The Elements of Bacteriological Technique Part 109

Connect the split ring also with the short piece of rubber tubing uniting the two gla.s.s tubes by a piece of catgut (or thin copper wire) of such length that when the bottle is suspended there is no pull upon the rubber tube, but which, however, will be easily jerked off when a sharp pull is given to the suspending cord.

Now wind heavy lead tubing about 1 cm. diameter around the upper part of the bottle, starting at the neck just above the shoulder. This ensures the sinking of the bottle in the vertical position (Fig. 204).

The apparatus being arranged is lowered to the required depth, a sharp jerk is then given to the suspending cord, which detaches the rubber tube and so opens the two gla.s.s tubes. Water enters through the longer tube and the air is expelled through the shorter tube. The bubbles of air can be seen or heard rising through the water, until the bottle is nearly full, a small volume of compressed air remaining in the neck of the bottle.

As the apparatus is raised, the air thus imprisoned expands, and prevents the entry of more water from nearer the surface.

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 205.--Ice-box for transmission of water samples, etc.]

_Transport of Sample._--If the examination of the sample cannot be commenced immediately, steps must be taken to prevent the multiplication of the bacteria contained in the water during the interval occupied in transit from the place of collection to the laboratory. To this end an ice-box such as that shown (in Fig. 205) is essential. It consists of a double-walled metal cylinder into which slides a cylindrical chamber of sufficient capacity to accommodate four of the 60 c.c. bottles; this in turn is covered by a metal disc--the three portions being bolted together by thumb screws through the overhanging f.l.a.n.g.es. When in use, place the bottles, rolled in cotton-wool, in the central chamber, pack the s.p.a.ce between the walls with pounded ice, securely close the metal box by s.c.r.e.w.i.n.g down the fly nuts, and place it in a felt-lined wooden case. (It has been shown that whilst bacteria will survive exposure to the temperature of melting ice, practically none will multiply at this temperature.)

On reaching the laboratory, the method of examination consists in adding measured quant.i.ties of the water sample to several tubes of nutrient media previously liquefied by heat, pouring plate cultivations from each of these tubes, incubating at a suitable temperature, and finally counting the colonies which make their appearance on the plates.

_Apparatus Required_:

Plate-levelling stand.

Case of sterile plates.

Case of sterile pipettes, 1 c.c. (in tenths of a cubic centimetre).

Case of sterile pipettes, 10 c.c. (in tenths of a cubic centimetre).

Case of sterile capsules, 25 c.c. capacity.

Tubes of nutrient gelatine.

Tubes of nutrient agar.

Tubes of wort gelatine.

One 250 c.c. flask of sterile distilled water.

Tall cylinder containing 2 per cent. lysol solution.

Bunsen burner.

Grease pencil.

Water-bath regulated at 42 C.

METHOD.--

1. Arrange the plate-levelling platform with its water compartment filled with water, at 45 C.

2. Number the agar tubes, consecutively, 1 to 6; the gelatine tubes, consecutively, 1 to 6, and the wort tubes, 1, 2, and 3. Flame the plugs and see that they are not adherent to the lips of the tubes.

3. Place the agar tubes in boiling water until the medium is melted, then transfer them to the water-bath regulated at 42 C. Liquefy the nutrient gelatine and wort gelatine tubes by immersing them in the same water-bath.

4. Remove the bottle containing the water sample from the ice-box, distribute the bacterial contents evenly throughout the water by shaking, cut the string securing the stopper, and loosen the stopper, but do not take it out.

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 206.--Withdrawing water from water sample bottle.]

5. Remove one of the 1 c.c. pipettes from the case, holding it by the plain portion of the tube. Pa.s.s the graduated portion twice through the Bunsen flame. Tilt the bottle containing the water sample on the bench holding the neck between the middle and ring fingers of the left hand; grasp the head of the stopper between the forefinger and thumb, and remove it from the bottle.

6. Pa.s.s the pipette into the mouth of the bottle, holding its point well below the surface of the water (Fig. 206). Suck up rather more than 1 c.c. into the pipette and allow the pipette to empty; this moistens the interior of the pipette and renders accurate measurement possible. Now draw up exactly 1 c.c. into the pipette. Withdraw the pipette from the bottle, replace the stopper, and stand the bottle upright.

7. Take the first melted agar tube in the left hand, remove the cotton-wool plug, and add to its contents 0.5 c.c. of the water sample from the pipette; replug the tube and replace it in the water-bath. In a similar manner add 0.3 c.c. water to the contents of the second tube, and 0.2 c.c. to the contents of the third.

