MICROBIOLOGY

SAFETY ON THE CLINICAL

MICROBIOLOGY LABORATORY
NAME OF LECTURER
DATE OF LECTURE

2) Cytoplasmic Granules
 Storage deposits may consist of polysaccharides such
OUTLINE
as glycogen, lipid such as poly-B-hydroxybutyrate, or
I. Cell Structures III. Microbial Growth and
polyphosphate. 
A. Prokaryotic Cell Nutrition
Structure A. Nutritional Requirements
Bacillus and Clostridium
a) Cytoplasmic for Growth
Structure B. Environmental Factors  It produces endospore in response to harsh
b) Cell Envelope Influencing Growth environmental condition. 
Structure C. Bacterial Growth Endospores
c) Surface Polymers IV. Bacterial Biochemistry and  Are small, dormant (inactive)
d) Cell Appendages Metabolism  Asexual spores that develop inside the Bacterial cell
B. Eukaryotic Cell A. Metabolism (active vegetated cell) as means of survival. 
Structure B. Fermentation and
 Are not means of reproduction. 
a) Cytoplasmic Respiration
Thick Protein Coats
Structure C. Pathways from Glucose
b) Cell Envelope to Pyruvic Acid  makes them highly resistant to;
Structure D. Anaerobic Utilization of o chemical agent
II. Bacterial Morphology Pyruvic Acid o temperature change
A. Microscopic Shapes (Fermentation) o starvation
a) Cocci (Spherical) E. Anaerobic Utilization of o dehydration
b) Bacilli (Rod- Pyruvate (Oxidation) o ultraviolet and gamma radiation
shaped) F. Carbohydrates o desiccation
c) Spirochetes Utilization and Lactose Spores
(Spiral) Fermentation  Highly refractive bodies in cells. 
B. Common Stains used V. Bacterial Genetics
for Microscopic A. Anatomy of a DNA and  Are visualized microscopically as unstained area in a cell
Visualization RNA Molecule with the use of traditional Bacterial stain
a) Gram stain B. Terminology           Schaffer-Fulton
b) Acid-fast stains C. Genetic Elements and  most commonly used endospore stain 
c) Acridine Orange Alterations o size
d) Calcofluor white D. Mechanisms of Gene o shape
e) Methylene blue Transfer o interior location
f) Lactophenol o one end (terminal)
cotton blue o Sub terminal, or central.
g) India ink
h) Endospore stain 3) CELL ENVELOPE STRUCTURE

