation
(lactic acid) farther to carbon dioxide and water. Facultative aerobes have a
considerable advantage, as they can live in aerobic and anaerobic conditions.
Respiration in anaerobes takes place by fermentation
of the substrate with the production of a small amount of energy. In the
fermentation of one gram-molecule of glucose considerably less energy is
produced than during aerobic respiration.
The mechanism of anaerobic respiration takes place in
the following way. If carbohydrates make up the oxidizing substrate, then
preliminarily they are broken down with the help of auxiliary enzymes. Thus,
for example, glucose is phosphorylated employing ATP and ADP. As a result,
hexose diphosphale is produced which under the influence of the enzyme aldolase
breaks down into two components: phosphogly-ceraldehyde and dioxyacetone
phosphate. The latter under the effect of oxyisomerase is transformed into
phosphoglyceraldehyde and later on after a sequence of reactions produces
pyruvic acid. This stage is the last in the anaerobic phase of transformation
of carbon. The later stages are specific and are completed with the production
of end products.
Anaerobic processes include alcohol fermentation by
yeasts, lactic acid fermentation by lactobacilli, and butyric acid fermentation
by butyric acid clostridia.
Anaerobes ferment mostly nitrogen-free compounds
causing fermentation. However, there is no sharp boundary between the erobic
and anaerobic types of respiration.
Thus. for example, yeasts can change the anaerobic type of respiration to
aerobic respiration. First of all, they break down sugar into alcohol and
carbon dioxide, and during increased aeration glucose is broken down into water
and carbon dioxide.
The presence of obligate anaerobes explains the
rather great adaptability of living things and the completeness of the cycle
ofsubstances in nature.
It has been established by investigations that the
respiration in bac- teria takes place under the influence of enzymes of the
oxidase and dehydrogenase types, which have a marked specificity and a
multilateral activity. The oxidase and dehydrogenase processes of respiration
are closely interconnected, supplementing each other, but at the same time
differing in biological role and in enzymes.
The intensity of the processes of aerobic respiration
depends on the age of the culture, temperature, and nutrient substrates.
Actively growing cultures use 2500-5000 cu mm of oxygen per 1 mg of dry matter
of bacleria per hour while starved cultures or cultures completely deprived of nitrogen
nutrients require only 10-150 cu mm. A young culture produces considerably more
heat energy than it uses for its synthetic and other life processes. A certain
part of this energy is released into the environment. For instance, the
colibacillus in the process of assimilation uses 31 per cent of the energy
released, blue us bacteria – 28 per cent, Proteus vulgaris — 20 per cent, and
salmonellae of enteric fever – 12 percent. The production by some microbes of
an excess of heat energy in manure, turf
and garbage can ause spon- taneous
heating and spontaneous combustion.
In manure and
garbage dumps due to the effect of the high temperature produced by
thermophilic microbes, the eggs laid by flies and also the eggs of worms are
unable to develop.
Increased respiration and an increased metabolism
depend on the rate of cell reproduction, on the increase of the protein
synthesis in the cell, which causes an increase in the reduction properties of
the medium in which the microbes develop.
Biological oxidation comprises the removal of a
negatively-charged electron, reduction - the addition of a negatively-charged
electron.
Between the hydrogen acceptor (yellow enzyme) and oxygen there are
intermediate hydrogen carriers w hich are participants of the long chain of the
catalyst of biological oxidation.
The electrons are carried by cytochromes a, /?, and f
which are pro- tein molecules bound with a chemical group of the haem. The haem
contains an iron atom capable of undergoing oxidation and reduction
alternately. Besides cytochromes, a new substance has been discovered, a
carrier of electrons, called ubiquinon or cocnzyme.
Thus the processes of respiration in bacteria are
very complex and represent a long chain of a sequence of oxidation-reduction reactions
with the participation of many enzyme systems transporting the electrons from
the system of the most negative potential to the system of the most positive
potential. During gradual and fractional liberation of energy in respiration
and during intermediate transport of hydrogen, the activity of cellular
reactions increases. The biochemical mechanisms of respiration are described in
detail in biochemistry textbooks.
The habitat of micro-organisms greatly influences the
character of respiration. Thus, for example, upon cultivating the cholera-like
vibrio in a medium containing glucose, its aerobic respiration can be decreased
as a result of which it acquires the properties of a facultative anaerobe.
Yeasts are also capable of changing their type of respiration depending on the
presence or absence of oxygen.
G. McLeod explained that the toxic effect of oxygen
on anaerobes is due to the production of hydrogen peroxide in the presence of
oxygen. Anaerobes are unable to produce catalase. Only H,0, but not oxygen
itself is toxic. However, this cannot be a complete explanation. Anaerobes can
grow if there is oxygen in the medium, which does nt kill microbes, but only
inhibits their life activities. Upon the addition of reducing agents to the
medium, the microbes begin to grow. as reducing agents lower the
oxidation-reduction potential. Glucose and other reducing substances act in the
same way.
V. Engelhardt considers that in the presence of a
high oxidation-reduction potential, the inactivation of vitally important
enzymes takes place. Anaerobes then lose their ability to feed normally, and to
carry out constructive processes. Hence they perish from starvation, and not
from intoxication by oxygen or H202. The oxidation-reduction
potential (rH,) is one of the factors on which the oxidation-reduction
reactions in the nutrient medium depend. The oxidation-reduction potential
expresses the quantitative character of the degree of aerobiosis. It becomes
minimal upon saturating the medium with hydrogen, and maximal upon saturating
the medium with oxygen. M. dark proposed to designate the unit of the
oxidation-reduction potential as rH,-the negative logarithm of the partial
pressure of gaseous hydrogen." The range of rHs from 0 to 42,6
characterizes all degrees of saturation of an aqueous solution with hydrogen
and oxygen- Aerobes exist within the limits of rH, from 14 to 20 and more,
facultative aerobes from 0 to 20 and more, and anaerobes from 0 to 12.
Aerobes are adapted to existence at a higher
oxidation-reduction potential, anaerobes — at a lower rH,. Anaerobes are not
passive micro-organisms, and they themselves cause the low rH, in the medium.
Seeded cultures of anaerobes prior to reproduction
lower the rH, from 20-22 to 1-5. Thus anaerobes are characterized by a rather
marked capability to adapt the medium to their requirements. Aerobes also have
these properties, and they guard themselves from an excess of oxygen by a
reduction barrier.
Upon controlling the oxidation-reduction potential of
the nutrient medium, conditions can be obtained for the growth of anaerobes in
the presence of oxygen by lowering the
rH,, and also by cultivating the
aerobes in anaerobic conditions by increasing the rH, of the medium.
The oxidation-reduction potential drops sharply when
the bacterial culture dies, when it is lysed by a phage and when it is affected
by lysozyme.
When preparing nutrient media the composition of the
nutrient energy-yielding material, the reaction of the medium (pH), and its
oxidation-reduction potential (rH;) are all taken into consideration.
Bacterial
growth
Colony is bacterial cells of the same species which have grown from one
bacterial cell on solid medium as isolated accumulation. Bacteriological
investigation is based on isolating a pure culture of the causal organism and
its identification. The term pure
culture refers to a population of microorganism of the same species isolated on
a nutrient medium.
The Medium. The
technique used and the type of medium selected depend upon the nature of the
investigation. In general, 3 situations may be encountered; (1) one may need to
raise a crop of cells of a particular species that is on hand; (2) one may need
to determine the numbers and types of organisms present in a given material; or
(3) one may wish to isolate a particular type of microorganism from a natural
source.
