Microbial culture

Microbial Culture is a method of multiplying microbial organisms by letting them reproduce in predetermined culture media under controlled laboratory conditions. Microbial cultures are foundational and basic diagnostic methods in microbiology used extensively for identifying unknown bacteria, fungi, and viruses.

History

The concept of microbial culture was proposed in the 19th century after the advancement of microbiology by Robert Koch and his colleagues. They were the first to develop techniques of growing microbes in pure culture, which led to the birth of modern bacteriology.

Types of Microbial Culture

There are several types of microbial cultures, including:

• Pure culture: This is a culture that contains a single species of microorganism. The methods used to achieve this are streaking, pour plate, and spread plate.

• Mixed culture: This is a microbial culture that contains two or more species.

• Enrichment culture: This is a culture medium with specific and known nutrients that favor the growth of a particular microorganism.

Techniques

There are several techniques used in microbial culture, including:

• Streaking: This is a technique used to isolate a pure strain from a single species of microorganism.

• Pour plate: This is a method used to culture microorganisms in which the sample is suspended in a petri dish and solid medium is then poured in.

• Spread plate: This is a method used to grow bacteria on a solid medium that has been spread over the surface of the medium.

Applications

Microbial cultures are used in a variety of applications, including:

• Microbiology: Microbial cultures are used extensively in microbiology for identifying unknown bacteria, fungi, and viruses.

• Biotechnology: In biotechnology, microbial cultures are used in the production of pharmaceuticals, the design of new vaccines, and the development of biofuels.

• Food industry: In the food industry, microbial cultures are used in the production of yogurt, cheese, and other fermented foods.

See Also

• Microbiology
• Biotechnology
• Food industry

References

Microbial culture Resources
Latest articles Most recent articles Ongoing trials	Wikipedia