1. CELL STRUCTURES 1) Plasma Membrane

 A phospholipid bilayer with embedded proteins that
A. PROKARYOTIC CELL STRUCTURE envelop cytoplasm
 Bacterial cell is smaller and less compartmentalized than the  Made of phospholipids and proteins, doesn’t contain
eukaryotic cell.  sterols (except Mycoplasma spp.)
 Various structures are unique to the prokaryotic cell.  Act as osmotic barrier
 Location of electron transport chain
1. CYTOPLASMIC STRUCTURE
 Bacteria do not contain a membrane-bound nucleus 2) Cell Wall
 Their genome consists of single circular chromosome.   Maintains the shape of the cell
 Prevents bursting of cell
1) Bacterial Ribosomes  Two Major Types of Cell Wall
 Consisting of RNA and protein.  1. Gram-positive
a) Have very thick protective peptidoglycan
 Found free in the cytoplasm attached to the cytoplasmic
(murein)
membrane. 
 Consist of glycan (polysaccharide) chains
 Site of protein biosynthesis.
 Alternating N-acetyl-d-glucosamine
o they are 70S in size and dissociate into two sub-
(NAG) and N-acetyl-d-muramic (NAM)
units ( 50S and 30S in size)
acid
            S (Svedberg) Units 
b) Many antibiotics affective against gram-positive
 Refer to sedimentation rates (unit of time) during high- organisms (e.g., penicillin)
speed centrifugation. 
 Act by preventing synthesis of
 this unit is named Theodor Svedberg the inventor of peptidoglycan
ultracentrifuge
 S value is Not additive  Other components that penetrate to exterior of the cell
o Teichoic acid (anchored to the peptidoglycan)
1
 o Lipoteichoic acid (anchored to the PM). o Lophotrichous- a tuft of flagella at one end or at
both ends
2. Gram-negative o Amphitrichous- single flagella at both ends
a) Two layers of cell wall o Peritrichous- flagella all around the bacillus
I. Inner peptidoglycan – thinner o Atrichous- without flagella
II. Outer membrane
o Function: 2) Pili and Fimbriae
 Acts as a barrier to hydrophobic  Pili (pilus)
compounds and harmful substances  Known as conjugation pili
 Acts as sieve, allows water-soluble  Non-motile, long, hollow protein tubes
molecules to enter through protein-  Connect two bacterial cell
lined channels (porins)  media DNA exchange
 Provides attachment sites  Fimbriae (fimbria)
o Contains:
 Non-flagellar, sticky, proteinaceous, hair-like
 Proteins appendages
 Phospholipids
 Adhere some bacteria cells to one another and to
 Lipopolysaccharide (LPS)
environmental surfaces
a. antigenic O–specific
polysaccharide
Types:
b. core polysaccharide
 Common pili – thousands of pili around bacteria
c. inner lipid A (endotoxin)
 Sex (F) pili – one or 2 in a bacterium
 responsible for
Functions:
producing fever
 Adhesion- adherence to glycoproteins of GUT;
 shock conditions in
common pili
patients
 Used in transfer of genetic material by the process
III. Periplasmic Space
of conjugation (sex pili)
o Located between outer and inner
 Virulence – ability to infect or damage a host
membrane
o A gel-like matrix; contains nutrient-binding,  Antigenic – can induce antibody production
degradative and detoxifying enzymes  Antiphagocytic – prevents action of phagocytes/
o Absent in gram-positive prevents occurrence of phagocytosis
3. Acid-Fast Cell Wall
a) Mycobacterium and Nocardia
 Gram-positive cell wall
 Contain waxy layer of glycolipids and fatty
acids (mycolic acid)
 More than 60% (lipid) -> mycolic acid
(strong hydrophobic; forms lipids shell and
affects permeability)
 Stained with:
o Carbolfuchsin
o followed by acid-alcohol as a
decolorizer
4. Absence of Cell Wall
a) Mycoplasma and Ureaplasma
 Lack of rigidity of the cell wall
 Seen in various shapes microscopically
 Contains sterols in their cell membrane

 Gram-positive and gram-negative cells can lose their cell

B. EUKARYOTIC CELL STRUCTURE
walls
 Grow as L-forms in media supplemented with serum or  Eukaryotic cell type occurs in medically important fungi and
sugar to prevent osmotic rupture of the cell membrane in parasites.

