Contamination
Biology: AQA GCSE Higher, topic 1.1.28
Contamination
When growing cultures of bacteria, we provide conditions that are good for lots of different types of bacteria to grow. If bacteria that are not being investigated grow, then our investigation has been contaminated.
Risks
- As well as jeopardising the results of the investigation, contamination is a serious health and safety risk as it lets other, potentially harmful bacteria grow.
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Sources
- Potential sources of contamination are:
- Skin
- Air
- Soil
- Water
Prevention
- For investigations into antibiotics to be useful, the cultures must be pure (do not contain bacteria that are not being investigated).
Test yourself on Contamination
Select the true statement in each pair about bacterial cultures and contamination
Why must bacterial cultures be pure when investigating antibiotics?
Why is it important to check a bacterial culture for contamination before using it to investigate antibiotics?
Why can bacterial cultures easily become contaminated?