Which Bacteriophage is better at killing Bacteria?

[deleted-299669]

Hi, my science fair project is on Which Bacteriophage is better at killing Bacteria. I am wondering where I should get the materials. I need to get these items:
0.25-mL of the bacterial culture was micropipetted into a vial containing 3-mL of soft agar and 0.1-mL of a dilution of a strain of bacteriophage. The mixture was distributed evenly on an agar plate and the process was repeated for all of the other combinations of bacterial strain, phage strain, and phage dilution. The number of plaques was recorded at 12 and 36 hours for all of the plates.

Budget is not a problem for me. Please answer as soon as possible!!!

[SciB]

I looked on Scibuddies for a project on bacteriophage and found one--Biowarfare: Experiments with viruses that destroy bacteria (https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science- ... ml#summary). Is this the project you are doing?

If you click the MATERIALS tab there is a link to a company ( http://www.wardsci.com) that sells the bacteria (E coli, in this case), virus and materials necessary to do the experiment. I tried using the part # given in the project guide and it must have been discontinued, so i just did a search for 'phage' and got a listing of what they have: https://www.wardsci.com/store/search/se ... searchForm

Wards has the E coli phages T2, T4, T7 and Phi-X174, which should give you enough different types for a good comparison. I think your school would have to order these as they probably cannot be sent to an individual.

You really can't do this experiment at home unless you have a 37C incubator, a water bath, pipetters, Petri dishes, a way to sterilize agar and count viral plaques, etc. Do you have access to a lab and a person familiar with bacterial culturing and virus titering? That would be the best way to do an advanced project like this.

Let us know what you want to do and we'll help you plan it.

Good luck!

Sybee

[deleted-299669]

Hi Sybee,

First of all thank you so much for your help, and yes that is my science fair project. Is it possible if I go to a college and do the experiment. The problem is that I am only eleven and I am in 7th grade. I don't know whether they would let me go in at all. Do you know anything I can do. I can buy the materials and thank you so much for the material lists. I will get it at soon as I figure out where I will do the experiment. If you or anyone else has any ideas please tell me know as soon as possible.

Thanks,
Shouka

[SciB]

Hi Shouka. You are welcome--I'm happy to try and help you.

You can experiment with E coli bacteria at home but you would have to buy the E coli culture, agar, petri dishes and the bacterial viruses (bacteriophages). Ward's is one supplier of these items but I would also check out Carolina Biologicals (http://www.carolina.com/browse/product- ... ubmit=true).

Finding a university lab to work in and a mentor to teach and supervise you is possible, but locating one within a reasonable distance from your home that happens to be working with bacteriophage and would be able to take on a student would be a long-shot. Does your school have at least a basic biology lab that you can use for experiments? I think that would be your easiest choice. If your school doesn't have a lab then you can set one up at home. I have always had a home lab because I like to tinker and experiment and it makes doing science projects so much easier when you have the basic lab equipment already.

So, let us know how you want to do this. The Scibuddies project guides have just about all the information you need for working safely with E coli bacteria and the methods are easy to learn. YouTube has a bunch of helpful videos that show you in detail how to grow, plate and count bacteria.

Post again with more questions and we'll guide you on your project.

Good luck!

Sybee

[deleted-299669]

Hi Sybee,

I was wondering if you can help me with one more question.

What culture medium will it be used in?

Please respond ASAP!!!

Thanks,
Shouka

[deleted-288920]

Hi There!

This sounds like a very interesting project. If you are looking for culture medium to grow E. coli k12. I would suggest a nutrient agar which can be found here for purchased on Carolina Bio website: http://www.carolina.com/prepared-biolog ... rient+agar

Since I'm not sure where you are in your project, have you checked out some of the resources on Science Buddies for culturing bacteria? Here is some more information on agar: https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science- ... Agar.shtml and some information on basic microbiology techniques: https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science- ... ques.shtml

I hope this helps! Please let us know and good luck with your project.

Nikki

[SciB]

Hi Shouka,

If you look at the Materials section for the 'Biowarfare' project (http://csmbio.csm.jmu.edu/biology/cours ... lation.htm) it specifies that you use tryptic soy broth and agar for your cultures. While nutrient broth and agar might work ok, I would stick with what the procedure says just to be sure.

Tryptic soy agar, Ward's Science item # 88 V 1815
Soft soy agar, Ward's Science item # 88 V 0818
Tryptic soy broth, Ward's Science item # 88 V 1817

Be sure you read the instructions and follow them carefully. Any more questions?

Sybee