4) SURFACE POLYMERS 1. CYTOPLASMIC STRUCTURE

1) Capsule 1) Nucleus
 Made of polysaccharide polymers; also made of  Contains DNA in the form of discrete chromosomes
polypeptides (genes)
 Act as virulence factors in helping the pathogen evade  Covered with basic protein (histones)
phagocytosis 2) Nucleolus
 Rounded and refractile body
 Located within the nucleus
5) CELL APPENDAGES
 Site of rRNA synthesis
3) Endoplasmic Reticulum (ER)
1) Flagella
 System of membranes occurs throughout the cytoplasm
 Organ of locomotion; seen usually in bacilli o Two forms:
 Slender whip like structures → exhibit lashing, forwards
 Smooth ER
and rotatory movements
 Don’t have ribosomes
 Made up of protein called flagellin  Synthesize phospholipids
 Parts: basal body, hook, filament  Rough ER
 Classification:  Covered with ribosomes
o Monotrichous- single polar flagellum  Site of protein synthesis
4) Golgi apparatus
2
  Modify and package proteins sent by rough ER
5) Eukaryotic ribosomes 2. BACTERIAL MORPHOLOGY
 Protein synthesis occurs; attached to rough ER
 80S in size and dissociate into 2 subunits: 60S and 40S 1. MICROSCOPIC SHAPES
6) Mitochondria
 Bacteria vary in size from 0. 4 to 2 um. 
 Main sites of energy production
 They occur in three basic shapes. 
 Contain their own DNA and electron transport system
7) Lysosomes
    Three Basic Shapes
 Contains hydrolytic enzymes; degradation of
macromolecules and microorganisms
1. Cocci (Spherical) 
8) Peroxisomes
 Contain protective enzymes; breakdown hydrogen  plural of coccus, may occur singly
peroxide  Diplococci, in pairs
9) Chloroplasts  Streptococci, in chains, or;
 Found in plant cells  Staphylococci, in clusters
 Sites of photosynthesis (glucose)
 Site of energy production 2. Bacilli (Rod-Shaped)
 plural of bacillus
2. CELL ENVELOPE STRUCTURE  May vary greatly in size and length from very short
Coccobacilli to long filamentous rods.
1) Plasma Membrane  The ends may be square or rounded. Some bacilli are
 A phospholipid bilayer with embedded proteins that curved. 
envelop cytoplasm
 Regulates transport of macromolecules in and out a) Fusiform
 Is a bacilli with tapered, pointed ends. 
2) Cell Wall b) Pleomorphic
 Provide rigidity and strength to the exterior of the cell  When the species varies in size and shape within a
 Most eukaryotic cells have no cell walls except fungi pure culture. 
 Made of polysaccharides (chitin, mannan, glucan) c) Palisading
 It is called PALISADING when bacilli may occur as
3) Motility Organelles single rods or in chains or may align themselves
side by side. 
 Cilia
3. Spirochetes (Spiral)
 Short projections (3-10um)
 Numerous, extended from cell surface  vary in length and in the number of helical turns (not all
 Used for locomotion (protozoa) helical bacteria are called spirochetes)
 Found in ciliated epithelial cell of respiratory tract
 Flagella 2. COMMON STAINS USED FOR MICROSCOPIC VISUALIZATION
 Longer projections (>150um)  Stains that impart color or fluorescence are needed to
 Used for locomotion (spermatozoa) visualize bacteria under the microscope. 
 Basal body or kinetosome
 Small structure 1. Gram Stain
 Located at the base of cilia or flagella  most commonly used stain in the clinical microbiology
o Microtubule proteins involved in movement laboratory
originate    
Two Main Groups
        A. Gram Positive (blue to purple)
        B. Gram Negative (pink)
 Some organisms are gram-variable or do not
stain at all
 The gram stain consists of gentle hat fixing
(methyl alcohol may also be used to fix) of the
smear. 

Four Sequential Components

1. Crystal Violet - the primary stain, 1 minute
2. Iodine - the mordant or fixated, 1 minute
3. Alcohol or an Alcohol Acetone Solution - the
decolorizer, quick on and rinse. 
4. Safranin - the counterstain, 30 seconds. 

2. Acid-Fast Stains
 It is used to stain bacteria that have high lipid and wax
content in their cell walls and do not stain well with
traditional Bacterial stains. 
 Carbolfuchsin (a red dye)
o used as the primarily stain

Treated To Allow Penetration Of The Dye

a. Zielhl-Neelsen Method  - by heat
b. Kinyoun Method - by detergent

 Acidified Alcohol   - is used as a decolorizer

 Methylene Blue - is the counterstain

3
  Acid-Fast Bacteria  - retain the primary stain and are red  source of energy (for performing cellular functions)
o Bacteria that are NOT Acid-Fast are blue. 
Smaller amounts of molecules that make up an additional
                 Two Other Gram-Positive Genera 4% of the weight such as:
 Nocardia                  may stain acid fast  Phosphate for Nucleic acid
 Rhodococcus          by modified method  Phospholipids of cell membrane
 Sulfur for Protein Synthesis
 Acid-Fast Staining   - is used to identify;
 Saccharomyces  Various metals and ions for enzymatic activity must also
 Yeast be present. 
 Coccidian Parasites, such as;
o Cystoisospora belli (formerly known as Isospora  Important Ions such as:
belli)  Na+
o Cryptosporidium  K+
o and other Coccidia-like bodies   Cl-
 Ca2+
 Acid-Fast Bacteria   - appear yellow or orange under o Bacteria vary widely in their ability to use
fluorescent microscope, making them easier to find.  different sources of these molecules. 

