Microbe detective seeks out germs
Saturday, March 20, 2010 - 09:51
in Biology & Nature
We are surrounded by microorganisms. They inhabit our skin, the air we breathe, the surfaces we touch. In most cases this is not a problem, but there are situations in which these constant companions can be dangerous or even life-threatening. They are unwelcome, for example, on medical instruments, in culture fluids or on laboratory-grown tissue transplants such as cartilage. Constant sterility checks are therefore required during the production of artificial cartilage. Conventional testing methods for detecting germs are, however, time-consuming. Specimens have to be taken and then cultivated and reproduced in culture fluid because bacteria and fungi can only be detected in large quantities...