THE SIX IS OF MICROBIOLOGY The Six Is
THE SIX “I’S” OF MICROBIOLOGY
The Six “I’s” of Microbiology • The Six I's are methods used to locate, grow, observe and characterize microorganisms. • It is not necessary to perform all of these steps, or to perform them exactly in this order. • Each case will vary.
Specimen Collection Common specimens include body fluids, food, water and soil. Once the specimen has been collected, you can perform the six “I’s”.
Inoculation The sample is placed into a container of sterile medium that provides microbes with the appropriate nutrients to sustain growth.
Incubation Inoculated media is placed in a controlled environment to promote growth.
Isolation Separation of microbes to isolate individual colonies which only contain one type of microbe.
Plate Streaking for Isolation • Plate streaking is conducted to isolate one bacterial colony and identify the strain of bacteria that is growing on your plate. • Animation
Inspection The cultures are observed for growth characteristics and basic details that could be useful in analyzing the specimen contents.
Information Gathering • Running additional tests for more specific information. • Specialized media
Identification Determine the type of microbe, usually to the level of species.
Dichotomous Keys • Used to identify organisms • Characteristics given in pairs • Read both characteristics and either go to another set of characteristics OR identify the organism
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