Treponema pallidum, a pathogenic bacteria that is responsible for a dangerous multistage, sexually transmitted disease called Syphilis. This disease has been rapidly growing and is very easily infectious. Many people will mistaken it for a different disease and the average amount of time for symptoms to show is 21 days. It is curable within the first two stages, but once it moves onto the late/latent stages, it’s almost incurable due to damages that took place. There are more than one type of antibiotic to treat it and multiple different tests to determine if someone is infected with Syphilis. So even if this disease is easily contracted, there are preventative precautions that can be taken place and treatment that aren’t too difficult and time consuming. What is Treponema pallidum? This is a very thin and tightly coiled gram negative spirochete bacteria that grows where little oxygen is available according to Lori E. Fantry and Edmund C. Tramont (2014). This bacteria has periplasmic flagella and contains peptidoglycan outer complex membrane. Since they lack endotoxins, they make up for it by having lipoproteins which initiates inflammation. T. pallidum were originally thought to be an anaerobe, however it is now discovered that it is a microaerophilic. Since this microbe is so thin, it requires a dark field microscope to be viewed according to Radolph (1996). Similar bacteria to T. pallidum includes T. pallidum ssp. pertenue, T. pallidum ssp. endemicum, and Treponema
The purpose of this lab was to identify an unknown bacteria culture using differential tests. The identification of the unknown culture was accomplished by identifying the bacteria based on its specific metabolic characteristics and morphology. It is suggested that culture 11 is a sample of Enterobacter aerogenes.
The Unknown Bacteria 36/Bacteria # 2 on a TSA plate was examined by the naked eye and under a dissecting microscope. Bacteria # 2 was approximately 3 - 4 mm in diameter. They were circular in form with an entire margin and a flat elevation. The colonies were rough (granular), translucent, and white brownish color with black granules. The Gram stain resulted in a Gram negative rod. After the Gram stain was completed, the bacteria were streaked on an Eosin -Methylene Blue Agar plate and an Enterotube II was inoculated.
Syphilis is a rare sexually transmitted disease that causes serious health problems and complications if left untreated. This disease has stages and many symptoms. Both genders can contract it, but it can be cured and certainly prevented.
The next step of the project included preparing a Gram stain to discover the cell shape, arrangement, and if the bacteria is gram positive or
An unknown bacterium was handed out by the lab instructor. The methods that have been learned so far in identifying bacteria were applied to this unknown. Procedures were followed as stated in the lab manual and biochemical test handouts. The first procedure that was done was a gram stain followed by a streak of the unknown on a TSA plate in order to determine the gram reaction and observe the colony morphology. After that, specific biochemical tests were performed for gram positive, since unknown number five was determined to be gram positive rod. The other tests were performed in this order: Mannitol Salt (MSA) streak, Blood Agar streak, Catalase test, Nitrate Reduction test, and Phenyl
The first step toward identifying this unknown organism was to perform a Gram Stain to differentiate between gram positive and gram negative bacteria. This is an important step because it directs what the next tests will be. My Gram Stain on sample #12 showed that the bacteria was gram negative, however, after receiving the results of the OF glucose, H2S, Citrate, Urease and Motility tests, it was apparent that my Gram Stain was contaminated. I then performed a catalase test which came back negative, so I ordered a Bacitracin disc, Optochin disc and a CAMP test which had to be incubated overnight. After receipt of those test results,
Bacteria are ubiquitous; they can be found on the skin, in the soil, and inside the body. Because of the very nature of this ubiquity, it is important to be able to determine between different strains of bacteria. An example of this is determining the causative agent for a disease so that the patient will be treated with the appropriate antibiotics. It may be important to determine the bacteria in a certain region, because like with enteric bacteria, it is normal to find them in the digestive tract as they are in a symbiotic relationship with our bodies in this area; however, they also cause opportunistic infections in places outside of the digestive tract to our detriment, such as with a urinary tract infection. Some strains of bacteria are common to nosocomial infections, and identifying these bacteria as such helps create the guidelines for healthcare workers in antiseptic technique. All of the morphology and characteristics of each strain of bacteria help us to better understand the role of bacteria in the body as well as helps us understand how they can cause illness, and what treatment regimen to set in place. In lab this semester, a sample of unknown
The purpose of this study was to determine what an unknown bacteria was using several different microbiology lab techniques including an API test, an oxidase test, a gram stain, a hanging drop slide, and morphology identification. The unknown bacterium, which was contaminated with Serratia marcescens, was isolated by streaking the bacteria solution to single colonies. The isolated unknown white bacteria, had the appearance of circular form, convex elevation, entire margin, elongated cocci. The tests than showed that the bacteria was gram-negative, non-motile,
The main objective was to identify an unknown organism by utilizing skills we learned in our labs this semester. The purpose was to attain the possible identity of the unknown organism by actually performing biochemical tests and staining techniques we learned in lab. After performing and analyzing the results, we were able to use Bergey’s Manual of Systemic Bacteriology as a guideline to narrow down the genus of our organism test by test.
Methods and materials The first process of identifying the bacteria was obtaining a TSA plate and using the streak method called the three sector technique. The streak plate is used for the purpose of separating the two bacteria’s and establishing colonies as explained in the lab manual. The two plates were incubated at 37 degrees Celsius for a period of forty eight hours.
A highly conserved gene will be used to identify a prokaryotic species isolated from the body. Fundamental lab techniques will be also explored and utilized, such as amplifying using PCR, cloning, and transforming the gene into a host cell. DNA electrophoresis and specific substrate plating will serve as analysis check points. The final product will be sequenced and compared to similar species to observe phylogenetic relationships.
Taking the likely organisms to cause a particular wound or abcess or pneumonia and through the judicious choice of different culture media, a bateria can be quickly isolated identified.
The bacteria that was contained within Unknown tube #12 is believed to be Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Figure 1. The bacteria tested to be Gram Stain negative, producing a pink, red color retained from the staining process. When the species of bacteria was plated on nutrient media, the cells produced an irregular and spreading configuration as shown in Figure 2. This same plating test provided the margins and elevation, lobate and hilly, respectively. The specimen was stabbed in a Fluid Thioglycollate Medium (FTM) tube using an inoculated loop of the bacteria. The results of this experimentation indicate the type of oxygen requirement of the bacteria. The test found the bacteria to be aerobic as colonies of the bacteria began to form along the top of the FTM tube (Manual 2017).
These are gram positive bacteria which are found in acidic condition of pH 4 to 4.5 – acidophilic.
Although it is easily preventable, over 36,000 cases of syphilis are reported annually in the United States alone (“STD Facts-Syphilis” 2010). Treponema pallidum is the bacterium that causes syphilis. Being one of the most common STDs, syphilis is a bacterial sexually transmitted disease that acts quite differently from the other common STDs because it acts in stages. Fortunately, there are antibiotics to cure syphilis; however, there are not cures for the other health related problems that it causes.