TRAIN Scholar Justine Horton's Blog

Hi everyone, This week, I started simple. Monday, I took the optical density of my samples(media+SA, HG+SA, HM1+SA, HM2+SA) after 96hrs of incubation. All samples exhibited an increased optical density. These are different from the results we were looking for. I hypothesized that the HM1 and HM2 would inhibit the growth of Staphylococcus Aureus. Had I been correct, the densities would've decreased in HM1+SA and HM2+SA while increasing in Media+SA. However, I'm still optimistic because, despite growth all across the board, HM1+SA and HM2+SA had the smallest increase. The rest of the week, I spent time preparing for another test, hoping to decrease the technical issues I had with the spectrophotometer.

(Mueller-Hilton Broth) Hi everyone! My project this semester is testing Manuka honey as an antimicrobial. It's more complex than my experiment last semester, as I plan on measuring the effectiveness with more processes. Last week I made Mueller-Hilton Broth to grow the bacteria in. I grew multiple samples of Staphylococcus A. this week. Josh and I decided to start with the basics before diving into the complexities of my experiment. I'm working on the best way to dilute and transfer honey into the MH Broth. I used the spectrophotometer to measure the optical density of my samples. The idea is that the optical density will decrease if the honey inhibits the growth.