Cell Project: Salmonella

Kelly Diep
Shirley Tsai
Period 1

Salmonella

For this cell project,we chose to make the model on Salmonella.

Salmonella is a genus of rod-shaped, Gram-negative bacteria. There are only two species of Salmonella, Salmonella bongori and Salmonella enterica, of which there are around six subspecies and innumerable serovars. The genus belongs to the same family as Escherichia, which includes the species E.coli. Salmonellae are found worldwide in both cold-blooded and warm-blooded animals, and in the environment. They cause illnesses such as typhoid fever, paratyphoid fever, and food poisoning.

Salmonella are non-spore-forming, predominantly motile enterobacteria with diameters around 0.7 to 1.5 µm, lengths from 2 to 5 µm, and peritrichous flagella (flagella that are all around the cell body). They are chemoorganotrophs, obtaining their energy from oxidation and reduction reactions using organic sources, and are facultative anaerobes.

Infection with nontyphoidal serovars of Salmonella will generally result in food poisoning. Infection usually occurs when a person ingests foods that contain a high concentration of the bacteria. Infants and young children are much more susceptible to infection, easily achieved by ingesting a small number of bacteria. In infants, infection through inhalation of bacteria-laden dust is possible.

The organism enters through the digestive tract and must be ingested in large numbers to cause disease in healthy adults. An infectious process can only begin after living salmonellae reach the gastrointestinal tract. Some of the microorganisms are killed in the stomach, while the surviving salmonellae enter the small intestine and multiply in tissues (localized form). Gastric acidity is responsible for the destruction of the majority of ingested bacteria, however Salmonella has evolved a degree of tolerance to acidic environments that allows a subset of ingested bacteria to survive. Bacterial colonies may also become trapped in mucus produced in the oesophagus. By the end of the incubation period, the nearby cells are poisoned by endotoxins released from the dead salmonellae. The local response to the endotoxins is enteritis and gastrointestinal disorder.

Salmonella can also be detected and subtyped using PCR from extracted salmonella DNA, various methods are available to extract salmonella DNA from target samples.Mathematical models of salmonella growth kinetics have been developed for chicken, pork, tomatoes, and melons. Salmonella reproduce asexually with a cell division rate of 20 to 40 minutes under optimal conditions.

Salmonella lead predominantly host-associated lifestyles, however the bacteria were found to be able to persist in a bathroom setting for weeks following contamination, and are frequently isolated from water sources, which act as bacterial reservoirs and may help to facilitate transmission between hosts. The bacteria are not destroyed by freezing, but UV light and heat accelerate their demise—they perish after being heated to 55 °C (131 °F) for 90 min, or to 60 °C (140 °F) for 12 min.To protect against Salmonella infection, heating food for at least ten minutes at 75 °C (167 °F) is recommended, so the center of the food reaches this temperature.

The bacteria of Salmonella can be found in the digestive tracts of humans and animals, such as birds and reptiles. "Unusual serotypes of Salmonella have been associated with the direct or indirect contact with reptiles (for example, lizards, snakes turtles, and iguanas)." Food and water can also be contaminated with the bacteria by coming in contact with the feces of infected people or animals.

Fermentation: Yogurt Project

Leslie Gutierrez, Kelly Diep, Shirley
Ms. Malonek
Biology 1/2 
25 November 2014

1. Fermentation Project: Yogurt

   Task: 
   

   • a recipe in metric
   • pictures of you making the product and tasting the product
   • a paragraph describing in detail what type of fermentation is going on

   
   Recipe
   
   

   1. Place 0.946353 Liters of 2 percent milk in a large saucepan over medium-high heat; cook until it reaches 180 degrees, stirring occasionally to prevent scorching, 5 to 7 minutes. Let cool to 115 degrees.
   2. Whisk together 0.236588 Liters of the heated milk and 0.0443603 Liters of plain low-fat yogurt. Stir into remaining milk.
   3. Transfer to a 0.946353 Liters mason jar. Wrap jar (without lid) in 2 clean kitchen towels, completely covering sides and top. Let stand undisturbed in a warm place until yogurt has the consistency of custard, 4 to 5 hours.
   4. Refrigerate uncovered jar; when it's cool to the touch, about 30 minutes, screw on a tight-fitting lid.