 Fluorochrome it is also been 1. NUTRITIONAL REQUIREMENTS for GROWTH

(i.e.fluorescent) stain   used to screen
 Auramine-Rhodamine for acid-fast bacteria  Bacteria are classified into two basic groups according to how
they meet their nutritional needs. 
3. Acridine Orange
 It is a fluorochrome dye that stains both gram-positive  Two Basic Groups
and gram-negative bacteria, living or dead.  1. Autotrophs (lithotrophs)
 It is used to locate bacteria in blood cultures and other  Able to grow simply
specimens where discerning bacteria might otherwise be  Using Carbon Dioxide as the sole source of
difficult.  carbon, with only water and inorganic salts required
in addition.
4. Calcofluor White  Occur in environmental milieus. 
 It is fluorochrome that binds to chitin in fungal cell walls.   Obtains energy either;
 Calcofluor White was the original "blueing" used in the o Photosynthetically (Phototrophs)
high-volume laundries to whiten yellow appearing white o Oxidation of inorganic compounds
cotton and other fabrics.  (chemolithotrophs)

5. Methylene Blue 2. Heterotrophs

 Traditionally has been used to stain C. Diptheriae for  Requires more complex substance for growth. 
observation of metachromatic granules.  These bacteria require an organic source of carbon,
 It is also used as counterstain in acid-fast staining such as:
procedures.  o Glucose
o Obtain energy by oxidizing or fermenting
6. Lactophenol Cotton Blue organic substances.
 Is used to stain the cell walls of medically important fungi
grown in slide culture.  All bacteria that inhabit the human body fall into the
heterotrophic group. 
7. India Ink
 Is a negative stain used to visualize capsules I. E. coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa
surrounding certain yeasts, such as Cryptococcus spp.   Can be used a wide variety of organic compounds as
carbon sources and grow on most simple laboratory
8. Endospore Stain  media. 
 To heat-fixed smear, the primary stain, malachite green, II. Haemophilus influenzae and the anaerobes
is applied (flooded) and heated to steaming for about 5  are fastidious, requiring additional metabolites such as;
minutes.  o vitamins,
o purine,
Preparation: o pyrimidines,
 washed for about 30 seconds to remove primary stain o Hemoglobin supplied in the growth medium.
 the counterstain Safranin is applied to the smear III. Chlamydia spp.
o The endospores appear green within pink-appearing  Cannot be cultured in laboratory media at all and must be
or red-appearing Bacterial cells. grown in tissue culture or detected by other means. 

3. MICROBIAL GROWTH and NUTRITION Types of Growth Media

 All bacteria have three major nutritional needs for growth.   Minimal Medium  
o A laboratory growth medium whose contents are
A. Carbon  simple and completely defined. 
 a source of carbon (for making cellular constituents)  Nutrients Media 
o Media that is more complex and made of extracts of
 Represents 50 % of dry weight of a bacterium. 
meat or soybeans.
B. Nitrogen    
                    (i.e., nutrients broth, trypticase soy broth)
 a source of nitrogen (for making proteins)  Enriched
 Makes up 14% of the dry weight.  o a growth medium that contains added growth factors
C. ATP    such as;
4
  Blood, vitamins, and yeasts (i.e., blood agar, F. Microaerophilic  - bacteria require a reduced
chocolate agar).  level of oxygen to grow. (i.e., pathogenic,
 Selective Media  microaerophiles are Campylobacter spp.
o Media containing additives that inhibit the growth of Which requires 5% to 6% oxygen. 
some bacteria but allow others to grow. 
 Differential Media       3. BACTERIAL GROWTH
o It is the ingredient in media that allows visualization
of metabolic differences between groups or species 1.  Generation Time 
of bacteria. o Bacteria replicate by binary fission, with one cell dividing
into two cells. 
MAC (MacConKey Agar) o The generation time of a bacterium in culture can be 20
o Can also be a differential medium because it minutes for a fast growing bacterium such as E. coli. 
distinguishes between lactose fermenters (pink)
and non lactose fermenters (clear) 2. Growth Curve    
BLOOD AGAR PLATE  o If bacteria are in a balanced growth state, with enough
o Can also be non strict, differential because it nutrients and no toxic products present, the increase in
distinguishes between hemolytic and non Bacterial numbers is proportional to the increase in other
hemolytic organisms.  Bacterial properties such as mass, protein content, and
nucleic acid content.
 Transport Medium
o It is used when there's a delay between       Four Phases of Growth
collections of the specimen and culturing the  Lag Phase - during which bacteria are preparing to
specimen is necessary.  divide. 
                   Transport Medium common examples;  Log Phase - during which bacteria numbers
 Stuart broth increase logarithmic ally.
 Amies  Stationary Phase - in which nutrients are becoming
 Cary-Blair limited and the numbers of bacteria remain constant
(although viability may decreased)
2. ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS INFLUENCING GROWTH  Death Phase - when the number of nonviable
   Bacterial cells exceeds the number of viable cells. 
        Three Environmental Factors:
1. pH 3. Determination of Cell Numbers
 Most pathogenic bacteria grow best at a neutral pH. 
2. Temperature   In the diagnostic laboratory, the number of Bacterial cells
 Influences the rate of growth of a Bacterial culture.  present is determined in one of three ways:

         Category of Microorganism        Three Ways

 according to the optimal temperature for growth
I. Direct Counting Under The Microscope 
I. Psychrophiles  This method can be used to estimate the number of
 bacteria that grow best at cold bacteria present in specimens. It does not
temperatures (optimal growth at 10°Cto distinguish between live and dead cells. 
20°C) II. Direct Plate Count 
II. Mesophiles          This method provides a count of viable cells only. It
 Bacteria that grow optimally at moderate is used in determining the Bacterial cell count in
temperature. (optimal growth 20°C to urine cultures. 
40°C) III. Density Measurement
III. Thermophiles         The density referred to as cloudiness or turbidity of a
 Bacteria that grow best at high Bacterial broth culture in Log phase can be
temperature. (optimal growth to 50°C to correlated to CFU/mL of the culture. 
60°C)  This method is used to prepare a standard inoculum
for antimicrobial susceptibility testing.
3. Gaseous Composition of the Atmosphere
 Bacteria that grow on humans vary in their 4. BACTERIAL BIOCHEMISTRY and METABOLISM
atmospheric requirements for growth. 
A. METABOLISM
A. Obligate Aerobes - require oxygen for growth. 
B. Aero Tolerant Anaerobes - (previously
referred to as Facultative Aerobes) o A type of bacteria uses to break down organic
o Can survive in the presence of oxygen but do compounds.
not use oxygen in metabolism.  o Depends on the presence and activity of specific
C. Obligate Anaerobes  - cannot grow in the enzymes.
presence of oxygen o Can be regulated by either regulating the production of
D. Facultative Anaerobes - can grow either with the enzyme itself or regulating the activity of the
or without oxygen.  enzyme.
E. Capnophilic - organisms grow best when the
atmosphere is enriched with extra carbon B. FERMENTATION and RESPIRATION
dioxide 5% to 10%. 
o Bacteria use biochemical pathways to breakdown
 Air contains approximately, 21% Oxygen, 1%
carbohydrates.
Carbon dioxide
o Produces energy by fermentation and oxidation.