A. Growing Cells of a Given Species: Microorganisms observed
microscopically to be growing in a natural environment may prove exceedingly
difficult to grow in pure culture in an artificial medium. Certain parasitic
forms, for example, have never been cultivated outside the host. In general,
however, a suitable medium can be devised by carefully reproducing the
conditions found in the organism's natural environment. The pH, temperature,
and aeration are simple to duplicate; the nutrients present the major problem.
The contribution made by the living environment is important and difficult to
analyze; a parasite may require an extract of the host tissue, and a
free-living form may require a substance excreted by a microorganism with which
it is associated in nature.
B. Microbiologic Examination of Natural Materials: A given natural material
may contain many different microenvironments, each providing a niche for a
different species. Plating a sample of the materials under one set of
conditions will allow a selected group of forms to produce colonies but will
cause many other types to be overlooked. For this reason it is customary to
plate out samples of the material using as many different media and conditions
of incubation as is practicable, Six to 8 different culture conditions are not
an unreasonable number if most of the forms present are to be discovered.
Since every type of organism present must have a chance to grow, solid
media are used and crowding of colonies is avoided. Otherwise, competition will
prevent some types from forming colonies.
C. Isolation of a Particular Type of Microorganism: A small sample of
soil, if handled properly, will yield a different type of organism for every
microenvironment present. For fertile soil (moist, aerated, rich in minerals
and organic matter) this means that hundreds or even thousands of types can be
isolated, This is done by selecting for the desired type. One gram of soil, for
example, is inoculated into a flask of liquid medium that has been made up for
the purpose of favoring one type of organism, eg, aerobic nitrogen fixers
(Azotobacter). In this case the medium contains no combined nitrogen and is
incubated aerobically. If cells of Azotobacter are present in the soil, they
will grow well in this medium forms unable to fix nitrogen will grow only to
the extent that the soil has introduced contaminating fixed nitrogen into the
medium. When the culture is fully grown, therefore, the percentage of
Azotobacter in the total population will have increased greatly; the method is
thus called 'enrichment culture.
Transfer of a sample of this culture to fresh medium will result in further
enrichment of Azotobacter, after several serial transfers, the culture can be
plated out on a solidified enrichment medium and colonies of Azotobacter
isolated.
Liquid medium is used to permit competition and hence optimal selection, even
when the desired type is represented in the soil as only a few cells in a
population of millions. Advantage can be taken of "natural
enrichment." For example, in looking for kerosene oxidizers, oil-laden
soil is chosen, since such soil is already an enrichment environment for such
forms.
Enrichment culture, then, is a procedure whereby the medium is prepared so
as to duplicate the natural environment (“niche”) of the desired microorganism,
thereby selecting for it. An important principle involved in such selection is
the following: The organism selected for will be the type whose nutritional
requirements are barely satisfied. Azotobacter, for example, grows best in a
medium containing organic nitrogen, but its minimum requirement is the presence
of N;;
hence it is selected for in a medium containing N; as the sole nitrogen
source. If organic nitrogen is added to the medium, the conditions no longer
select for Azotobacter but rather for a form for which organic nitrogen is the
minimum requirement.
When searching for a particular type of organism in a natural material, it
is advantageous to plate the organisms obtained on a differential medium if
available. A differential medium is one that will cause the colonies of a
particular type of organism to have a distinctive appearance. For example,
colonies of Escherichia coli have a characteristic iridescent sheen on agar
containing the dyes eosin and methylene blue (EMB agar). EMB agar containing a
high concentration of one sugar will also cause organisms which ferment that
sugar to form reddish colonies. Differential media are used for such purposes
as recognizing the presence of enteric bacteria in water or milk and the
presence of certain pathogens in clinical specimens from patients.
For
selection the pure culture of microorganisms, it follows to separate numerous
bacteria which are in tested material, one from other. It is possible to attain
by methods which are based on two principles – mechanical and biological
separation of bacteria.
Mechanical
principle |
Biological
principle |
METHODS 1. Factional dilutions (L. Pasteur’s
technique) 2. Pour plate technique (Dilution in solid nutrient media by R.
Koch’s technique) 3. Spread plate technique (Superficial dispersions by Drigalsky’s technique) 4. Streak plate technique |
METHODS Take into account: –
Respiration type (Fortner’s method); –
bacterial motility (Shukevich’s method –
resistance to acids (acid fast bacteria); –
sporulation; –
temperature optimum; –
selective sensitiveness of laboratory
animals to the bacteria and so on. |
Methods based on mechanical
principle
Method
of factional dilutions (L. Pasteur’s technique) is based on
mechanical disconnection of microorganisms by serial dilution in liquid
nutrient media. The main lack of this technique: we can not make control the
amount of microbal is tested tubes.
Pour plate technique (Dilution in solid nutrient media by R.
Koch’s technique) is based on dilution of microbes and pouring
the tested material with gelatin. After cooling the gelatin isolated colonies of
microorganisms are formed and they easily can be transferred on a fresh
nutrient medium by a platinum loop for obtaining a microbial pure culture.
Spread plate technique (Superficial dispersions by
Drigalsky’s technique) is more perfect method which is
widely widespread in everyday microbiological practice. There is quantitative
technique that allows the determination of the number of bacteria in a sample.
Stages:
·
Pipette the required amount of
bacteria (from your dilution) on the surface of the Petri plate.
·
Spread the inoculum over the
surface of the agar medium using a hockey stick (spatula).
·
Repeat this action on 3-4 Petri
plates without sterilization of the hockey stick.
·
Incubate the plate inverted at 37
oC.
There must
be different number of microbial colony on the Petri plates.
Streak
plate technique.
ADVANTAGES:
·
Spread millions of cells over the surface;
·
Individual cells deposited at a distance from
all others;
·
Divide forming distinct colonies;
·
Distinct colonies do not touch any other
colonies;
·
Clone of a single bacteria à pure
culture
You streak
the plate on 3 different portion of the Petri plate, so you can draw the
section that you will streak on the bottom of your plate.
Stages:
· Using a sterile loop take a loopful of your bacteria from the broth
· Streak a vertical line
· Then streak gently across section 1
· Zig-zag pattern until a 1/3 of the plate is covered
· Do not dig into the agar
· Sterilize the loop à let it cool
· Rotate the plate about 90 degrees and spread the bacteria from the first
streak into a second area
· Do only one streak (or very few) in the first area and once you are in the
second area do not go back to the first
· Do a zig-zag pattern until the 2nd area is covered
· Sterilize again à do the same for 3rd area
· Make sure that your red hot loop is cool enough prior to touch the bacteria
· After you waited a few seconds
· Stab it into the agar in a position away from bacteria à will cool
it
· If you stab where bacteria are à production of aerosol
·
Incubate the plate inverted at 37 oC.
In a day it is necessary to examine the colonies for future investigation.
Or:
Thus,
substantial advantage of Pour plate technique (dilution in solid nutrient media
by R. Koch’s technique), spread plate technique (superficial dispersions by
Drigalsky’s technique), and streak plate technique consists in that they create
the ability to obtain isolated (distinct) colonies of microorganisms which can
be transferred on slant agar for pure culture obtaining.
Methods based on
biological principle
Biological principle of disconnection of bacteria
foresees the purposeful search of methods which take into account the numerous
features of microbal species. Among the most widespread methods it is possible
to select the followings:
1. Respiration type. All of microorganisms according to
the type of respiration are divided into two basic groups: aerobic (Corynebacterium diphtheriae, Vibrio ñholerae and others) and anaerobic
(Clostridium tetani, Clostridium botulinum, Clostridium perfringens and so on). If tested
material from which it follows to select anaerobic bacteria to warm up
preliminary, and then cultivate in anaerobic terms, these bacteria will grow
exactly.
