Unknowns Assignment
Unknown Organism #1
I received a culture plate from an assisted living home that reported an outbreak of an illness, known as systemic inflammatory response syndrome, has affected twenty two residents, causing ten to die of renal failure.
Upon receiving the culture, I noted that it was a beta hemolytic organism. After recording my observations, I performed a gram stain to determine what type of organism I was viewing. I detected purple, coccus shapes, and concluded the sample was gram positive, therefore I chose not to perform any gram negative testing. I immediately ordered and performed a catalase test to differentiate streptococcus from staphylococcus, and noted that the organism was catalase positive. From this data, I could conclude that it was a staphylococcus bacteria, therefore I didn’t need to perform any testing for a catalase negative bacteria. I then ordered and performed a coagulase test. Subsequently, I was able to conclude the organism was staphylococcus aureus.
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However, it is an opportunistic bacteria, and can easily become pathogenic when given the opportunity, as when there is damage to the skin. It most prevalently causes skin diseases, such as impetigo or cellulitis, but can also cause food poisoning when the food is not stored or handled properly. The bacteria multiple quickly, and produce a toxin causing symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, loss of appetite, and mild fever (Staphylococcus). It can also cause bacteremia, which is bacteria in your bloodstream, and lead to sepsis, infective endocarditis, pneumonia, osteomyelitis, and renal
Unknown 10b is Staphylococcus epidermidis. According to Bergey’s Manual Staphylococcus bacteria are gram positive spherical cells that occur singly, in pairs or in irregular clusters. Unknown 10b was gram positive, spherical and occurred in clusters. Bergey’s Manual also says the bacteria grow well in high salt concentrations. Unknown 10b grew well on the mannitol salt agar. The optimum growing temperature is 30-37 degrees Celsius (Bergey’s Manual). Unknown 10b grew best at 37 degrees Celsius. The lab manual and past lab results confirmed all other test results. Unknown 10b was only able to use gamma lysis, it was unable to ferment mannitol and had no coagulase activity. When comparing to past labs it is confirmed that Unknown 10b is Staphylococcus epidermidis.
VanderBent, S. D. (2009, September). Home Care and Pandemic Flu. In Ontario Home Care Association Bringing Health Care Home. Retrieved March 10, 2014, from https://www.homecareontario.ca/public/docs/publications/position%20papers/2009/Home-Care-and-Pandemic-Flu.pdf
Streak plate technique was used to isolate pure culture for each bacteria (2). The Gram stain was used to determine Gram reaction and morphology of each bacteria (2) Selective and differential media such as, salt agar, MacConkey agar and blood agar were used for bacterial identification (2). Gelatin deeps were inoculated to detect production of gelatinase (2). Starch Agar plate were inoculated to detect amylase (2). Ocular reticle used to determine bacteria size (2). Motility deeps were inoculated to detect motility on bacteria (2). Thioglycollate broth used to determine oxygen requirements (2). Carbohydrate fermentation
I also inoculated a tryptic soy broth (TSB), a nutrient gelatin deep, a motility agar deep, a fluid thioglycollate medium (FTM) tube, and a TSA plate with my unknown culture. All of these inoculated media were incubated until the next class period (about 48 hours). Then when I came to class most of my inoculated tubes and my streak plate appeared to have growth. The next step I took was making a gram stain to determine the gram reaction and cellular morphology of my unknown. I used my working slant to do this, after careful examination of the gram stain, I learned that my unknown was a gram-positive bacterium. I then preceded by making a negative stain to see the size of the cells of my unknown bacteria. The cell shape was cocci and the cells occurred in clusters of tetrads. After discovering that my unknown bacteria was gram-positive cocci, I turned to page 207 of the lab manual to narrow down my options, there was only four out of the gram-positive list that were
The disease, botulism, which is caused by Clostridium botulinium, is an emerging infectious disease. Clostridium botulinium is a bacterium that produces a neurotoxin that causes botulism. The bacterium is spore-forming, and anaerobic, meaning it does not need oxygen to grow. There are three main types of illnesses that Clostridium botulinium typically cause: Food-borne botulism, infant botulism, and wound botulism. Unbeknownst to common knowledge, infant botulism is the most common form of the disease, consisting of seventy-five percent of the reported cases of the disease (Chan-Tack, & Bartlett, 2010).
mutans was problematic due to its difference with Bergey’s Manual result for the catalase test. However, after comparing it with a peers results, it seems very possible that the strain we are working with varies from the strain used in Bergey’s. Bacteria possess the ability to develop varying phenotypes within the same species due to frequent mutation and horizontal gene transfer. Therefore, it is possible that the results obtained in our lab may vary from those provided in Bergey’s Manual. Arriving to the conclusion that the Gram negative bacteria was Klebsiella pneumoniae was much more direct. Using Bergey’s Flowchart for identification, the bacteria shared the test results and had a similar shape and
there may be many more people with the disease than are reported. Lauer’s data is not welcome news for communities. “Imagine you owned that house there”—she pointed out the window to an upscale tract home—“and I took a sample and found the valley-fever fungus.... ...
