artificial selection

C

coluber

Registered Senior Member
Hello I just wanted to ask your opinion on a certain experiment I’m working on and maybe some advice.


I’m hoping with the use of artificial selection to breed bacteria that is almost completely resistant to the basic types of antibiotics, and to get my different cultures to use bacterial conjugation to shorten this experiment, does anyone know how to encourage them to trade copies of the resistance gene to the different antibiotics. Or anything that would help keep the bacteria from getting out if they do get out and spread the resistance gene then there would be another problem like streptolacocus (however it is you spell that).
:confused:
 
The best way to do it is engineer a plasmid with the genes you want, and induce transformation of the vector. This requires some basic cloning, but shouldn't too difficult. To select for these bacteria, simply plate them on nutrient agar plates with the antibiotics in the agar...the ones that are resistant will grow.

Autoclave everything, and you should be able to control spread. Don't pour/rinse anything off that may be contaminated down/in the sink.
 
i don't think i have the equipment for basic genetic engeniering do you know where i can buy some
 
Nice idea, but.....

Coluber, I get the distinct impression from the things you have said that you are a high school student looking for an interesting school project. Is that correct?

The experiment you have outlined is always a very interesting one. In fact, this exact evolution of antibiotic resistance experiment is commonly performed by undergrads in microbiology practical classes. I did it as an undergrad. However, it requires a dedicated microbiology lab with all the associated equipment and biohazard facilities. This experiment is not something you can do at home and it’s unlikely that a high school science classroom will have all the necessary reagents, equipment and expertise.
 
your right im just a high school student intrested in biology, but can't genetic engeinering be avoided i can simply grow them in nutrient agre dishes with antibiotic soaked discs and the ones which are most resistant should survive to pass on the trait. There will be multiple augre dishes with diffrent anti-biotics and by mixing the surviving bacteria of the diffrent populations im hoping that they will give each other copies of this gene and end up with an immune population. are you a collage student or a scientist or justsomeone thats intrested in genetics.
 
excuse my spelling i have only been in this country for a few years and am just a bad typer in general
 
Hi Coluber,

I understand perfectly the experiment that you are thinking about. I understand that it has nothing to do with genetic engineering.

But, you have not done this sort of microbiology experiment before so you do not seem to appreciate the extensive amount of equipment and reagents that you need. Yes, the experimental concept is a simple one, but it can only be done when there is a microbiology department to back you up and provide all the materials.

Let’s look at some of your ideas….


<I>>>>i can simply grow them in nutrient agre dishes</I>

Simply grow them??? Where are you going to get your sterile agar plates? How are you going to make your media? Where are you going to get your bacteria? What species are you going to use? How are you going to grow your colonies and cultures?


<I>>>>with antibiotic soaked discs</I>

Where are you going to get your antibiotics? How are you going to prepare them? How are you going to sterilize them? How are you going to dilute them?


<I>>>>and the ones which are most resistant should survive to pass on the trait.</I>

How are you going to harvest the bacteria that survive each round of antibiotic treatment? How are you going to dispose of all your biohazard bacterial waste?


You will need pipettes, pipette tips, beakers, eppindorf tubes, bunsens, a laminar flow hood, a 37 degree incubator, a freezer and a whole lot of other stuff that would take too long to list.
 
I never realized how privileged I was. I could to that experiment tomorrow if I wanted too.


If you are looking at an accesible organism then you might want to turn your attention to yeast. It is readily available in high and pure concentrations in any store.
 
yeast? he’s try to breed antibiotic resistances.

Grow your bugs in a continuous nutrient feed tank. This will reduce the amount of cleanings and chances of spreading the little buggers. Depending on the strain of bacteria you can induce them to trade plasmids. You should ask a bacteriologist for strains and growth media of choice.
 
what? The guy does not have access to university equipment, I remember in cell biology do all that, it can't be that expensive, a $4000 grant would more then cover it, propose it to some professors get them to sponsor you, write a grant proposal, get it approved.
 
<I>Grow your bugs in a continuous nutrient feed tank.....</I>

Ah yes, the continuous nutrient feed tank - standard equipment in all high school science laboratories.

:bugeye:

But seriously, if it's a project involving microorganisms that you are interested in, then I am sure any high school would be able to convince their nearest university micro departmenty to supply sterile agar plates of various types for various microorganisms. These can be incubateed at room temp and used test a variety of items for the presence of bacteria (which is nearly always yes). Try using the plates to test the anti-bacterial ability of various houshold cleaners.

A Google search with something like "experiments bacteria high school" yields lots of sites with simple bacterial experiments for the high school classroom.
 
Originally posted by WellCookedFetus
it can't be that expensive, a $4000 grant would more then cover it, propose it to some professors get them to sponsor you, write a grant proposal, get it approved.
Click to expand...

:confused:

What in god's name are you talking about? The guy is in high school. How many high school students do you know who are writing $4000 grants for classroom experiemnts and colaborating with university professors?
 
A good number of us now in university and working towards our grad degrees were doing exactly that. To a lot of universities, the equipment is usually pretty cheap since most they already have, its the research TIME that costs a lot, and motivated and smart highschool students are a great source of free labor.

-AntonK
 
with the sidenote that having a student for one experiment will actually costs you more time than the labor you get back, since you have to instruct and guide them.

The ones that stay a bit longer are quite useful though. And my boss actually pays them.
 
Originally posted by Hercules Rockefeller
What in god's name are you talking about? The guy is in high school. How many high school students do you know who are writing $4000 grants for classroom experiemnts and colaborating with university professors?
Click to expand...

Oh sorry I did not read that :eek: Ya there no way he could do that unless teh High school has the supplies. Sorry again I was assuming a universtiy student here.
 
{What in god's name are you talking about? The guy is in high school. How many high school students do you know who are writing $4000 grants for classroom experiments and colaborating with university professor}


First off I’m a girl my high school which luckily specializes in science and math and has all the equipment I need for this experiment the bacteria I’m using is aquaspirillum itersonii. I know that they don't just grow or what supplies I will need since I researched that and have everything I need it’s slightly insulting that just because I'm a high school student you see the need to explain the basics of keeping a bacteria culture. The bacteria that die off from the antibiotic plates will not be able to pass on their genes the ones with more resistance shall, yes I already have acquired anti biotic disks. :mad: I’m sorry its just a little bit frustrating that even though I know very little compared to you people but I’m not oblivious.
 
Your a girl once you prove it for now you are refered to as "s/he".
:D I assumed you were a he because they called you one, I appologies.

If you have the supplies and strain what info do you need from us? Autoclave everything and use disinfectants, wash hands or were gloves, but personally I doubt you would need much more in preventative measures then that. As for manipulating your bacteria to trade plastimids, each bacteria has it own timeline an constrains for activating that behavior, your going to have to research that in details or if your lucking a bacteriologist is at hand in this forum.
 
Good question, and no it is not stupid, autoclaving it basically putting stuff in a pressure cooker, at the high pressure water will not boil but temperatures above 100C are used to it kills everything or so once believed, turned out so hyper-thermophiles were once found growing in a autoclave, even so unless you’re a bacteria that lives in a deep sea volcano you should die in these conditions.

funny story my university is down to 4 giant industrial autoclaves because 2 “died” from old age (this things were bought from a hospital back in the 1960’s!) these things are a bit bigger then a refrigerator. Anyways the biology departments going berserk because of demand for these things, it can take at least 40 minutes minimum to autoclave a cartload of glassware (plastics are a nono as they will decay from the steam). And here is me from biochemist up stairs asking if I can autoclave 20 gallons of water! He was not happy.
 
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