2. Sporulation. It is
known that some microbes
(bacilli and clostridia) form endospores. There are Clostridium tetani, Clostridium botulinum, Clostridium perfringens, Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus cereus among them. Spores are resistant against different
external environment factors. That’s why, if tested material would be heated previously
and then inoculated in nutrient medium spore-forming bacteria would be grown.
3.
Resistance of microbes against acids and alkali. Some
microbes (Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Mycobacterium bovis) as a result
of their chemical structure features are resistant agains acids. That’s why
tested material with this bacteria previously is treated with 10 % sulfuric
acid and later inoculated on proper nutrient medium An extraneous flora
perishes, and mycobacteria as a result of their resistance to acids grow.
Vibrio ñholerae is a halophylic bacterium, and for its growth it is
inoculated in 1 % alkaline peptone water. Already in 4-6 hrs it growth like a
tender bluish pellicle on the surface of
medium.
4.
Bacteria motility. Some
microbes (Proteus vulgaris) have a
tendency to creeping growth and is able to spread quickly on the surface of
moist nutrient medium because they have flagella. So such bacteria are inoculated
in the drop of condensation liquid which appears after the cooling the slant
agar. In 16-18 hrs they spread on all surface of nutrient medium. If material
from the upper part of agar would be taken we will have a pure culture of
microbe.
5. A susceptibility of microbes to different
chemicals, antibiotics etc. As a result
of features of metabolism some bacteria have a different susceptibility to some
chemical factors. For example, staphylococci, aerobic bacilli can grow in
nutrient media which have 7,5–10 % to the sodium chloride. That is why for the
selection of these bacteria this substance is added into yalk-salt afar and
mannitol-salt agar for their selection. Other bacteria under the influence of
such concentration of sodium chloride do not grow practically.
Some
antibiotics (nistatin) is used for inhibition for pathogenic fungi
growth if it is necessary to obtain only bacteria. Adding the Penicillin in
nutrient medium inhibit the growth only gram-positive bacteria. Presence of
Furazolidon makes favorite condition for
Corynebacteria and Micriococci.
6.
Ability of microorganisms to penetrate through unharmed skin. Some
pathogenic bacteria (Yersinia pestis) as a result
of presence a lot of aggression enzymes are able to penetrate through an intact
skin. For this purpose body wool of laboratory animal is shaven and tested
material with different bacteria a rubbed in this skin area. Later some
microbes may be obtain from the blood or internal organs.
7. A sensitiveness of laboratory animals is to the
exciters of infectious diseases. Some laboratory animals show a high susceptibility
to the different microorganisms.
For example, after any method of Streptococcus pneumoniae introduction
into a mouse generalized pneumococcal infection are developed. An analogical
picture is observed after injection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis into
Guinean pig or Mycobacterium bovis into the rabbit.
• 8. Temperature optimum. The
cardinal temperatures:
- Minimum
- Optimum
- Maximum
Microorganisms can be grouped by the temperature
ranges they require
•
Psychrophiles, low
temperature optima (4°C) – Polaromonas vacuolata
•
Mesophils midrange (39°C)
– Escherichia coli
•
Thermophiles high
(60°C) – Bacillus stearothermophilus
•
Hyperthermophiles very high (>80°C) – Thermococcus celer
In everyday practice bacteriologists use such concepts
as a species, a strain and pure culture of microorganisms.
Species –
a collection of bacterial cells which share an overall similar pattern of
traits in contrast to other bacteria whose pattern differs significantly
A strain is a subset of a bacterial
species differing from other bacteria of the same species by some minor but
identifiable difference. A strain is "a population of organisms
that descends from a single organism or pure culture isolate. Strains within a
species may differ slightly from one another in many ways."
Culture: population of microorganisms grown under well defined conditions.
Pure culture – one that contains one type
of microorganism.
Isolation and identification of a pure culture
First day
1. Microscopic examination of the tested material.
2. Streaking of the material tested onto nutrient media (solid, liquid).
Second day
1. Investigation of the cultural properties.
2. Sub-inoculation of colonies onto solid media to enrich for a pure culture.
Third day
1. Checking of the purity of the isolated culture.
2. Investigation of biochemical properties: (a) sugarlytic, (b)
proteolytic.
3. Determination of antigenic properties.
4. Study of phagosensitivity, phagotyping, colicinogensitivity, colicinogenotyping,
sensitivity to antibiotics, and other properties.
Main Principles of the Cultivation of Microorganisms
Bacterial cultivation. In laboratory conditions microorganisms can be grown
in nutrient media in incubation chambers maintained at a constant temperature.
According to the type of heating, incubation chambers can be subdivided into
electric, gas and kerosene. Each incubation chamber has a thermoregulator which
maintains a constant temperature. Temperature conditions are of great
importance for the growth and reproduction of bacteria. In relation to
conditions of temperature all micro-organisms can be subdivided into three
groups: psychrophilic (Gk. psychros cold, philein love), mesophilic (Gk. mesos
intermediate), thermophilic (Gk. thermos warm). Microorganisms may reproduce
within a wide temperature regimen range of –10 to +80 °C.
Of great importance in the life activities of
bacteria is the concentration of hydrogen ions in the nutrient medium, i. e.
pH, which is expressed by the negative logarithm of the concentration of
hydrogeons. The pH characterizes the degree of acidity or alkalinity, from
extremely acid (pH 0) to extremely alkaline (pH 14) conditions.
During evolution each microbial species adapted
itself to existence within certain limits of hydrogen ion concentration beyond
the range of which its life processes are unable to take place; It has been
suggested that pH influences the activity of enzymes. Depending on the pH, weak
acids in an acid medium occur as molecules, and in an alkaline medium as ions.
Saprophytes can live in conditions within a wide range of a pH from 0.6 to
11.0, while pathogenic species of microbes grow within certain limits of
hydrogen ion concentration Nutrient media should be easily assimilable, and
they should contain a known amount of nitrogen and carbohydrate substances,
vitamins, a required salt concentration. In addition they should be isotonic,
and sterile, and they should have buffer properties, an optimal viscosity, and
a certain oxidation reduction potential.
During the whole history of microbiology nutrient
media have gradually been perfected. Before Pasteur only infusions and
decoctions were used as media for growing microbes. Pasteur and Nageli
introduced non-protein media for the cultivation of microbes. Koch and Loeffler
employed meat broth, peptone, and sodium chloride for growing microbes. This
medium is a meat-peptone broth from which meat-peptone agar is prepared by
adding 1-2 per cent industrial agar.
Agar (in
Malayan - jelly) is compact fibrous material produced from some seaweed, forms
in water solutions a solid gel. Agar contains 70-75% polysaccharides, 2-3%
proteins and other nitrogen-containing substances, 2-4% ashes. Main components
of agar high molecular weight substances — agarose and agaropectin. Agar
dissolves in water while heating and solidifies at room temperature. It is
manufactured as colourless plates or powder.
Because of the ability of agar upon cooling to give
the nutrient medium a solid gel consistency, and due to its high resistance
towards the microbial enzymes, it has received wide application in
bacteriological techniques for preparing semisolid, solid, and dry nutrient
media.
For the preparation of nutrient media M. Hottinger
suggested the use of products of the tryptic breakdown of proteins which do not
contain peptones, but contain the low molecular polypeptides and free amino
acids. L. Martin employed papain as an enzyme for the break-down of proteins.
