Science Buddies: "Ask an Expert"

Hello,

I am a junior high school student. This year I am taking the class Science Research and will be working on a project for the science fair next year. I have never competed in any science competitions before, and I am very new. I want to know how feasible my idea is before I begin planning what I want to do exactly.

My interest lies within microbiology. My idea so far is to try to study what type of bacteria would work best in breaking down plastic (or oil, whichever works). In general, I wanted to compare and contrast the certain the amount of plastic consumed by different types of bacteria. I did read some articles online about how scientists in Kyoto discovered Ideonella sakaiensiswhich can break down common plastic such as polyethylene found in plastic bottles. I have also found that inside the greater wax moth, bacteria, Galleria mellonella have an enzyme that can also break down polyethylene as well.

During a discussion with some other students at school, I learned that I can ask certain colleges nearby if I can use their labs for my experiment. Hopefully I can get one in time to work on my project.

Overall, I am still confused and / or unclear about how I can learn to do the following:

i. How to maintain the bacteria in the labs (using a Petri dish, I think?)
ii. How I can measure the consumption of plastic (I think I can use a scale to measure the grams)
iii. How I can get the bacteria (I'm not sure of the availability)

I am very open to any suggestions, criticisms, or other comments you would like to share with me on this topic.

Thank you for your help.

Hi! I did an independent science research project in high school, so I understand that it can be tough to know where to begin.

Your project sounds interesting and important, so I think you're off to a great start! Your classmates are right that your best bet will be to search local colleges and universities to see if they have any professors who are doing research related to your interests. Depending on where you live, nearby biotech companies and/or government labs (such as your state's Department of Health or Department of Environmental Conservation) would also be great places to look for labs doing research you're interested in. Once you've identified people doing work you're interested in, email or call them to introduce yourself and ask if they might be willing to have you volunteer in their labs. Even if they themselves can't take you, they may also be able to direct you to someone who can.

In terms of your specific questions on how to obtain and maintain the bacteria, how to measure plastic consumption, etc.-- that's going to depend on exactly the type of work your lab is doing, but they'll have or be able to get all of the materials you'll need, as well as train you on the relevant techniques.

Good luck!

Hi,

Just to add onto the other expert’s great response, I wanted to address some of your specific questions. Conventionally, bacteria can be stored in the lab on Agar plates, Stab cultures, or a Standard freezer. The storage type depends on how long the bacteria need to be stored, which in turn depends on storage temperature. A scale or balance would work to measure the consumption of plastic, and the analytical balance is most commonly used for measurements in laboratories. In response to your last question, you may want to research other bacteria like Ideonella sakaiensiswhich, which can break down plastic; I found that Pseudomonas is another strain of bacteria that can break down plastic. The Carolina Biological Supply is a source that Science Buddies recommends, and has a wide variety of bacteria.

Good luck and let us know if you have any more questions!
~Catherine M.

Thank you for all of your help on my last post. I was able to formulate my idea better and identify what I should be aware of for my science project.

For my project (what kind of bacteria breaks down plastic the best), I am thinking of conducting my experiments at home out of convenience.

In my last post, one of the experts told me that I would be able to use agar plates, stab cultures, or a standard freezer to maintain my bacteria, but then again, that also depends on how long I'm planning on storing my bacteria and at what temperature I would be holding them.

In order to measure how much plastic the bacteria consumed, would I be able to store the plastic (possible small strips of plastic) in a container with the bacteria, and then measure the plastic using a scale during certain intervals? Or would that not be feasible?

Also, I found a project very similar to what I plan on doing. Another student named Daniel Burd has his science report online called "Plastic Not Fantastic" and included detailed descriptions on what he did during his experiment, where he had actually ground up the plastic strips and put them in a container with the bacteria to be continuously shaken by a machine.

I can't necessarily find any labs at the moment, and my science research teacher at my school suggested that conducting this experiment at home would be best.

I would like to base my project off of Burd's. How would I go about adjusting my project so that I can conduct it at home?

Thank you all again for your help!

UPDATE: I have found that Pseudomonas aeruginosa (a plastic-eating bacteria) and Greater Wax Moth Larvae (contain Galleria mellonella, which can break down plastic with enzymes) on Carolina.com. To change the project so that I can perform it at home, would it be possible for me to put strips of plastic with the greater wax moth larvae and measure how much bacteria could be eaten? Can I use this to compare against Pseudomonas aeruginosa as well?

moderator's note: I merged this post with your previous post so that the experts who were helping you can more easily see your follow-up question. Please keep your posts together in the same topic! Thank you.