Necrotizing fasciitis, known commonly known as "flesh eating bacteria [infection]", occurs in a wide range of people 1. It occurs in the elderly, middle aged and younger patients. It occurs in athletes and debilitated individuals. It can occur in drug abusers with self inflicted wounds and healthy individuals with incidental injuries. It may occur in those with metabolic disorders such as diabetes and those with suppressed immune systems. It may occur in those with no underlying disorders and no known particular injury. It occurs under ordinary circumstances such as a seemingly harmless cut or scrape and in wounds resulting from major trauma such as an auto accident.
Salmonella is one of the most common causes of food poisoning. It is a gram-negative, aerobic (oxygen requiring), rod-shaped bacterium that can infect humans, birds, reptiles, and other animals. It results in the swelling of the lining of the stomach and intestines. Salmonella food poisoning occurs worldwide, however it is most frequently reported in North America and Europe. In the United States, Salmonella is responsible for about 15% of all cases of food poisoning (Salmonella food poisoning).
Bacillus anthracis or anthrax is bacteria that infect thousands of people a year worldwide. Mostly found in the hinds and hair of grazing animals like cattle and sheep, the bacteria can stay dormant for years until contacted. Contact can occur through broken skin, eating infected meat, or inhaling infected dust from hides through the mouth or nostrils. Normal contact through the skin begins forming malignant skin ulcers that are dark black in appearance. If left untreated, the blisters lead to blood poisoning and eventually death. Eating contaminated meat not fully cooked can cause intestinal infection also leading to death. Surprisingly, many people survive contact of the skin and very few cases of intestinal infection exist. However, inhalation of infected dust or spores are much more deadly because the symptoms resemble a common cold...
I identified the genus and species of an unknown bacterial culture, #16, and I applied the following knowledge of morphologic, cultural and metabolic characteristics of the unknown microorganism according to the laboratory manual as well as my class notes and power point print outs. I was given an incubated agar slant labeled #16 and a rack of different tests to either examine or perform myself; the tests are as follows: Gram Stain; Nutrient Gelatin Test; Carbohydrate Fermentation; Dextrose, Lactose and Sucrose; IMVIC tests; Citrate, Indole, Mythel-Red and Vogues Proskauer test; as well as a Urease and TSI Test. Materials and Methods/Results Upon receiving the Microorganism (M.O.) #16, I prepared a slide by cleaning and drying it. Then, using a bottle of water I placed a sterile drop of water on the slide and used an inoculating loop, flame sterilized, I took a small sample of the unknown growth in my agar slant and smeared it onto the slide in a dime sized circle and then heat fixed it for ten minutes.
wards. Clinical Microbiology And Infection: The Official Publication Of The European Society Of Clinical Microbiology And Infectious Diseases, 18(12), 1215-1217. doi:10.1111/j.1469-0691.2011.03735.x
II) To test for Cellulitis you would do a physical exam that can reveal redness, swelling, warmth of the skin, swollen glands, or possible drainage, if there is an infection. You would also do a blood culture, complete blood count, and a culture of any fluid or material inside the infected area. We would do a blood test to see if the kidneys or liver are failing, this can be an effect of Cellulitis. The patient received blood tests already, but the blood tests came back negative. The blood pressure of the patient was 90/50, which is significantly low, and is also a symptom of Cellulitis. Cellulitis can also come from edema, which explains why the patient had edema in his right leg.
Arthropods are animals belonging to the phylum Arthropoda, which is the largest of all phyla in the Animal Kingdom, with more than one million species, making them almost 80% of the whole kingdom. These include insects, arachnids, crustaceans and many more, most of which are quite small, the biggest being the Japanese Spider Crab with a leg span of 3.5 meters and the smallest being the microscopic Plankton.
stains on sputum’s and body fluids, and have completed a few AFB cultures. Apart from