   • What type of fermentation is going on?
   • The type of fermentation that demonstrated by creating yogurt is lactic acid fermentation. One produces yogurt through the lactic acid fermentation of milk with harmless bacteria. By decreasing raw milks pH it causes the milk to congeal, or increase in temperature, causing it rot and become yogurt. The bacteria in lactic acid fermentation, lactic acid bacteria, are a diverse group of bacteria that are able to ferment various sugars which then produces lactic acid plus other waste products. In general, lactic acid fermentation is the "anaerobic microbial breakdown of sugar, yielding energy in the form of ATP and releasing waste products, specifically lactic acid." In other words, yogurt is simply milk fermented by lactic acid bacteria. The two species of bacteria that are most commonly used to make yogurt are Lactobacillus bulgaris and Streptococcus thermophilus. These types of bacteria then ferment the sugar found in milk, or lactose, into lactic acid and other compounds with unique flavors. In addition, the lactic acid causes the milk proteins to clump together, giving the yogurt its characteristic thick texture and  its delicious taste. According to education-portal.com, if you pulled out 1 gram of finished yogurt, you could find up to 100 million lactic acid bacteria,  which illustrates overall just how well lactic acid bacteria "are able to thrive by fermenting just lactose." 
   • 
     

   

   
   
   
   Source: http://www.marthastewart.com/948811/homemade-yogurt

   

   Leslie cooking the yogurt!
   
   

   

   Leslie tasting the yogurt! YUM! 

   

    November 25, 2014

Hot Zone Blog: How do you think Monet got sick? What is his worst symptom?

Kelly D.
December 4, 2014
Period 1

How do you think Monet got sick? What is his worst symptom?

     There are tons of possibilities of how the disease transmitted to Monet. I believe that he got sick by coming into contact with the monkeys during the duration of his trip. In the book, it describes monkeys being used as experiments to find cures for various viruses and diseases. In an experiment, a monkey's contaminated blood was spilled onto the floor when a test tube broke. Monet was feeding the monkey and there could have been some transferring of the virus happening. The monkey's bodily fluids such as its saliva could've come in contact with Monet resulting in the virus entering his body. His worst symptom is continuous bleeding throughout the whole body. As the doctors inspect him, they notice that he is bleeding internally and the blood is coming out of him too.

Hot Zones: Blog

Kelly D.

December 1, 2014

Causes & Symptoms of Monet’s Virus

Possible Causes:

• Contact with the monkeys he had always been affectionate about
• In the story, he is described as a person who is caring for animals proven by his actions of feeding them and touching them. These actions might have been a possible cause of his sickness.
• Unknown contact with an object in the forest
• It is stated in the story that he lives alone near geographical areas such as forests and rivers. He also visits them often.
• This also leads to a possibility of consumption of contaminated water. There could have been something dangerous lurking in the water.
• Unknown virus in the zoo
• On the trip to the zoo, we have no clue if he came in contact with some type of virus there
• Unknown virus lurking in his work area
• Contact with monkey’s bodily fluids
• While feeding the monkeys, there is a possibility that he came in touch with their saliva or other liquids.
• Contact with monkey guano
• On his trip, he touched the green slime, guano, with his hands.
• His trip to the cave
• During the trip, it was coated in black guano and he could have come in contact with the ooze.
• Food he consumed during the trip
• Contact with crows
• Volcanic dust from Mount Elgon
• Contact with germs on women he paid (prostitutes)
• While being with these women, some type of virus could have been transmitted to his body.

Symptoms:

• headaches worsening each day
• Severe backaches
• red eyes
• throbbing pain behind the eyes
• paralytic eyes
• Bursting capillaries
• fevers
• his expressionless appearance
• he seemed “zombie-like”
• damage of nervous system
• Vomiting blood with black dots
• Yellowing skin
• Strokes
• Bleeding nose
• His personality changed. He had become sullen, angry, and resentful and it seemed as if he had no memory.
• head turning to blue and black
• mass of bruises
• coughing blood
• nausea
• hemorrhage

Lactobacillus Acidophillus

Kelly D.
Nov. 14, 2014
Period 1

Topic: Pick a single cell organism from http://commtechlab.msu.edu/Sites/dlc-me/zoo/i... (The Microbe Zoo) Include where does it live, what does it do , and include a picture. 