In recent years all the essential amino acids and vitamins used for the
cultivation of bacteria have been obtained in a pure state.
Isolation
and Identification of Pure Culture of Aerobic Bacteria
First day. Prepare smears of the tested material and study them
under the microscope. Then, using a spatula or a bacteriological loop, streak
the material onto a solid medium in a Petri dish. This ensures mechanical
separation of microorganisms on the surface of the nutrient medium, which
allows for their growth in isolated colonies. In individual cases the material
to be studied is streaked onto the liquid enrichment medium and then
transferred to Petri dishes with a solid nutrient medium. Place these dishes in
a 37 0C incubator for 18-24 hrs.
Incubator
Second day. Following a 24-hour incubation, the cultural properties
of bacteria (nature of their growth on solid and liquid nutrient media) are
studied.
Macroscopic examination of
colonies in transmitted and reflected light. Turn the dish with its bottom to the eyes and
examine the colonies in transmitted light. In the presence of various types of
colonies count them and describe each of them. The following properties are
paid attention to; (a) size of
colonies (largo, 4-5 mm in diameter or more; medium, 2-4 mm; small, 1-2 mm;
minute, less than 1 mm); (b) configuration
of colonies {regularly or irregularly rounded, rosette-shaped, rhizoid, etc.);
(c) degree of transparency (non-transparent,
semitransparent, transparent).
In a reflected light, examine the colonies from the
top without opening the lid. The following data are registered in the protocol:
(a) colour of the colonies
(colourless, pigmented, the colour of the pigment); (b) nature of the surface (smooth, glassy, moist, wrinkled,
lustreless, dry, etc.); (c) position
of the colonies on the nutrient medium (protruding above the medium, submerged
into the medium; flat, at the level of the medium; flattened, slightly above
the medium).
Microscopic examination of colonies. Mount the dish,
bottom upward, on the stage of the microscope, lower the condenser, and, using
an 8 x objective, study the colonies, registering in the protocol their
structure (homogeneous or amorphous, granular, fibriliar, etc.) and the nature
of their edges (smooth, wavy, jagged, fringy, etc.).
Use some portion of the colonies to prepare
Gram-stained smears for microscopic examination. In the presence of uniform
bacteria, transfer the remainder of colonies to an agar slant for obtaining a
sufficient amount of pure culture. Place the test tubes with the inoculated
medium into a 37 °C incubator for 18-24 hrs.
Third day. Using the culture which has grown on the agar slant
prepare smears and stain them by the Gram method. Such characteristics as
homogeneity of the growth, form, size, and staining of microorganisms permit
definite judgement as to purity of the culture. To identify the isolated pure
culture, supplement the study of morphological, tinctorial, and cultural
features with determination of their enzymatic and antigenic attributes, phago-
and bacterio-cinosensitivity, toxigenicity, and other properties characterizing
their species specificity.
To demonstrate carbohydrate-splitting enzymes, Hiss'
media are utilized. When bacteria ferment carbohydrates with acid formation,
the colour of the medium changes due to the indicator present in it. Depending
on the kind and species of bacteria studied, select media with respective mono-
and disaccharides (glucose, lactose, maltose, sucrose), polysaccharides
(starch, glycogen, inulin), higher alcohols (glycerol, mannitol). In the
process of fermentation of the above substances aldehydes, acids, and gaseous
products (CO2, H2, etc.) are formed.
To demonstrate proteolytic enzymes in bacteria,
transfer the latter to a gelatin column. Allow the inoculated culture to stand
at room temperature (20-22 °C) for several days, recording not only the
development of liquefaction per se but its character as well (laminar, in the
form of a nail or a fir-tree, etc.)
Proteolytic action of enzymes
of microorganisms can also be observed following their streaking onto
coagulated serum, with depressions forming around colonies (liquefaction). A
casein clot is split in milk to form peptone, which is manifested by the fact
that milk turns yellowish (milk peptonization).
More profound splitting of protein is evidenced by
the formation of indol, ammonia, hydrogen sulphide, and other compounds. To
detect the gaseous substances, inoculate microorganisms into a meat-peptone
broth or in a 1 per cent peptone water. Leave the inoculated cultures in an
incubator for 24-72 hrs.
To demonstrate indol by Morel's method, soak narrow
strips of filter paper with hot saturated solution of oxalic acid (indicator paper)
and let them dry. Place the indicator paper between the test tube wall and
stopper so that it does not touch the streaked medium. When indol is released
by the 2nd-3rd day, the lower part of the paper strip turns pink as a result
of its interaction with oxalic acid.
The telltale sign of the presence of ammonia is a
change in the colour of a pink litmus paper fastened between the tube wall and
the stopper (it turns blue). Hydrogen sulphide is detected by means of a filter
paper strip saturated with lead acetate solution, which is fastened between
the tube wall and the stopper. Upon interaction between hydrogen sulphide and
lead acetate the paper darkens as a result of lead sulphide formation.
To determine catalase, pour 1-2 ml of a 1 per cent
hydrogen peroxide solution over the surface of a 24-hour culture of an agar
slant. The appearance of gas bubbles is considered as a positive reaction. Use
a culture known to contain catalase as a control.
The reduction ability of microorganisms is studied
using methylene blue, thinning, litmus, indigo carmine, neutral red, etc. Add
one of the above dyes to nutrient broth or agar. The medium decolorizes if the
microorganism has a reduction ability. The most widely employed is
Rothberger's medium (meat-peptone agar containing 1 per cent of glucose and
several drops of a saturated solution of neutral red). If the reaction is
positive, a red colour of the agar changes into yellow, yellow-green, and
fluorescent, while glucose fermentation is characterized by cracks in the
medium.
Antigen properties of the isolated culture are
investigated by the agglutination test and other serological tests.
Species identification of aerobic bacteria is performed
by comparing their morphological, cultural, biochemical, antigenic, and other
properties.
On solid nutrient media microbes form colonies of
different shapes and sizes which are
ggregations of individuals connected by bands of cytoplasm providing for a certain structure
of bacterial groupings. The colonies may be flat. convex, dome-shaped, or
pitted; their surface – smooth (S-forms). rough (R-forms). ridged, or bumpy;
their edges may be straight, serralcd. fibrous, or lasseled. The shape of the
colonies also differs: e.g. round, rosette-shaped, star-shaped, tree-like.
According lo their size the colonies may be divided into large (4-5 mm in
diameter), intermediate (2-4 mm), small (1-2 mm), and dwarf (less than 1 mm).
The colonies differ in their consistency, density,
and colour. They may be transparent and opaque, coloured and colourless, moist,
dry, and slimy.
In liquid nutrient media microbes grow producing a
duffuse suspen- sion. film. or precipitate visible to the naked eye.
The growth of bacteria in the laboratory is carried
out in test tubes, Petri dishes, and flasks.
In institutes for production of vaccines the
cultivation of aerobes is carried out by deep stab methods. This method permits
a more rational use of the nutrient substrate, and a large microbial mass can
be obtained. The cultures are grown in reactors. Aeration is produced by
passing a stream of air through the medium. The method of aeration is used in
laboratory investigations to promote rapid growth of bacteria and to study some
processes of metabolism.
Reproduction in microbes takes place more intensively
in a flowing nutrient medium which is constantly being renewed. For this
purpose a spare tank with nutrient medium is installed, from which the mediumenters the cultivator and is
carefully mixed with the culture.
Colonies of a different structure.
After this the excess of cultural fluid together with the suspended
bacterial cells flows out. When the rate of flow of cells from the cultivator
is equal to the rate of reproduction, the number of the microbial population
remains constant.
