Because microorganisms are so small,
sometimes very large colonies of them are necessary for any kind of
experimentation or to determine treatment for disease. To get populations big
enough to be studied, scientist have to be able to grow them efficiently, and
to do that they use culture media. While the culture media used are in liquid
or gelatinous form, often culture media are sold and shipped as dehydrated
powders so that they can be mixed up as necessary. It is also important for
researchers to know what nutrients suspected pathogens need in order to grow
them.
When researchers know how to
successfully grow pathogens in a growth medium, they can gain insight into how
these substances are harmful. As an example, pseudomonas aeruginosa, a pathogen
found in cystic fibrosis patients and burn patients express their genes for
virulence in conditions of medium or low iron. Therefore, when a culture is
done from one of these patients in a low iron culture, growth of the organisms
signal that they are present inside a host and can influence the types of
treatment a patient receives.
To determine what goes into a
dehydrated culture medium, it is necessary to know the nutritional requirements
of the cells that are to be cultured. Once these structures are broken down,
they are found to be made up of lipids, amino acids, nucleic acids, sugars, and
other compounds. Knowing the chemical formulations of these compounds allows
scientists to make an accurate estimate of the cell’s nutritional requirements.
Over time, a body of knowledge is
created about strains of bacteria or other microorganisms and their nutritional
needs. Culture media are fine-tuned for specific applications. Dehydrated
culture media are manufactured for convenience of researchers. With dehydrated
media, researchers can mix up custom quantities that are tailored to their
unique research needs.
P&R Labpak supply a range of media to suit all applications.
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