Worm Lab (Caenorhabditis Elegons)
Faris Livingstone
Tanner Ragan
March 2, 2015
Purpose:
To understand the chemistry of nematodes and their reactions with Escherichia Coli, more commonly known as E. Coli, we did a lab researching about Caenorhabditis (C. Elegons) and their reactions to E. Coli.
Procedure:
The procedure behind this lab was quite long actually. IT consisted of three different lab stages or lab parts.
Part 1 - For the first part we had to know a little bit of background information about C Elegons from the internet. We researched their size, color, life length, and more. We then used our knowledge from the internet and actually had the opportunity to take a look at C. Elegons feeding off of E. Coli. We learned more about their behavior, looks, etc.
Part 2 - The second part of the lab was to actually go out in our own community to gather our own nematode samples and see what we can find in our very own environment. We picked places around our school and dug up four different samples. (1) Consistency of clay, with a brownish color. It contains small wood chips and small sand looking particles mashed together. (2) This sample was very muddy and liquidy. You can see little rocks in he mud and is a lot darker than the other samples. (3) It is a very blackish dirt with lots of loose rock and dirt. Many small twigs are inside and little white balls also. (4) This sample is partly dry and partly wet. The size of the particles are a lot bigger and it's one of the more lighter samples.
Part 3 - After collecting our samples we know had the chance to see what was really crawling in all the mud and dirt all along. Our chemistry teacher placed a bacteria on it and we let them sit one night before taking a look at our samples. Our samples contained many many many nematode trails but unfortunately no actual nematodes were found in our samples only a small mysterious bug that was never identified.
Pre-Lab Questions:
*What are they used for?
- Caenorhabditis Elegons (C. elegons) are mostly used for laboratory experiments all around the world because they are so easy to reproduce and are super common everywhere.
*How many cells do they have?
- C. Elegons typically have 959 cells. These cells are transparent making it easier for scientists to study and experiment with individual cells.
*How long do they live?
- They are known to have a very short lifespan, from anywhere around 2-3 weeks in suitable living conditions.
*How might they be used in a chemistry classroom?
- In a chemistry classroom they would be used for their simplicity, size, attractiveness, and they are super common. A class could easily learn and experiment with different bacteria and see its effects on individual cells in the C. Elegon.
*Diagram of a C. Elegons life cycle
Data Tables and Observations:
We took some very brief observations and also plotted our research and any questions that came to our mind on a table.
Below there are just some observations and my questions since the research is described above.
Observations: (At 3x Magnification) They look like mini snakes and worms. They are in little groups. Look a little blackish in 3x microscope. When they are in groups they look like mini fingerprints on a human. (At 10x Magnification) Wow! There's a huge one. They look a lot more detailed and fatter. They are more transparent now. You can see specks of white on their bodies. There are lots of them that are resting on top of each other.
Questions: Are they male or female? What color are they? Why do they crawl on top of each other? Do they have eyes? What do they typically feed on? Why do they seem like they are fizzing?
Conclusion:
Overall I think that this lab was to experiment with nematodes and really get to explore what these organisms actually do in our community and environment. We got to the science behind C. Elegons and see their interactions feeding on E. Coli.
Tanner Ragan
March 2, 2015
Purpose:
To understand the chemistry of nematodes and their reactions with Escherichia Coli, more commonly known as E. Coli, we did a lab researching about Caenorhabditis (C. Elegons) and their reactions to E. Coli.
Procedure:
The procedure behind this lab was quite long actually. IT consisted of three different lab stages or lab parts.
Part 1 - For the first part we had to know a little bit of background information about C Elegons from the internet. We researched their size, color, life length, and more. We then used our knowledge from the internet and actually had the opportunity to take a look at C. Elegons feeding off of E. Coli. We learned more about their behavior, looks, etc.
Part 2 - The second part of the lab was to actually go out in our own community to gather our own nematode samples and see what we can find in our very own environment. We picked places around our school and dug up four different samples. (1) Consistency of clay, with a brownish color. It contains small wood chips and small sand looking particles mashed together. (2) This sample was very muddy and liquidy. You can see little rocks in he mud and is a lot darker than the other samples. (3) It is a very blackish dirt with lots of loose rock and dirt. Many small twigs are inside and little white balls also. (4) This sample is partly dry and partly wet. The size of the particles are a lot bigger and it's one of the more lighter samples.
Part 3 - After collecting our samples we know had the chance to see what was really crawling in all the mud and dirt all along. Our chemistry teacher placed a bacteria on it and we let them sit one night before taking a look at our samples. Our samples contained many many many nematode trails but unfortunately no actual nematodes were found in our samples only a small mysterious bug that was never identified.
Pre-Lab Questions:
*What are they used for?
- Caenorhabditis Elegons (C. elegons) are mostly used for laboratory experiments all around the world because they are so easy to reproduce and are super common everywhere.
*How many cells do they have?
- C. Elegons typically have 959 cells. These cells are transparent making it easier for scientists to study and experiment with individual cells.
*How long do they live?
- They are known to have a very short lifespan, from anywhere around 2-3 weeks in suitable living conditions.
*How might they be used in a chemistry classroom?
- In a chemistry classroom they would be used for their simplicity, size, attractiveness, and they are super common. A class could easily learn and experiment with different bacteria and see its effects on individual cells in the C. Elegon.
*Diagram of a C. Elegons life cycle
Data Tables and Observations:
We took some very brief observations and also plotted our research and any questions that came to our mind on a table.
Below there are just some observations and my questions since the research is described above.
Observations: (At 3x Magnification) They look like mini snakes and worms. They are in little groups. Look a little blackish in 3x microscope. When they are in groups they look like mini fingerprints on a human. (At 10x Magnification) Wow! There's a huge one. They look a lot more detailed and fatter. They are more transparent now. You can see specks of white on their bodies. There are lots of them that are resting on top of each other.
Questions: Are they male or female? What color are they? Why do they crawl on top of each other? Do they have eyes? What do they typically feed on? Why do they seem like they are fizzing?
Conclusion:
Overall I think that this lab was to experiment with nematodes and really get to explore what these organisms actually do in our community and environment. We got to the science behind C. Elegons and see their interactions feeding on E. Coli.