 Lactobacillus Acidophillus

            The single cell organism I have chosen to discuss is Lactobacillus acidophillus. Lactobacillus acidophillus is from the kingdom, Eubacteria and it is special in many ways. This bacterium plays a role in the foods we consume. First, it is special because it helps preserve our foods by making our food acidic. Some of the foods this microbe preserves include cabbage forming sauerkraut, milk forming yogurt, and flour dough forming sourdough bread. Lactobacillus acidophillus make acids as a byproduct (waste product) of fermentation. The acid produced makes the environment toxic to most other microbes. This microbe is the most commonly used probiotic which is contained in many yogurts and drinks. Other uses of Lactobacillus acidophillus are helping digestion, treating chronic constipation, improving lactose tolerance, treating high cholesterol, enhancing the immune system, and more. Lactobacillus acidophillus lives in our digestive, urinary, and genital systems without causing disease.

Sources: 

• http://www.mayoclinic.org/drugs-supplements/acidophilus/background/hrb-20058615
• http://dwb.unl.edu/teacher/nsf/c11/c11links/www.bact.wisc.edu/scienceed/lactobacillusacidophilus.html
• http://commtechlab.msu.edu/Sites/dlc-me/zoo/zqq0161.html
• Google Images

A Basic Understanding of Chemistry

Kelly D.
Oct. 31, 2014
Period 1

Topic: Why is a basic understanding of chemistry necessary to understand photosynthesis and cellular respiration (Explain 3 chemistry concepts)?

         A basic understanding of chemistry is necessary to understand photosynthesis and cellular respiration because of the following reasons. First, many chemical reactions, molecules, cells, atoms, and more are involved in photosynthesis and cellular respiration. All these objects and reactions are a part of chemistry. Thus, clearly, it would be  logical to understand chemistry before learning photosynthesis and cellular respiration. In addition, chemistry is the study of change of matters in composition, structure, and properties. Photosynthesis and cellular respiration can only occur if chemistry exists. Without it, there wouldn't be all the processes that occur in our world daily. Thirdly, chemistry studies the transformation of cells and molecules. In photosynthesis and cellular respiration, it is a process where energy is taken from sunlight and transformed into food for plants. To grasp the concept of photosynthesis and cellular respiration, we must understand chemistry first.
An important chemistry concept is the arrangement of atoms. In cellular respiration, each atom is arranged and organized in a specific manner for the process to occur correctly. Another important chemistry concept is oxidation and reduction because the gain and loss of electrons between cells is vital to understanding these two processes. In photosynthesis, an oxidation of food molecules occurs which demonstrates an important concept of chemistry. Therefore, we must have a basic understanding of chemistry to understand photosynthesis and cellular respiration.

Sources:

Google Images

globalchange.com

Why Glycolysis is the Most Fundamental Stage of Cellular Respiration?

Kelly D.
Ms.Malonek
Period 1
Oct. 30, 2014

    Glycolysis is the most fundamental stage of cellular respiration because it is the first step in cellular respiration and all cells are able to carry out glycolysis. Glycolysis is important in the cells because glucose is the main source of fuel for tissues in the body. As the song "Glycolysis" by Glenn Wolkenfeld, it notes that glycolysis is an anaerobic pathway where oxygen is not necessary because it is billions of years old. In addition, glycolysis happens in the cytoplasm and doesn't need no organelles. The main point of cellular respiration is to harvest electrons from glucose and use that to make ATP. Glycolysis provides a net of two ATP which is fundamental for the next steps. Glycolysis is the only step in cellular respiration requiring ATP to produce ATP. Investment is the energy activation supply needed in order to start the reaction and cleavage is the six carbon sugar that divides in the reaction.