Modem plant equipment is supplied with devices for
automatic control over reproduction and other microbiological processes.
In usual laboratory conditions anaerobes develop in
stationary or portable anaerostats containing rarefied air up to 1-8 mm or in
vacuum desiccators.
Stationary anaerostat (jar)
Portable
anaerostat
For successfully cultivating anaerobes it is
necessary to seed a large amount of material into the nutrient medium. The nutrient
medium should have a certain viscosity which is attained by adding 0.2 per cent
agar. The air is removed by boiling prior to seeding, and to inhibit
thesubsequent entry of air, the medium is covered with a layer of oil 0.5-1 cm
thick. Anaerobiosis is obtained by the adsorption of oxygen on porous
substances (pumice, cotton wool, coal) and by adding reducing substances
(carbohydrates, peptone, cysteine. pieces of liver, spleen, kidneys, brain,
etc.). After seeding, the test tubes are filled up with liquid vaseline. Growth
of the anaerobes is usually carried out on a Kitt-Tarozzi
Isolation and identification of a pure culture
First day
1. Microscopic examination of the tested material.
2. Streaking of the material
tested onto nutrient media (solid, liquid).
Second day
1. Investigation of the cultural properties.
2. Sub-inoculation of colonies onto solid media to enrich for a pure
culture.
Third day
1. Checking of the purity of the isolated culture.
2. Investigation of biochemical properties: (a) sugarlytic, (b)
proteolytic.
3. Determination of antigenic properties.
4. Study of phagosensitivity, phagotyping, colicinogensitivity,
colicinogenotyping, sensitivity to antibiotics, and other properties.
With regards to obtaining microorganisms in pure
culture, are based on mechanical divorced of bacteria tested material inoculate
onto surface media in Petri dish by
bacteriological loop or pipette and after that streak plating evenly. After
that again that glass spatula (don’t burn through the flame) was used for
streak plating onto the same second media in Petri dish.The seeding has been
done by bacteriological loop too. With that purpose in upper part of Petri dish
has been made dense streaking, set free bacteriological loop from superfluous
material. After that are made paralel streaks at the last part of the agar.
Somever are applied method of laminar dilution, the matter of this method is a
stiring diferrent serial dillution tested materials with melting and colling
agar in tubes.After that its are flooded into Petri dishes and put down into
incubator.The tested materials are boiled of short duration or heat on 80 0C
for destroy bacteria without spores. The spores of microorganisms leave still
alive and ater reinoculate this materials they are grown.
Fortner method. The agar media is divided into two parts. Onto the one part inoculate
E.coli or Serratia marcescens (these microorganisms absorb intensively oxygen)
and onto second part taested material.
Closely stop up this Petri dish by parafin and put down into the thermostat.
This method is used for obtainig anerobe culture.
Reproduction
and Growth of Microorganisms
Reproduction in microbes constitutes the ability of
self-multiplication, i.e. the increase in the number of individuals per unit
volume The growth of micro-organisms represents the increase of the mass of
bacterial cytoplasm as a result of the synthesis of cellular material.
Bacteria reproduce by simple transverse division,
vegetative reproduction, which occurs in different planes and produces many
kinds of cells (clusters, chains, pairs, packets, etc.). They also reproduce by
budding, by means of the cleavage of segmented filaments, by reproducing cells
similar to spores, by producing minute motile conidia. And by conjugation,
which brings us closely to the concept of sexual reproduction in bacteria DNA
replication is an important condition in the process of amitotic binary fission
of bacteria, the hydrogen bonds are ruptured and two DNA strands are formed,
each one is contained in the daughter cells The single-stranded DNA are
eventually linked by means of hydrogen bonds and again form double-chain DNA
responsible for genetic information DNA replication and cell fission occur at a
definite rate characteristic of each species. Actinomycetes and many fungi
(phycomycetes, ascomycetes, etc) reproduce predominantly by sporulation
The transverse division of bacteria is not only a
process of cell division of one mother cell into two equal daughter cells, but
represents d constant separation of daughter cells from the mother cell, the
former in their turn become mother cells. After a certain number of
generations, the mother cells age and perish. This explanation has annulled the
metaphysical concept of 'bacterial immortality'.
The rate of cell division differs among bacteria It
depends on the species of microbe, the age of the culture, on the nutrient
medium, temperature, concentration of carbon dioxide, and on many other
factors.
The length of the generation off coli, Clostridium
perfringens, Streptococcus faecalis is 15 minutes, while for the cells of a
mammalian tissue culture it is 24 hours Thus, bacteria reproduce almost 100
times faster than cells of tissue culture The increase in the number of cells
can be expressed in the following way:
0— 1— 2— 3 — 4— 5— n number of generations
The total amount of bacteria (N) after n generations
will be equal to 2n per cell of seeded material If we take the original
amount of bacteria inoculated into the nutrient medium as a single individual,
and the time for one division as 30 minutes, then theoretically the total
amount of bacteria produced per 24 hours would be equal N=248. Upon
division every 20 minutes, in 36 hours the microbial mass will be equal to 400
tons. Thermophilic microbes divide even more rapidly.
However, in natural as well as in artificial
conditions, the reproduction of bacteria is of a considerably smaller scale. It
is limited by the effect of a number of environmental factors. Reproduction in
bacteria conforms to certain laws. Fig. 1 illustrates schematically the rate of
reproduction of bacteria in arbitrary units, and the size of the bacterial
population expressed as the logarithm of the numbers of live cells per
millimeter of the medium.
There are eight principal phases of reproduction
which are designated on the diagram by Roman numerals.
1. An initial stationary phase represents the time
from the moment of seeding the bacteria on the nutrient medium. Reproduction
does not occur in this phase. The length of the initial stationary phase after
seeding is 1-2 hours.
2. The lag phase of reproduction during which
bacterial reproduction is not intensive, while the growth rate is accelerated.
The second phase may last almost two hours.
3. Phase of exponential (logarithmic) growth which is
characterized by a maximal division rate and decrease in cell size. The length
of this period ranges from 5 to 6 hours.
4. Phase of negative growth acceleration during which
the rate of bacterial reproduction ceases to be maximal, and the number of
dividing cells diminishes. This phase lasts almost two hours.
5. A maximal stationary phase when the number of
newly produced bacteria is almost equal to the number of dead organisms. This
phase continues for two hours.
6. Accelerated death phase during which the
equilibrium between the stationary phase and the bacterial death rate is
interrupted. This continues for 3 hours.
7. Logarithmic death phase when the cells die at a
constant rate. This continues almost 5 hours.
8. Decelerated death-rate phase in which those cells
which remain alive enter a dormant state.
Graph of the reproduction of bacteria
The length of these phases is arbitrary, as it can vary depending on the
bacterial species and the conditions of cultivation. Thus, for example, the
colibacilli divide every 15-17 minutes, salmonellae of enteric fever — every 23
minutes, pathogenic streptococci — every 30 minutes, diphtheria bacilli — every 34 minutes and
tubercle bacilli — every 18 hours.
Methods based on
biological principle
Biological principle of disconnection of bacteria
foresees the purposeful search of methods which take into account the numerous
features of microbal species. Among the most widespread methods it is possible
to select the followings:
1. Respiration type. All of microorganisms according to
the type of respiration are divided into two basic groups: aerobic (Corynebacterium diphtheriae, Vibrio ñholerae and others) and anaerobic
(Clostridium tetani, Clostridium botulinum, Clostridium perfringens and so on). If tested
material from which it follows to select anaerobic bacteria to warm up
preliminary, and then cultivate in anaerobic terms, these bacteria will grow
exactly.
