General Microbiology Laboratory
Reference :
Microbiology Laboratory Manual By Abdelraouf Elmanama.
 Grade:
Final Exam ( 50 Points ).
 Theoretical ) 40 Points ), Practical ( 10 Points ).
Midterm Exam ( 30 Points ).
Quizzes ( 10 Points ).
Attend And Laboratory Reports ) 10 Points ).
Welcome to Microbiology Lab
 The goal of the laboratory is to expose students to the wide
variety of life in the microbial world.
 Although the study of microbiology includes bacteria, viruses,
algae and protozoa, this lab will concentrate primarily on the
bacteria.
Pathogen = an organism or biological agent that causes disease to its host.
Introduction:
Bacteria
 Are everywhere!
 On every surface of the body,
 Including digestive tract,
 Harmless,
 Beneficial,
 Pathogenic,
 Absorb nutrients and release toxins that damage cells and
tissues.
 Bacterial toxins can cause disease even when bacteria are
destroyed.
 Bacteria are unicellular prokaryotic microorganisms
that divide by binary fission, a process by which
one bacterium splits into two.
 Less than 10 % of all bacteria cause disease, many others
are completely harmless, some bacteria even do good things
for us, such as turn milk into cheese.
Bacteria often get a bad reputation as most people tend to
associate bacteria with disease because some of them cause
disease and some others are opportunistic; that is, they can
cause disease in an ill or injured person.
Many bacteria cannot even live at the temperatures found in
and on the human body.
Laboratory Safety Rules
In the microbiology laboratory infectious materials are
processed as many of the microorganisms used in this course
may be pathogenic for humans .
Also the materials found, such as glass equipment, biological
agents and chemicals can pose safety hazards to you if you do
not follow laboratory protocols.
 As a result, certain rules are necessary to prevent the spread
of infectious agents, the possibility of infecting yourself or
other people and to prevent contamination of specimen with
environmental microorganisms.
The following laboratory safety rules must
be followed :
 All health-care workers should routinely use
appropriate barrier precautions to prevent skin
and mucous-membrane exposure when contact
with blood or other body fluids of any patient.
Safety in a microbiology laboratory starts with
protecting yourself:
cover long hair or keep it tied up and out of way.
Always wearing closed shoes.
Wearing personal protective equipment (coat,
gloves, eye protection; glasses may be preferred
to contact lenses).
Never applying cosmetics, or placing objects (fingers,
pencils) in the mouth or touching the face.
Never eating, drinking or chewing gum in the laboratory.
 For working :
Washing hands prior and after lab working with
water and soap.
Keep the lab bench free of unnecessary materials.
Disinfecting lab benches prior to and at the
conclusion of each lab session.
Good lab practice, including methods for aseptic
transfer, returning materials to proper locations,
proper care and handling of equipment, and Keeping
the bench top clear of extraneous materials.
Dispose all contaminated materials in autoclave
bags and proper disposal of other different types of
waste.
The coats should be kept separately from other
things in your bag.
Reporting all injuries, accidents, spills and broken glassware
to the instructor and receiving instructions for cleanup.
Always using appropriate pipetting devices and
understanding that mouth pipetting is forbidden.
Using universal precautions posted in the lab and see inside
front cover of this laboratory manual.
Safety for dealing with specimen:
Blood and other body fluids from all patients should be
considered infective.
All health-care workers should take precautions to prevent
injuries caused by needles, scalpels, and other sharp
instruments or devices during procedures.
To prevent needle stick injuries, needles should not be
recapped.
Avoid contaminating the outside of the container.
All specimens should be put in a well-constructed
container with a secure lid to prevent leaking during
transport.
After they are used, disposable syringes and needles,
scalpel, blades, and other sharp items should be placed
in puncture-resistant containers for disposal.
Decontamination of small & moderate spills
Notify other workers in the area of the spill and
control traffic through area.
Wear shoe covers and safety goggles, if spill is on
floor may have splashed beyond immediate area of
spill.
Put on gloves and cover spill area with paper
towels.
Pour disinfectant over towels from edges of spill to
center, be carefully not to splatter.
Decontaminate all objects in spill area.
Allow 30 minutes of contact time.
Pick up any sharps, including broken glass with forceps and
place in sharps container.
Use squeegee and dustpan to recover any shards of broken
glass in contaminated liquid. Decontaminate squeegee and
dustpan.
Wipe area with disinfectant and clean paper towels and put
in biohazard bag.
Mop if spill is in floor.
Remove gloves and shoes cover before removing area of the
spill, put on biohazard bag.
Wash hands.
Decontamination of large spills :
Evacuate room, close doors, prevent others from
entering and wait 30 minutes for aerosols to settle.
Follow previous procedure for small and moderate
spills.
Notes:
Students are not permitted to enter without a staff
member being present in the laboratory.
No personal objects are allowed in working benches.
Each student will have a workplace in a group at the
beginning of the semester and will keep it until the end of
the semester so, each student must follow up its own
workplace, keeping it tidy and orderly.
Lab requirements:
Lab coat
Matches or lighter
Soap
Waterproof permanent marker
Small or medium size towel
Sealable plastic bag
Rubber band
General Microbiology Manual
Instruments In Microbiology Lab
Incubators
Autoclave
Anaerobic jar
Candle jar
Benzene Burner
Nichrome Loop
Anaerobic station
Safety Cabinet
END OF LECTURE