Team:Reading/Notebook

Lab notes

This page is an account of the daily events in our lab and project. Dates are in the UK format DD/MM/YY. 6803 refers to the cyanobacterium used - Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803

29/06/15

  • Cultured a sterile 500ml conical flask using 100 ml BG-11 and 5 loopfuls of 6803 Wild Type (WT). (Flask 1)
  • Cultured 5 streak plates of 6803 WT on BG-11 Agar

    • All placed on the windowsill in our lab under natural light and at room temperature (~25°C)

    02/07/15

  • Three new sterile 500ml conical flasks set up on the shaker at 58rpm and 30°C. Each contains 5 loopfuls of 6803 WT and 100ml of BG-11. They are exposed to the overhead lights in the lab 24/7. (Flasks 2, 3, 4)

    • 07/07/15

  • Flask 5 cultured containing 10ul 6803 WT in 100ml BG-11. This flask will be used for preliminary growth curve measurements. The flask was placed on the shaker with flasks 2,3 and 4 all at 58rpm and 30°C under lab overhead lights.

    • 10/07/15

    2 Litres of water collected from Whiteknights Lake on campus for SODIS, method outlines in protocols.

    13/07/15

    Estimating the Cells per ml for the flask from 29/06 1 a.u at 750nm = 1.6x108

  • OD750 = 0.028
    • Therefore
  • 0.028x1.6x108 = 4.48x106 cells per ml

    • OD750 measurement and cells per ml estimated for flasks cultured on 02/07

    14/07/15

    The lamp safety testing completed so flasks placed under the bright white light bulb

    21/07/15

    Flasks are getting very green, definitely a good sign!

    23/07/15

    Flask 2 discarded as it is not showing growth, and has signs of contamination. We received most of the lab equipment we have ordered.

    27/07/15

    BG-11 order arrived finally!

    1. Miniprep of plasmid DNA: We carried out extraction of biobrick construct plasmids from E.coli NEB-5α glycerol stocks.

      We extracted pSB1K3 plasmid backbones combined with biobricks containing the following genes:

      • PilA1
      • PsaD
      • PetF
      • PilT

      This gave us 4 samples of plasmid DNA, which were placed in the freezer at -20°C.

    2. BG-11 cultures: We added ~200ml of BG-11 to two sterile 500ml conical flasks. We inoculated them as follows;
      • Flask 6 - 1ml of Wild type 6803 from flask 3 as this flask had the best growth.
      • Flask 7 - 10µl of stock Howe Lab triple mutant 6803.
    3. SODIS lakewater cultures: We added ~200ml of SODIS lakewater to two sterile 500ml conical flasks. We inoculated them as follows;
      • SODIS Flask 1 - 1ml of Wild type 6803 from flask 3 as this flask had the best growth.
      • SODIS Flask 2 - 1ml of stock Howe Lab triple mutant 6803.

    All flasks cultured today were placed in the incubator, being shaken at 58rpm, 30°C, and under bright white light.