2. Sporulation. It is
known that some microbes
(bacilli and clostridia) form endospores. There are Clostridium tetani, Clostridium botulinum, Clostridium perfringens, Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus cereus among them. Spores are resistant against different
external environment factors. That’s why, if tested material would be heated previously
and then inoculated in nutrient medium spore-forming bacteria would be grown.
3.
Resistance of microbes against acids and alkali. Some
microbes (Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Mycobacterium bovis) as a result
of their chemical structure features are resistant agains acids. That’s why
tested material with this bacteria previously is treated with 10 % sulfuric
acid and later inoculated on proper nutrient medium An extraneous flora
perishes, and mycobacteria as a result of their resistance to acids grow.
Vibrio ñholerae is a halophylic bacterium, and for its growth it is
inoculated in 1 % alkaline peptone water. Already in 4-6 hrs it growth like a
tender bluish pellicle on the surface of
medium.
4.
Bacteria motility. Some
microbes (Proteus vulgaris) have a
tendency to creeping growth and is able to spread quickly on the surface of
moist nutrient medium because they have flagella. So such bacteria are inoculated
in the drop of condensation liquid which appears after the cooling the slant
agar. In 16-18 hrs they spread on all surface of nutrient medium. If material
from the upper part of agar would be taken we will have a pure culture of
microbe.
5. A susceptibility of microbes to different
chemicals, antibiotics etc. As a result
of features of metabolism some bacteria have a different susceptibility to some
chemical factors. For example, staphylococci, aerobic bacilli can grow in
nutrient media which have 7,5–10 % to the sodium chloride. That is why for the
selection of these bacteria this substance is added into yalk-salt afar and
mannitol-salt agar for their selection. Other bacteria under the influence of
such concentration of sodium chloride do not grow practically.
Some
antibiotics (nistatin) is used for inhibition for pathogenic fungi
growth if it is necessary to obtain only bacteria. Adding the Penicillin in
nutrient medium inhibit the growth only gram-positive bacteria. Presence of
Furazolidon makes favorite condition for
Corynebacteria and Micriococci.
6.
Ability of microorganisms to penetrate through unharmed skin. Some
pathogenic bacteria (Yersinia pestis) as a result
of presence a lot of aggression enzymes are able to penetrate through an intact
skin. For this purpose body wool of laboratory animal is shaven and tested
material with different bacteria a rubbed in this skin area. Later some
microbes may be obtain from the blood or internal organs.
7. A sensitiveness of laboratory animals is to the
exciters of infectious diseases. Some laboratory animals show a high susceptibility
to the different microorganisms.
For example, after any method of Streptococcus pneumoniae introduction
into a mouse generalized pneumococcal infection are developed. An analogical
picture is observed after injection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis into
Guinean pig or Mycobacterium bovis into the rabbit.
• 8. Temperature optimum. The
cardinal temperatures:
- Minimum
- Optimum
- Maximum
Microorganisms can be grouped by the temperature
ranges they require
•
Psychrophiles, low
temperature optima (4°C) – Polaromonas vacuolata
•
Mesophils midrange (39°C)
– Escherichia coli
•
Thermophiles high
(60°C) – Bacillus stearothermophilus
•
Hyperthermophiles very high (>80°C) – Thermococcus celer
In everyday practice bacteriologists use such concepts
as a species, a strain and pure culture of microorganisms.
Species –
a collection of bacterial cells which share an overall similar pattern of
traits in contrast to other bacteria whose pattern differs significantly
A strain is a subset of a bacterial
species differing from other bacteria of the same species by some minor but
identifiable difference. A strain is "a population of organisms
that descends from a single organism or pure culture isolate. Strains within a
species may differ slightly from one another in many ways."
Culture: population of microorganisms grown under well defined conditions.
Pure culture – one that contains one type
of microorganism.
Isolation and identification of a pure culture
First day
1. Microscopic examination of the tested material.
2. Streaking of the material tested onto nutrient media (solid, liquid).
Second day
1. Investigation of the cultural properties.
2. Sub-inoculation of colonies onto solid media to enrich for a pure culture.
Third day
1. Checking of the purity of the isolated culture.
2. Investigation of biochemical properties: (a) sugarlytic, (b)
proteolytic.
3. Determination of antigenic properties.
4. Study of phagosensitivity, phagotyping, colicinogensitivity, colicinogenotyping,
sensitivity to antibiotics, and other properties.
Main Principles of the Cultivation of Microorganisms
Bacterial cultivation. In laboratory conditions microorganisms can be grown
in nutrient media in incubation chambers maintained at a constant temperature.
According to the type of heating, incubation chambers can be subdivided into
electric, gas and kerosene. Each incubation chamber has a thermoregulator which
maintains a constant temperature. Temperature conditions are of great
importance for the growth and reproduction of bacteria. In relation to
conditions of temperature all micro-organisms can be subdivided into three
groups: psychrophilic (Gk. psychros cold, philein love), mesophilic (Gk. mesos
intermediate), thermophilic (Gk. thermos warm). Microorganisms may reproduce
within a wide temperature regimen range of –10 to +80 °C.
Of great importance in the life activities of
bacteria is the concentration of hydrogen ions in the nutrient medium, i. e.
pH, which is expressed by the negative logarithm of the concentration of
hydrogeons. The pH characterizes the degree of acidity or alkalinity, from
extremely acid (pH 0) to extremely alkaline (pH 14) conditions.
During evolution each microbial species adapted
itself to existence within certain limits of hydrogen ion concentration beyond
the range of which its life processes are unable to take place; It has been
suggested that pH influences the activity of enzymes. Depending on the pH, weak
acids in an acid medium occur as molecules, and in an alkaline medium as ions.
Saprophytes can live in conditions within a wide range of a pH from 0.6 to
11.0, while pathogenic species of microbes grow within certain limits of
hydrogen ion concentration Nutrient media should be easily assimilable, and
they should contain a known amount of nitrogen and carbohydrate substances,
vitamins, a required salt concentration. In addition they should be isotonic,
and sterile, and they should have buffer properties, an optimal viscosity, and
a certain oxidation reduction potential.
During the whole history of microbiology nutrient
media have gradually been perfected. Before Pasteur only infusions and
decoctions were used as media for growing microbes. Pasteur and Nageli
introduced non-protein media for the cultivation of microbes. Koch and Loeffler
employed meat broth, peptone, and sodium chloride for growing microbes. This
medium is a meat-peptone broth from which meat-peptone agar is prepared by
adding 1-2 per cent industrial agar.
Agar (in
Malayan - jelly) is compact fibrous material produced from some seaweed, forms
in water solutions a solid gel. Agar contains 70-75% polysaccharides, 2-3%
proteins and other nitrogen-containing substances, 2-4% ashes. Main components
of agar high molecular weight substances — agarose and agaropectin. Agar
dissolves in water while heating and solidifies at room temperature. It is
manufactured as colourless plates or powder.
Because of the ability of agar upon cooling to give
the nutrient medium a solid gel consistency, and due to its high resistance
towards the microbial enzymes, it has received wide application in
bacteriological techniques for preparing semisolid, solid, and dry nutrient
media.
For the preparation of nutrient media M. Hottinger
suggested the use of products of the tryptic breakdown of proteins which do not
contain peptones, but contain the low molecular polypeptides and free amino
acids. L. Martin employed papain as an enzyme for the break-down of proteins.
In recent years all the essential amino acids and vitamins used for the
cultivation of bacteria have been obtained in a pure state.
