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Microorganisms Found On Dam Water Were Causing Pathogens Essay

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The results of the experiment supported the aim by identifying whether or not microorganisms found in dam water were disease- causing pathogens. The pathogens that were identified are opportunistic and can cause disease to the host by interrupting normal bodily functions.

Specimens may contain several species of organisms and therefore primary isolation allows the identification of specific bacteria to be accurate.7 By isolating the organism in nutrient agar, two separate colonies of bacteria were identified. Unknown microorganism one had a red pigment called prodigiosin produced by secondary metabolic activities of some microorganisms at temperatures lower then 37℃.8 This compared to microorganism two which had a cream/ light blue pigment called pyocyanin, a toxin produced and secreted by the organism clearly exhibits that two individual organisms were present.9 Due to the red pigment of microorganism one all bacteria except Pseudoalteromonas rubra, Serratia marcescens, Vibrio ruber, and Hahella chejuensis can be excluded.8 The light blue pigment on the second organism can exclude all bacteria except Pseudomonas aeruginosa.9

Using a differential stain then allows bacteria to be divided into two groups: Gram positive, which retain the crystal- violet dye due to a thick peptidoglycan layer and Gram negative which can be decolourised to allow a counterstain of safranin.10 This is due to a thin peptidoglycan layer and an additional outer membrane composed by phospholipids

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