Sterilization is defined as any process by which objects, materials or an environment may be rendered sterile (i.e. completely free from all forms of life). Sterilization is the process by which all living cells, viable spores, viruses and viroids are either destroyed or removed from an object or habitat. It is essential for all fermentation […]
STERILIZATION TECHNIQUES IN INDUSTRIAL MICROBIOLOGY Read More »
Industrial Microbiology
Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are a group of Gram positive, non-sporing bacteria that carryout lactic acid fermentation of carbohydrates or sugars. Lactic acid fermentation is a type of fermentation carried out by LAB in which sugars including glucose, lactose and pentoses are converted to lactic acids or a mixture of lactic acids and other products.
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Industrial Microbiology
The population of microorganisms in the soil are affected or influenced by many factors including soil moisture, pH, temperature, aeration, and amounts of organic and inorganic nutrients. Mesophiles (mesophilic microbes) grow at temperature range of 25-35oC while thermophiles (thermophilic microbes) grow at higher temperatures such as 45-65oC and above. Psychrophiles are microbes that thrive
Factors that affect microbial population in the soil Read More »
Environmental & Soil Microbiology
The soil is that part of the earth crust or earth that supports plant life. It is the region of the earth surface from which plants and crops derive their nutrients and support. The environment of the soil contains different array of microorganisms including bacteria, fungi, algae, protozoa and actinomycetes. These microbes play a variety
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Environmental & Soil Microbiology
Quality control strains (or reference strains)are typed cultures of microorganisms with known antimicrobial susceptibility patterns and which are used to ensure consistency, accuracy and reproducibility of a particular susceptibility test. They are important in any disk diffusion test because susceptibility tests are affected by plethora of factors such as incubation temperature, size of the test
STANDARD QUALITY CONTROL STRAINS FOR ANTIBIOGRAM Read More »
Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing (AST) & Antibiogram
McFarland Turbidity Standard is an important technique performed in the microbiology laboratory especially when carrying out antimicrobial susceptibility studies. It is a turbid solution that contains a mixture of barium salt, distilled water and tetraoxosulphate (VI) acid (H2SO4). McFarland turbidity standard is used to compare and balance the turbidity of both the test and control
PREPARATION OF 0.5 McFARLAND TURBIDITY STANDARDS Read More »
Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing (AST) & Antibiogram
Isoniazid or isonicotinyl hydrazine (INH) is a first-line antibiotic used for the treatment of tuberculosis (TB), a droplet bacterial infection caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis. TB is a highly infectious diseases that is mainly spread via the respiratory tract of infected persons to susceptible human hosts through sneezes, cough and saliva or aerosols that contain the
ISONIAZID – anti-tuberculosis (TB) drug Read More »
Antimicrobial Agents & Antibiotics, Pharmaceutical Microbiology
Chloramphenicol is a protein synthesis inhibitor but the antibiotic unlike other drugs that interfere with bacterial protein biosynthesis (e.g. tetracycline and aminoglycosides) binds to the 50S ribosomal subunit of the target bacterial ribosome the same manner that macrolides (e.g. erythromycin) exhibit their antibacterial activity. Chloramphenicol and erythromycin exhibit similar modes of antibacterial action or activity
Below are some of the major ways through which bacteria pass on their antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) to other susceptible non–resistant bacteria in their environment: TRANSDUCTION Transduction is simply defined as the transfer of genetic material (i.e. exogenous or foreign DNA molecule) between bacteria by bacteriophages (bacterial viruses). It is the transfer of DNA
MECHANISMS OF TRANSFER OF RESISTANCE GENES IN BACTERIA Read More »
Antibiotic Resistance / Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR), Antimicrobial Agents & Antibiotics, Pharmaceutical Microbiology
Genetic resistance of microbes to antibiotics is due to a chromosomal mutation in the bacterial DNA or acquisition of antibiotic resistance genes on plasmids or transposons from other bacteria. Bacteria are extremely ingenious in becoming resistant to antibiotics directed towards them because they are able to regulate their drug resistance genes over time. This is
GENETIC BASIS OF ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE Read More »
Antibiotic Resistance / Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR), Antimicrobial Agents & Antibiotics, Pharmaceutical Microbiology