Isolation
and Identification of Pure Culture of Aerobic Bacteria
First day. Prepare smears of the tested material and study them
under the microscope. Then, using a spatula or a bacteriological loop, streak
the material onto a solid medium in a Petri dish. This ensures mechanical
separation of microorganisms on the surface of the nutrient medium, which
allows for their growth in isolated colonies. In individual cases the material
to be studied is streaked onto the liquid enrichment medium and then
transferred to Petri dishes with a solid nutrient medium. Place these dishes in
a 37 0C incubator for 18-24 hrs.
Incubator
Second day. Following a 24-hour incubation, the cultural properties
of bacteria (nature of their growth on solid and liquid nutrient media) are
studied.
Macroscopic examination of
colonies in transmitted and reflected light. Turn the dish with its bottom to the eyes and
examine the colonies in transmitted light. In the presence of various types of
colonies count them and describe each of them. The following properties are
paid attention to; (a) size of
colonies (largo, 4-5 mm in diameter or more; medium, 2-4 mm; small, 1-2 mm;
minute, less than 1 mm); (b) configuration
of colonies {regularly or irregularly rounded, rosette-shaped, rhizoid, etc.);
(c) degree of transparency (non-transparent,
semitransparent, transparent).
In a reflected light, examine the colonies from the
top without opening the lid. The following data are registered in the protocol:
(a) colour of the colonies
(colourless, pigmented, the colour of the pigment); (b) nature of the surface (smooth, glassy, moist, wrinkled,
lustreless, dry, etc.); (c) position
of the colonies on the nutrient medium (protruding above the medium, submerged
into the medium; flat, at the level of the medium; flattened, slightly above
the medium).
Microscopic examination of colonies. Mount the dish,
bottom upward, on the stage of the microscope, lower the condenser, and, using
an 8 x objective, study the colonies, registering in the protocol their
structure (homogeneous or amorphous, granular, fibriliar, etc.) and the nature
of their edges (smooth, wavy, jagged, fringy, etc.).
Use some portion of the colonies to prepare
Gram-stained smears for microscopic examination. In the presence of uniform
bacteria, transfer the remainder of colonies to an agar slant for obtaining a
sufficient amount of pure culture. Place the test tubes with the inoculated
medium into a 37 °C incubator for 18-24 hrs.
Third day. Using the culture which has grown on the agar slant
prepare smears and stain them by the Gram method. Such characteristics as
homogeneity of the growth, form, size, and staining of microorganisms permit
definite judgement as to purity of the culture. To identify the isolated pure
culture, supplement the study of morphological, tinctorial, and cultural
features with determination of their enzymatic and antigenic attributes, phago-
and bacterio-cinosensitivity, toxigenicity, and other properties characterizing
their species specificity.
To demonstrate carbohydrate-splitting enzymes, Hiss'
media are utilized. When bacteria ferment carbohydrates with acid formation,
the colour of the medium changes due to the indicator present in it. Depending
on the kind and species of bacteria studied, select media with respective mono-
and disaccharides (glucose, lactose, maltose, sucrose), polysaccharides
(starch, glycogen, inulin), higher alcohols (glycerol, mannitol). In the
process of fermentation of the above substances aldehydes, acids, and gaseous
products (CO2, H2, etc.) are formed.
To demonstrate proteolytic enzymes in bacteria,
transfer the latter to a gelatin column. Allow the inoculated culture to stand
at room temperature (20-22 °C) for several days, recording not only the
development of liquefaction per se but its character as well (laminar, in the
form of a nail or a fir-tree, etc.)
Proteolytic action of enzymes
of microorganisms can also be observed following their streaking onto
coagulated serum, with depressions forming around colonies (liquefaction). A
casein clot is split in milk to form peptone, which is manifested by the fact
that milk turns yellowish (milk peptonization).
More profound splitting of protein is evidenced by
the formation of indol, ammonia, hydrogen sulphide, and other compounds. To
detect the gaseous substances, inoculate microorganisms into a meat-peptone
broth or in a 1 per cent peptone water. Leave the inoculated cultures in an
incubator for 24-72 hrs.
To demonstrate indol by Morel's method, soak narrow
strips of filter paper with hot saturated solution of oxalic acid (indicator paper)
and let them dry. Place the indicator paper between the test tube wall and
stopper so that it does not touch the streaked medium. When indol is released
by the 2nd-3rd day, the lower part of the paper strip turns pink as a result
of its interaction with oxalic acid.
The telltale sign of the presence of ammonia is a
change in the colour of a pink litmus paper fastened between the tube wall and
the stopper (it turns blue). Hydrogen sulphide is detected by means of a filter
paper strip saturated with lead acetate solution, which is fastened between
the tube wall and the stopper. Upon interaction between hydrogen sulphide and
lead acetate the paper darkens as a result of lead sulphide formation.
To determine catalase, pour 1-2 ml of a 1 per cent
hydrogen peroxide solution over the surface of a 24-hour culture of an agar
slant. The appearance of gas bubbles is considered as a positive reaction. Use
a culture known to contain catalase as a control.
The reduction ability of microorganisms is studied
using methylene blue, thinning, litmus, indigo carmine, neutral red, etc. Add
one of the above dyes to nutrient broth or agar. The medium decolorizes if the
microorganism has a reduction ability. The most widely employed is
Rothberger's medium (meat-peptone agar containing 1 per cent of glucose and
several drops of a saturated solution of neutral red). If the reaction is
positive, a red colour of the agar changes into yellow, yellow-green, and
fluorescent, while glucose fermentation is characterized by cracks in the
medium.
Antigen properties of the isolated culture are
investigated by the agglutination test and other serological tests.
Species identification of aerobic bacteria is performed
by comparing their morphological, cultural, biochemical, antigenic, and other
properties.
On solid nutrient media microbes form colonies of
different shapes and sizes which are
ggregations of individuals connected by bands of cytoplasm providing for a certain structure
of bacterial groupings. The colonies may be flat. convex, dome-shaped, or
pitted; their surface – smooth (S-forms). rough (R-forms). ridged, or bumpy;
their edges may be straight, serralcd. fibrous, or lasseled. The shape of the
colonies also differs: e.g. round, rosette-shaped, star-shaped, tree-like.
According lo their size the colonies may be divided into large (4-5 mm in
diameter), intermediate (2-4 mm), small (1-2 mm), and dwarf (less than 1 mm).
The colonies differ in their consistency, density,
and colour. They may be transparent and opaque, coloured and colourless, moist,
dry, and slimy.
In liquid nutrient media microbes grow producing a
duffuse suspen- sion. film. or precipitate visible to the naked eye.
The growth of bacteria in the laboratory is carried
out in test tubes, Petri dishes, and flasks.
In institutes for production of vaccines the
cultivation of aerobes is carried out by deep stab methods. This method permits
a more rational use of the nutrient substrate, and a large microbial mass can
be obtained. The cultures are grown in reactors. Aeration is produced by
passing a stream of air through the medium. The method of aeration is used in
laboratory investigations to promote rapid growth of bacteria and to study some
processes of metabolism.
Reproduction in microbes takes place more intensively
in a flowing nutrient medium which is constantly being renewed. For this
purpose a spare tank with nutrient medium is installed, from which the mediumenters the cultivator and is
carefully mixed with the culture.
Colonies of a different structure.
After this the excess of cultural fluid together with the suspended
bacterial cells flows out. When the rate of flow of cells from the cultivator
is equal to the rate of reproduction, the number of the microbial population
remains constant.