Source: Glycolysis rap by Glenn Wolkenfeld

Planaria Quickwrite

Kelly Diep
Oct. 31, 2014

QUESTIONS

1. What type of symmetry does the dugesia have?
radial bilateral asymmetry

2. What term is used to describe how a planarian can regrow its body parts?
regeneration fission cephalization

3. Which of the following is associated with the planarian's nervous system?
flame cells diffusion ganglia

4. Asexual reproduction can occur through a process called:
transverse fission binary fission cocoooning

5. A hermaphrodite is an animal that:
can asexually reproduce can regenerate has both male and female parts

6. The dugesia belongs to the phylum:
platyhelminthes planaria turbellaria

7. How could a a person catch a dugesia?
using a net to siphon them from the surface of the water
using a hook and raw liver to attract them

8. An animal that has no internal body cavity to hold organs is called a(n):
turbellarian hermaphrodite acoelomate

9. How does the dugesia obtain oxygen?
diffusion through gills with its flame cells

10. The dugesia will tend to stay in what areas?
dark light warm

Should GMO foods be allowed?

Kelly D.
October 8, 2014
Period 1

            GMO foods should not be allowed due to the many harmful effects it has on the US population. First of all, GMO foods have been discovered to downgrade our health and affect our bodies in terrible ways. According to the video, "Seeds of Death", an experiment was performed on pigs where one group was fed non-GMO foods and the other was fed GMO foods. After observing each group's organs, the GMO group had severe inflammation on their stomach lining which caused them to die off faster and the non-GMO group had no inflammation at all. Many parents have children whose bodies develops an allergic reaction to the GMO food in their bloodstream which could result in death. GMO foods have also recently been discovered to be the causes of stomach diseases along with many other types. That shows us how deadly GMO foods can be to our bodies and we, humans, should put our greatest efforts toward eliminating GMO foods. Secondly, GMO foods such as plants are fed to animals resulting in them becoming nutrient-deficient and following that, humans consuming those animals become nutrient-deficient. So, the cycle goes on and on and slowly kills off the US population. Not only in the US, but in other parts of the world, this cycle is occurring repetitively and affecting humans gravely, For example, in Africa, one farmer began feeding his livestock GMO foods and they began dying quickly suspiciously. Indeed, it was the GMO food he fed them that was making them die. This detrimental effect GMO foods has on the world is not a good thing for us and people should be encouraged to ban GMO foods. We should also lean more towards a non-GMO diet. Lastly, GMO foods eaten by pregnant women affected their unborn children. This has a serious effect on our future generations and if GMO foods continue to be allowed, this will decrease the amount of healthy infants in the US. It has been said that toxic pesticides in these GMO foods were found in many unborn children. These toxic pesticides will probably have a large impact on these newborns. In addition, many infant formulas are made from cows injected with GMO. Before you say yes to allowing GMO Foods, imagine the consequence of this, what would happen to our future generations and what can WE do to help them? Say NO to  GMO foods!

How has DNA fingerprinting changed forensics?

Kelly D.
Oct. 3, 2014
Period 1

       Before DNA fingerprinting, it was impossible for investigators to directly connect a person to evidence found at the crime scene which resulted in many unsolved crimes and wrongful convictions. Blood evidence could be collected from crime scenes; however, it could not be confirmed that it belonged to a suspect. Soon, fingerprints came along and produced a stronger identification, but DNA changed it all. To give an example, in 1987, DNA fingerprinting was used to clear a chief suspect and find the real killer of a murder case. Now, law enforcement officials can connect DNA profiles to crimes and evidence through CODIS. This method has become very efficient and important in identifying criminals of many cases

Sources:
http://www.grundyco.org/departments/coroner/item/the-changing-role-of-forensic-science
Google Images

The 3 Advantages of PCR

Kelly D.
Oct. 3, 2014
Period 1    

            Polymerase Chain Reaction, also known as PCR, is a method of cloning alleles. It allows biologists to make many copies of a particular gene chosen. One of the three advantages is that PCR can amplify STR in any amount needed to be profiled successfully. It can amplify any one area of DNA molecules. Secondly, STR profiling can be completed in a fraction of the time needed for VNTR and it is also safe to prepare to separate electrophoresis gels. The third advantage is that there is no need to work with any radioactive labeled probes or X-ray films. In addition, PCR is very versatile compared to other gene copying processes.