5
 o Fermentation, a chemical process by which molecules
like glucose are broken down anaerobically.
o Respiration, an efficient energy generating process in
which molecular oxygen is the final electron acceptor.
C. BIOCHEMICAL PATHWAYS from GLUCOSE to PYRUVIC
ACID
o Glucose, the starting carbohydrate for bacterial
fermentation.
o Pathways are designed to generate pyruvic acid
o Has 3 major biochemical pathways bacteria to break
down glucose
 Embden-Meyerhof-Parnas (EMP)
 Pentese phosphate pathway
 Entner-Doudoroff pathway
D. ANAEROBIC UTILIZATION of PYRUVIC ACID
(FERMENTATION)
o A key metabolic intermediate
o pathways used by the microbes that inhabit the human
body are:
1. Alcoholic fermentation: the end product is ethanol.
2. Homolactic fermentation: The end product is lactic
acid.
3. Heterolactic fermentation: the end products include
carbon dioxide, alcohols, formic acid, and acetic acid.
4. Propionic acid fermentation: gram positive bacilli is
the end product
5. Mixed acid fermentation: produce lactic, acetic,
succinic, and formic acids as end products.
6. Butanediol fermentation: The end products are
acetoin (acetyl methyl carbinol) and 2,3-butanediol.
E. AEROBIC UTILIZATION of PYRUVATE (OXIDATION)
o pyruvate is oxidized
o carbon skeletons for biosynthetic reactions are created
o Pyruvate donates electron through an electron transport
chain to form ATP.
F. CARBOHYDRATE UTILIZATION and LACTOSE
FERMENTATION
o Fermentation of the sugar is detected by acid production
and pH indicator.
o Determination of the microorganism’s ability to ferment
lactose.
o Lactose fermenters or lactose nonfermenters.
5. BACTERIAL GENETICS
A. ANATOMY of a DNA and RNA MOLECULE
 DNA is a double helical chain of nucleotides twisted
together like a spiral staircase
 Has a nucleotide with complex combinations of the
following:
o A phosphate group (PO4)
o A cyclic five-carbon pentose sugar
o A nitrogen-containing base
 A purine consists of adenine and guanine
 A pyrimidine thymine and cytosine
 A nucleotide is a basic building block of nucleic acid
 Adenine of one chain always pairs with thymine of the
other chain
 Cytosine of one chain pairs with guanine of the other
chain.
 The bases are held together by hydrogen bonds
 The two complementary sugar phosphate strands run
antiparallel 3′ to 5′ and 5′ to 3′.
 RNA is single-stranded and short, contains sugar ribose
 In RNA, the nitrogenous base thymine is replaced by
uracil
 Bacterial genome become a big part in microbiology
 Polymerase Chain in Reaction or (PCR) technique
amplifies specific DNA sequence to detect bacteria
present in the specimen.
B. TERMINOLOGY
 Genotype, a genetic potential of the DNA of an organism
 Protein synthesis is encoded in the bacterial DNA in the
chromosome to each generation of cells
 The general flow of information in a bacteria cell is from
DNA to messenger RNA to the actual protein itself
 Replication is the duplication of chromosomal DNA for
insertion into a daughter cell
 Translation is the actual synthesis of a specific protein
from the mRNA code
 Proteins are polypeptide composed of amino acids
 Codons determines the number of sequences of amino
acid in a polypeptide
 Ribosomes containing rRNA adds amino acids to the
growing polypeptide chain and brought back to ribosome
by tRNA that translate the codons
 tRNA molecules temporarily attach to mRNA using their
complementary anticodon regions
C. GENETICS ELEMENTS and ALTERATION
1. BACTERIAL GENOME
 Consists of a single, closed, circular piece of dsDNA is super
coiled
 Genes are specific DNA sequences that code for the amino
acid sequence in one protein
2. EXTRACHROMOSOMAL ELEMENTS
 Bacteria contain extra information on small circular pieces of
extra chromosomal, dsDNA called plasmids
 Plasmid are not essential for bacterial growth
 Genes that code for antibiotic resistance are often located on
plasmids
 Plasmids are in the cytoplasm of the cell and are self-
replicating just like DNA
 Antibiotics resistance genes are usually located in plasmids
3. MOBILE GENETIC ELEMENTS
 Certain pieces of DNA are mobile also called as jumping
genes
 Simplest mobile pieces of DNA is an insertion sequence (IS)
element
 Each IS element code for only one gene
 Bacterial genomes contain many IS elements
 Transposons are related mobile elements that carry
antibiotics
4. MUTATIONS
 Changes that occur in the DNA code and often result in a
change in the coded protein or in the prevention of its
synthesis
 Mutation can be result of a change in one nucleotide base
 Incomplete, inactive proteins are often the result of mutation
6
  Mutations also occur as the result of error during DNA
replication

5. MUTATION ALSO OCCUR AS THE RESULT DURING DNA

REPLICATION

D. MECHANISM of GENE TRANSFER

 Can be transferred from one bacterium to another by
o Transformation
o Transduction
o Conjugation

1. TRANSFORMATION

 The uptake and incorporation of naked DNA into a bacterial

cell
 Recombination takes plays by breaking down of DNA and
recombined to produce new combinations
 Cells that can take up naked DNA are referred to as being
competent
 Only a few bacterial species, such as Streptococcus
pneumonia, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, and H. influenza can do
this naturally

2. TRANSDUCTION

 Transfer of bacterial genes by a bacteriophage from one cell to

another
 Step by step on how transduction occurs
o Infection of the bacterial cell by bacteriophage
o The genome of the bacteriophage stably integrates into
the chromosome of the host bacterium and replicates in
concert with it
o When these viruses infect another bacterial cell, they
inject the viral DNA as well as donor DNA into the host
cell
o The bacterial DNA either forms plasmids or gets inserted
into the recipient DNA if it is homologous to the recipient
genome
o In the field of biotechnology, phages are often used to
insert cloned genes into bacteria for analysis

3. CONJUGATION

 The transfer of genetic material from a donor bacterial strain

to a recipient strain, close contact is required
 In the E. coli system, the donor strain (F+) possesses a
fertility factor (F factor) on a plasmid that carries the genes for
conjugative transfer
 The first three letters in the restriction endonuclease name
indicate the bacterial source of the enzyme