Science Buddies: "Ask an Expert"

Hi! I am doing a science project on bacteriophages and e. coli. I know there are several types of bacteriophages that attack e. coli, such as the T-4 bacteriophage and lambda bacteriophages. I also know that the difference between them is the way they kill e. coli, one through the lytic cycle and the other through the lysogenic cycle. I was wondering whether the difference in their attack methods plays a role in determining how effective the phage is in killing the bacteria. I don't know if there is any correlation between the two, so I wanted to know if it would be a good idea to test it.

Hi E.C.,

Welcome to Science Buddies! “What is the best way to kill E. coli?” You have an original and incredibly excellent idea for a science project.

Since this is an original idea, some background research is needed to learn more about the two mechanisms of lysing E. coli. You need to know the details of what other researchers have found so that you can design a carefully controlled experiment to compare the differences. .

I recommend looking up Google Scholar and look for published references on the topic. You won’t have access to many of the articles, but read the abstracts so get information. For the papers that you can access, check out the materials and methods sections to find out how to do an experiment.

Here is a link to a project from this website that is related to your project. It contains background information as well as a procedure that you may be able to adapt for your project

https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science- ... p029.shtml

You are in the “getting started” stage of doing a project. It may take a few days, but it is definitely worthwhile to spend some time to get as much information on your topic as possible. You will want to ask a project question that will be answered by your experiment:

https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science- ... ndex.shtml

Please let me know what you find. Also, please let me know if you have access to a lab where you can grow E. coli and bacteriophage. I will also search for ideas and post again.

Donna Hardy