Molecules

Kelly Diep

Ms.Malonek

Period 1

Shapes of Molecules

           A molecule is the smallest unit of a compound that can exist alone and keep the properties of that compound. Molecules are made up of one or more atoms. If they have more than one atom, the atoms can be the same or different, In living organisms, molecules like DNA and proteins, are made up of thousands of atoms. The three-dimensional shape of a molecules is an important trait. The shape depends on the preferred spatial orientation of covalent bonds to atoms having two or more bonding partners. There are many different kinds of shapes of molecules like linear, triganol planar, tetrahedral, bent, and more.  Lewis structures were drawn for several small molecules and ions with different combinations of single, double, and triple bonds. Some examples of linear molecules are H2 and HCI. All diatomic molecules are linear in shape. The chemical formula of a molecule or compound shows how many atoms of each element are in one molecule of the compound. These are written by putting the element's symbol next to each other. A subscript is a small number after the symbol of that element. For example, the formula for carbon dioxide is CO2  meaning that there is one carbon atom and two oxygen atoms.

Reference:
http://www.ausetute.com.au/shapemol.html
http://www.chem.ufl.edu/~myers/chm2045/shapes.htm

Google Images

                

Enzymes

Kelly Diep
Ms. Malonek
Period 1-Biology
9/3/14

Digestive Enzymes

        Digestive enzymes are enzymes that break down polymeric macromolecules into smaller building blocks to make their adsorption in the body easier. The digestive enzymes are very diverse and are found in digestive tracts of animals and humans. Their purpose is to aid in the digestion of food. 

       

        These enzymes are also found in the saliva secreted by salivary glands in the stomach, pancreatic juice, and in the intestinal secretions. Digestive enzymes are grouped based on their target substrates. Proteases and peptidases split proteins into small peptidases and amino acids. Lipases split into three fatty acids and a glycerol molecule. Carbohydrases split carbohydrates like sugar and starch into simple sugars.Nucleases split nucleic acids into nucleotides. 

        The main locations of digestion in the human body are the oral cavity, stomach and the small intestine. In the oral cavity, complex food substances must be broken down into simple, soluble, diffusible substances before they can be absorbed. Also, salivary glands secrete an array of enzymes and substances to help with digestion and disinfection. There are two kinds of salivary glands: serous and mixed glands. Serous glands produce a secretion rich in water, electrolytes, and enzymes. Mixed glands have both serous and mucous glands.

        The enzymes secreted in the stomach are called gastric enzymes. The stomach plays a major role in digestion by mixing and  crushing the food. Pepsin is the main gastric enzyme which breaks down protein in food into smaller particles. Pancreas is both an endocrine and exocrine gland. It functions to produce endocrinic hormones released in the circulatory system. Thus, digestive enzymes have an important role in our bodies.

Reference:
Info-http://whole9life.com/2012/09/digestive-enzymes-101
        http://health.usnews.com/health-news/blogs/eat-run/2013/04/23/digestive-enzymes-help-or-hype/
Pictures-Google Image

All About Me

Kelly Diep

Biology

Ms. Malonek

Period 1

All About Me

      My name is Kelly Diep and my birthday is on March 26, 2000. I came from Garfield School and I have one younger sister, Kelsey. I'm an adventurous person who likes to explore and try many new things. As the adventurous person I am, I love riding on roller coasters. Some of my hobbies are swimming, reading, exercising,traveling, and drawing. I have taken art classes for four years already and drawing is something I enjoy doing in my free time. Swimming is an activity I do as part of my exercise and it's a relaxing way to exercise. Personally, exercising has been something I've been doing every week and it makes you feel strong and healthy. Traveling somewhere new has always been my favorite trip of the summer. I have been to Canada, Seattle, New York, Pennsylvania, Arizona, Washington D.C., and Northern California.  

      I'm a freshman and my favorite subject is probably math and English. It's fun to be facing new challenges in school every year and it feels good to accomplish them simultaneously. My least favorite subject is probably history. I have been in this district since kinder. 

      I come from a background of Vietnamese and Chinese. Although, I'm not very fluent in those languages, I do understand and speak a bit. I love eating Vietnamese and Chinese food. My favorite dessert is mint chip ice cream. Some of my favorite places to go to are amusement parks, beaches, night markets, festivals, and celebrations.

    I'm excited for what will await for me in the next years of high school and I'm looking forward to all the fun things that I will get to do.