Bacterial Growth Workshop

Bacterial Growth

The process of bacteria increasing in mass and volume, replicating their chromosome, and dividing under supportive conditions, mainly through binary fission.

Antimicrobial Agents

Substances that kill or inhibit the growth of microbes, with different types such as antiseptics, sterilants, disinfectants, and sanitisers.

Pure Culture

Growing bacteria in a controlled environment without contamination, typically done in batch culture or continuous (chemostat) culture.

Lag Phase

The initial phase of bacterial growth where cells adapt to a new environment before entering the log/exponential phase.

Log/Exponential Phase

The phase of rapid bacterial growth and division where growth rate is constant and cells are at their healthiest.

Stationary Phase

The phase where bacterial growth and division slow down due to nutrient depletion or waste accumulation, leading to a plateau in growth.

Death Phase

The phase where essential nutrients are exhausted, waste products reach toxic levels, and cell lysis occurs, resulting in a decrease in viable count.

Growth Curves

Representations of bacterial growth over time, showing different phases like lag, log, stationary, and death, aiding in understanding bacterial physiology and kinetics.

Optical Density (OD)

measuring bacterial growth by quantifying the amount of light scattered through a culture, used to estimate cell density.

Generation Time

The time taken for a population of cells to double in number, varying among species and culture conditions, and expressed in generations per hour.