orientation and safety, microscopes, and aseptic technique

Ubiquitous

present, appearing or found everywhere

Biosafety

application of safety precaution that reduce a laboratorian’s risk of exposure to a potentially infectious microbe and limit contamination of the work environment and, ultimately, the community

The biosafety levels in this lab

BSL-1 and BSL2

BSL-1

microbes are nonpathogenic and pose minimal risk to laboratory personnel and the environment.

BSL-2

Microbes that pose moderate hazards and are typically indigenous.

BSL-3

microbes are either indigenous or exotic, and they can cause serious or potentially lethal disease.

BSL-4

microbes are dangerous and exotic, posing high risk or aerosol-transmitted infections.

Simple Microscope

type of microscope uses a single lens for magnification of a sample.

Compound Microscope

type of microscope has more than one lens and has two optical parts known as objective lens, this microscope is also the one used in lab

Electron Microscope

type of microscope uses a beam of accelerated electron as the source of illumination

Stereo Microscope

type of microscope that provides a 3-D dimensional view of a specimen

Head/Body Tube

Holds the eyepiece and connects it to the objective lenses

Arm

supports the microscope head and connects it to the base; used for carrying the microscope

Base/foot

the bottom part that supports the microscope and keeps it steady

Nosepiece

The rotating part that holds the objective lenses and allows you to change magnification

Stage

The flat platform where you place the slide

Stage Clips

Hold the slide in place on the stage

Mechanical Stage Knob

Moves the slide left/right and forward/backward on the stage for better viewing

Iris Diaphragm

Controls the amount of light that passes through the specimen

Condenser

Focuses light onto the specimen to make it clearer

Coarse Adjustment Knob

Moves the stage up and down quickly to focus the image

Fine Adjustment Knob

Moves the stage slightly to sharpen the focus

Illuminator

the light source at the base that shines light through the specimen

Eyepiece/Ocular Lens

The lens you look through at the top of the microscope; usually magnifies 10x

Objective Lenses

Lenses with different powers (e.g., 4x, 10x, 40x) that magnify the specimen further

Resolving Power

the ability to distinguish close adjacent objects as being separate objects

Working Distance

the distance separating a specimen and the objective lens

Microscopic Field of View

the area on the slide one can observe while looking through the oculars

Parfocal

ability of a microscope to need only minor focus adjustments after the specimen is found and focused using the lowest power

Immersion oil

used when using 100x

The media

A nutrient-rich substance used to grow microorganisms, cells, or plants

Nutrient Broth

a liquid media that allows microbes to grow but have a limit amount of nutrients available

Solid Media

this can be a plate, a slant, or a deep. For growth and isolation of individual microbial colonies

Basic nutritional requirements

water, carbohydrates, proteins, lipids, trace elements

Agar

stabilizing thickening agent derived from seaweed

Turbidity

Cloudiness or haziness of a liquid caused by the growth of microorganisms or particles

Inoculum

small amount of bacteria sample

Inoculate

transfer the inoculum into a new growth medium

Aseptic Technique

fundamental to your safety and to the success of your lab experiment 

Streak Plate Dilution Method

the bacterial cells to be wide spread and isolated from other growth seen on the plateCo

Colony morphology

the shape, size, margin, elevation, odor, and color of the organism

Mixed Culture

a culture that contains more than one species of microbes

Pure Culture

a culture containing only one species of microbes

Inoculating Loop

Inoculating Needle

Transferring Pipette

Bunsen Burner

Spread Plate

Streak Plate

Colony Morphology

refers to the shape, size, margin, elevation, odor, and color of the microorganism