8. In a similar manner add 1 c.c. of the sample to the contents of the fourth tube.

9. Similarly, add 0.5 c.c. and 0.1 c.c. respectively to the contents of the fifth and sixth tubes.

10. Drop the pipette into the cylinder containing lysol solution.

11. Mix the water sample with the medium in each tube in the manner described under plate cultivations; pour a plate from each tube. Label each plate with (a) the distinctive number of the sample, (b) the quant.i.ty of water sample it contains, and (c) the date.

12. Pour the contents of a tube of liquefied agar--not inoculated--into a Petri dish to act as a control to demonstrate the sterility of the batch of agar employed.

13. Allow the plates to set, and incubate at 37 C.

14. Empty the water chamber of the levelling apparatus and refill it with ice-water.

15. By means of the sterile 10 c.c. pipette deliver 9.9 c.c. sterile distilled water into a sterile gla.s.s capsule.

16. Add 0.1 c.c. of the water sample to the 9.9 c.c. sterile water in the capsule. This will give a dilution of 1 in 100.

17. Plant the six tubes of nutrient gelatine in the following manner: To the first tube add 0.5 c.c. of the water sample direct from the bottle; to the second, 0.3 c.c.; and to the third, 0.2 c.c.; and pour a plate of each tube. To the fourth tube add 0.5 c.c. of the diluted water sample from the capsule; to the fifth, 0.3 c.c.; and to the sixth, 0.2 c.c.; and pour a plate from each.

18. Label each plate with the quant.i.ty of the water sample it contains--that is, 0.5 c.c., 0.3 c.c., 0.2 c.c., 0.005 c.c., 0.003 c.c., and 0.002 c.c.

19. Pour a control (uninoculated) gelatine plate.

20. Allow the plates to set, and incubate at 20C.

21. To the first tube of liquefied wort gelatine add 0.5 c.c. water sample; to the second, 0.3 c.c.; and to the third, 0.2 c.c.

22. Label the plates, allow them to set, and incubate at 20 C.

23. Count and record the number of colonies that have developed upon the agar at 37 C. after forty-eight hours' incubation.

24. Note the number of colonies present on each of the gelatine and wort gelatine plates after forty-eight hours' incubation.

25. Replace the gelatine and wort plates in the incubator; observe again at three days, four days, and five days.

26. Calculate and record the number of organisms present per cubic centimetre of the original water from the average of the six gelatine plates at the latest date possible up to seven days--the presence of liquefying bacteria may render the calculation necessary at an earlier date, hence the importance of daily observations.

_Method of Counting._--The most accurate method of counting the colonies on each of the plates is by means of either Jeffery's or Pakes' counting disc. Each of these discs consists of a piece of paper, upon which is printed a dead black disc, subdivided by concentric circles and radii, printed in white. In Jeffery's counter (Fig. 207), each subdivision has an area of 1 square centimetre; in Pakes' counter (Fig. 208), radii divide the circle into sixteen equal sectors, and counting is facilitated by concentric circles equidistant from the centre.

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 207.--Jeffery's disc, reduced.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 208.--Pakes' disc, reduced.]

(a) In the final counting of each plate, place the plate over the counting disc, and centre it, if possible, making its periphery coincide with one or other of the concentric circles.

(b) Remove the cover of the plate, and by means of a hand lens count the colonies appearing in each of the sectors in turn. Make a note of the number present in each.

(c) If the colonies present are fewer than 500, the entire plate should be counted. If, however, they exceed this number, enumerate one-half, or one-quarter of the plate, or count a sector here and there, and from these figures estimate the number of colonies present on the entire plate. In practice it will be found that Pakes' disc is more suitable for the former cla.s.s of plate; Jeffery's disc for the latter. It should be recollected however that unless the plates have been carefully leveled and the medium is of equal thickness all over it is useless to try and average from small areas--since where the medium is thick all the bacteria will develop, where the layer is a thin one, only a few bacteria will find sufficient pabulum for the production of visible colonies.

It will be noted that the quant.i.ties of water selected for addition to each set of tubes of nutrient media have been carefully chosen in order to yield workable results even when dealing with widely differing samples. Plates prepared in agar with 0.1 c.c. and in gelatin with 0.02 c.c. can be counted even when large numbers of bacteria are present in the sample; whereas if micro-organisms are relatively few, agar plate 4 and gelatine plate 1 will give the most reliable counts. Again the counts of the plates in a measure control each other; for example, the second and third plates of each gelatine series should together contain as many colonies as the first, and the second should contain about half as many more than the third and so on.