Bacterial Growth

Flashcards covering key vocabulary and concepts related to bacterial growth, binary fission, growth curves, and measurement techniques.

Binary Fission

The way in which bacteria reproduce, where one cell splits into two daughter cells or clones.

Generation Time/Doubling Time

The time it takes for one bacterial cell to become two cells, or the time it takes for the number of bacterial cells to double.

Logarithmic Scale (Log)

A mathematical function that deals with big numbers, indicating how many times you can divide a given number by 10 until you get to 1.

Classical Bacterial Growth Curve

Consists of 4 phases: Lag, Log, Stationary, and Death, determined by measuring turbidity or viable counts.

Spectrophotometer

An instrument used to measure the turbidity of a bacterial cell population in broth culture.

Viable Counts

A method of measuring the actual number of bacterial cells present in a culture.