A. Antibiotics, such as gentamicin, are used in media to prevent growth of susceptible microbes. Is gentamicin media a selective, differential or enrichment media? B. Sorbitol is a sugar alcohol that all Escherichia bacteria can normally ferment into an acidic waste compound. This acidic end product is detected by including a pH indicator in the agar and noticing a color change. The strain of Escherichia that is a common food pathogen, E. coli O157:H7, however can not ferment sorbitol. It will grow similar to other E. coli, but not change the agar color. Is sorbitol in nutrient agar a selective, differential or enrichment media?​

Human Anatomy & Physiology (11th Edition)
11th Edition
ISBN:9780134580999
Author:Elaine N. Marieb, Katja N. Hoehn
Publisher:Elaine N. Marieb, Katja N. Hoehn
Chapter1: The Human Body: An Orientation
Section: Chapter Questions
Problem 1RQ: The correct sequence of levels forming the structural hierarchy is A. (a) organ, organ system,...
icon
Related questions
Question

A. Antibiotics, such as gentamicin, are used in media to prevent growth of susceptible microbes. Is gentamicin media a selective, differential or enrichment media?

B. Sorbitol is a sugar alcohol that all Escherichia bacteria can normally ferment into an acidic waste compound. This acidic end product is detected by including a pH indicator in the agar and noticing a color change. The strain of Escherichia that is a common food pathogen, E. coli O157:H7, however can not ferment sorbitol. It will grow similar to other E. coli, but not change the agar color. Is sorbitol in nutrient agar a selective, differential or enrichment media?​

Expert Solution
Step 1-Background

Antibiotics are medicines prescribed to patients who are suffering from a bacterial infection. The antibiotic works by directly killing the bacteria once ingested. It can also work by interfering with specific enzymes of the bacteria, such as the enzyme required to synthesize the bacterial cell wall. Without the bacterial cell wall, the bacteria will easily die. 

Agar is often used to prepare media as it supports the growth of a wide spectrum of bacteria. However, depending on the nutritional needs of bacteria media are selected to grow specific bacteria. There are three types of media that are normally used

Selective media: Media which contain nutrients that favor the growth of a specific species of microbes but not others.

Differential media: Media that help to distinguish the presence of a particular type of bacteria due to a color change in the media. 

Enrichment media: Contains nutrients such as agar that encourage the growth of a wide range of bacteria. 

trending now

Trending now

This is a popular solution!

steps

Step by step

Solved in 2 steps

Blurred answer
Knowledge Booster
Nutrient growth medium
Learn more about
Need a deep-dive on the concept behind this application? Look no further. Learn more about this topic, biology and related others by exploring similar questions and additional content below.
Recommended textbooks for you
Human Anatomy & Physiology (11th Edition)
Human Anatomy & Physiology (11th Edition)
Biology
ISBN:
9780134580999
Author:
Elaine N. Marieb, Katja N. Hoehn
Publisher:
PEARSON
Biology 2e
Biology 2e
Biology
ISBN:
9781947172517
Author:
Matthew Douglas, Jung Choi, Mary Ann Clark
Publisher:
OpenStax
Anatomy & Physiology
Anatomy & Physiology
Biology
ISBN:
9781259398629
Author:
McKinley, Michael P., O'loughlin, Valerie Dean, Bidle, Theresa Stouter
Publisher:
Mcgraw Hill Education,
Molecular Biology of the Cell (Sixth Edition)
Molecular Biology of the Cell (Sixth Edition)
Biology
ISBN:
9780815344322
Author:
Bruce Alberts, Alexander D. Johnson, Julian Lewis, David Morgan, Martin Raff, Keith Roberts, Peter Walter
Publisher:
W. W. Norton & Company
Laboratory Manual For Human Anatomy & Physiology
Laboratory Manual For Human Anatomy & Physiology
Biology
ISBN:
9781260159363
Author:
Martin, Terry R., Prentice-craver, Cynthia
Publisher:
McGraw-Hill Publishing Co.
Inquiry Into Life (16th Edition)
Inquiry Into Life (16th Edition)
Biology
ISBN:
9781260231700
Author:
Sylvia S. Mader, Michael Windelspecht
Publisher:
McGraw Hill Education