In: Biology
Pre-Lab Questions:
Acid-fast endospore staining
-What color will endospore negative bacteria be after endospore staining?
Ans-Endospores will appear green in color while the vegetative cells will pink/reddish in color under the microscope.
-What color will mycobacteria bacteria after mycolic acid staining? (see the endospore and acid fast tables)
Ans-When stained with a Ziehl-Neelsen stain, the mycolic acids take on the color quickly and retain them inside the bacillus. Under the microscope, the bacillus is seen as a bright red rod, while the surface that it grows on is colored blue
-what species of bacteria are we going to use to look at endospores and what species will we use for mycolic acid staining?
Ans -Bacillus subtilis species of bacteria are we going to use to look at endospores
Mycobacteria spp. Mycobacteria spp use for mycolic acid staining.
-Why do we briefly heat our bacteria on the slide before staining?
Ans-The heat melts the waxy cell wall and permits the absorption of the dye by the cells. Then the slide is allowed to cool and a solution of acid and alcohol is added as a decolorizer. Cells that are “acid-fast” because of the mycolic acid in their cell wall resist decolorization and retain the primary stain.