Bacteria Science Project- how to get bacteria sample? From phone, doorknobs etc.How to get bacteria to agar?

Do you need to put anything on a cotton swab to gather bacteria from a public phone or doorknob?


How do you get the bacteria from the cotton swab into the agar petri dish?

Bacteria Science Project- how to get bacteria sample? From phone, doorknobs etc.How to get bacteria to agar?
I believe you'd wet the swab with sterile water, but you could probably do it with a dry swab as well.





You swipe the swab on the agar in a special, zig-zaggy pattern...kind of like a snake would crawl only tighter.
Reply:The cotton captures them. You don't have to do anything.
Reply:Just rub the cotton swab somewhere dirty then rub it into the plate, if it got a lid u can divide it into section then label the the different sections to see what grew from where.


Try putting it in your nose or ear.. and to make it grow faster put it somewhere hot and warm, bacteria grows its fastest at around 37 degrees celcius in a hot enviroment.
Reply:Either wet the swab (with sterile water), or put the swab in something that is already wet (like pond water). Then just swoosh it across the agar plate and let it multiply!
Reply:yes, just a plain cotton swab will do (i prefer to use cotton buds). but be sure that the cotton is clean (i.e. freshly opened) to prevent other contaminants. be sure to have your media (ex. Nutrient agar) clean too (sterilize it first).





the moment you swab the cotton to your desired source, just spread it to your petri plate. if you want to obtain microorganisms from human skin, moisten the cotton (use distilled water) and swab onto the surface of the skin. but be sure to close the lid of the petri plate quickly as to avoid contamination (so you can be sure that the microorganism that you are working is really the one coming from your desired source). to be really sure, put the cotton bud in a ziplock first then when you are in an aseptic lab, do the actual swabbing on to the nutrient agar (if you are going to use agar.)





after that,incubate it with the lid on the bottom (bottom up) if you are using a nutrient agar to prevent moisture on the plate when you examine it.





in working with bacteria, always bear in mind the ASEPTIC TECHNIQUES