Modem plant equipment is supplied with devices for
automatic control over reproduction and other microbiological processes.
In usual laboratory conditions anaerobes develop in
stationary or portable anaerostats containing rarefied air up to 1-8 mm or in
vacuum desiccators.
Stationary anaerostat (jar)
Portable
anaerostat
For successfully cultivating anaerobes it is
necessary to seed a large amount of material into the nutrient medium. The nutrient
medium should have a certain viscosity which is attained by adding 0.2 per cent
agar. The air is removed by boiling prior to seeding, and to inhibit
thesubsequent entry of air, the medium is covered with a layer of oil 0.5-1 cm
thick. Anaerobiosis is obtained by the adsorption of oxygen on porous
substances (pumice, cotton wool, coal) and by adding reducing substances
(carbohydrates, peptone, cysteine. pieces of liver, spleen, kidneys, brain,
etc.). After seeding, the test tubes are filled up with liquid vaseline. Growth
of the anaerobes is usually carried out on a Kitt-Tarozzi
Isolation and identification of a pure culture
First day
1. Microscopic examination of the tested material.
2. Streaking of the material
tested onto nutrient media (solid, liquid).
Second day
1. Investigation of the cultural properties.
2. Sub-inoculation of colonies onto solid media to enrich for a pure
culture.
Third day
1. Checking of the purity of the isolated culture.
2. Investigation of biochemical properties: (a) sugarlytic, (b)
proteolytic.
3. Determination of antigenic properties.
4. Study of phagosensitivity, phagotyping, colicinogensitivity,
colicinogenotyping, sensitivity to antibiotics, and other properties.
With regards to obtaining microorganisms in pure
culture, are based on mechanical divorced of bacteria tested material inoculate
onto surface media in Petri dish by
bacteriological loop or pipette and after that streak plating evenly. After
that again that glass spatula (don’t burn through the flame) was used for
streak plating onto the same second media in Petri dish.The seeding has been
done by bacteriological loop too. With that purpose in upper part of Petri dish
has been made dense streaking, set free bacteriological loop from superfluous
material. After that are made paralel streaks at the last part of the agar.
Somever are applied method of laminar dilution, the matter of this method is a
stiring diferrent serial dillution tested materials with melting and colling
agar in tubes.After that its are flooded into Petri dishes and put down into
incubator.The tested materials are boiled of short duration or heat on 80 0C
for destroy bacteria without spores. The spores of microorganisms leave still
alive and ater reinoculate this materials they are grown.
Fortner method. The agar media is divided into two parts. Onto the one part inoculate
E.coli or Serratia marcescens (these microorganisms absorb intensively oxygen)
and onto second part taested material.
Closely stop up this Petri dish by parafin and put down into the thermostat.
This method is used for obtainig anerobe culture.
Reproduction
and Growth of Microorganisms
Reproduction in microbes constitutes the ability of
self-multiplication, i.e. the increase in the number of individuals per unit
volume The growth of micro-organisms represents the increase of the mass of
bacterial cytoplasm as a result of the synthesis of cellular material.
Bacteria reproduce by simple transverse division,
vegetative reproduction, which occurs in different planes and produces many
kinds of cells (clusters, chains, pairs, packets, etc.). They also reproduce by
budding, by means of the cleavage of segmented filaments, by reproducing cells
similar to spores, by producing minute motile conidia. And by conjugation,
which brings us closely to the concept of sexual reproduction in bacteria DNA
replication is an important condition in the process of amitotic binary fission
of bacteria, the hydrogen bonds are ruptured and two DNA strands are formed,
each one is contained in the daughter cells The single-stranded DNA are
eventually linked by means of hydrogen bonds and again form double-chain DNA
responsible for genetic information DNA replication and cell fission occur at a
definite rate characteristic of each species. Actinomycetes and many fungi
(phycomycetes, ascomycetes, etc) reproduce predominantly by sporulation
The transverse division of bacteria is not only a
process of cell division of one mother cell into two equal daughter cells, but
represents d constant separation of daughter cells from the mother cell, the
former in their turn become mother cells. After a certain number of
generations, the mother cells age and perish. This explanation has annulled the
metaphysical concept of 'bacterial immortality'.
The rate of cell division differs among bacteria It
depends on the species of microbe, the age of the culture, on the nutrient
medium, temperature, concentration of carbon dioxide, and on many other
factors.
The length of the generation off coli, Clostridium
perfringens, Streptococcus faecalis is 15 minutes, while for the cells of a
mammalian tissue culture it is 24 hours Thus, bacteria reproduce almost 100
times faster than cells of tissue culture The increase in the number of cells
can be expressed in the following way:
0— 1— 2— 3 — 4— 5— n number of generations
The total amount of bacteria (N) after n generations
will be equal to 2n per cell of seeded material If we take the original
amount of bacteria inoculated into the nutrient medium as a single individual,
and the time for one division as 30 minutes, then theoretically the total
amount of bacteria produced per 24 hours would be equal N=248. Upon
division every 20 minutes, in 36 hours the microbial mass will be equal to 400
tons. Thermophilic microbes divide even more rapidly.
However, in natural as well as in artificial
conditions, the reproduction of bacteria is of a considerably smaller scale. It
is limited by the effect of a number of environmental factors. Reproduction in
bacteria conforms to certain laws. Fig. 1 illustrates schematically the rate of
reproduction of bacteria in arbitrary units, and the size of the bacterial
population expressed as the logarithm of the numbers of live cells per
millimeter of the medium.
There are eight principal phases of reproduction
which are designated on the diagram by Roman numerals.
1. An initial stationary phase represents the time
from the moment of seeding the bacteria on the nutrient medium. Reproduction
does not occur in this phase. The length of the initial stationary phase after
seeding is 1-2 hours.
2. The lag phase of reproduction during which
bacterial reproduction is not intensive, while the growth rate is accelerated.
The second phase may last almost two hours.
3. Phase of exponential (logarithmic) growth which is
characterized by a maximal division rate and decrease in cell size. The length
of this period ranges from 5 to 6 hours.
4. Phase of negative growth acceleration during which
the rate of bacterial reproduction ceases to be maximal, and the number of
dividing cells diminishes. This phase lasts almost two hours.
5. A maximal stationary phase when the number of
newly produced bacteria is almost equal to the number of dead organisms. This
phase continues for two hours.
6. Accelerated death phase during which the
equilibrium between the stationary phase and the bacterial death rate is
interrupted. This continues for 3 hours.
7. Logarithmic death phase when the cells die at a
constant rate. This continues almost 5 hours.
8. Decelerated death-rate phase in which those cells
which remain alive enter a dormant state.
Graph of the reproduction of bacteria
The length of these phases is arbitrary, as it can vary depending on the
bacterial species and the conditions of cultivation. Thus, for example, the
colibacilli divide every 15-17 minutes, salmonellae of enteric fever — every 23
minutes, pathogenic streptococci — every 30 minutes, diphtheria bacilli — every 34 minutes and
tubercle bacilli — every 18 hours.
References
1. Review of Medical Microbiology
/E. Jawetz, J. Melnick, E. A. Adelberg/ Lange Medical Publication, Los Altos, California,
2002. – P.46-87.
2. Medical Microbiology and Immunology: Examination and
Board Rewiew /W. Levinson, E. Jawetz.– 2003.– P.14-16
3. Handbook on Microbiology. Laboratory diagnosis of
Infectious Disease/ Ed by Yu.S. Krivoshein, 1989, P. 29-74.
4. Essentials of Medical Microbiology / W.A. Volk at al., – Lippincott-Raven,
Philadelphia-New-York