Microbiology

Microbiology is a branch of science that involves the study of microorganisms. These studies include isolating, growing, observing the microbes in an attempt to understand their function, answer questions about the various biological phenomenon and design techniques/methods to tackle them in case they are pathogenic.

Since bacteria grow not in size but in numbers they are cultivated by providing a nutrient medium which can be the agar plate or broth. Agar has a unique combination of carbohydrate, protein, and other essential components like the minerals or vitamins for the growth of bacteria. Nutrient Broth, on the other hand, is the liquid media used for growing the microbes. Lysogeny Broth (LB) is a common type. The organisms grow in colloidal suspensions.

Given that many organisms are pathogenic in nature the use of antibiotic-related studies is a key feature of microbiology. A variety of experiments can be designed to both qualitatively and quantitatively estimate the anti-microbial activity of antibiotics.

Some other chemicals widely used in microbiology setups include buffers, enzymes, staining dyes and various solid components like sodium chloride (NaCl) and peptone used in nutrient media preparation.