How to keep slide of bacterial?

[katherine_ft]

I would like to preparation a slide of bacterial. I will heat fix the sample.
- Is it nessary to stain the sample?
- How to keep the slide for future used?
Thank you.

[DNA Gyrase]

I didn't quit get you kathrine ???

Originally Posted by katherine_ft

- Is it nessary to stain the sample?

If you want to see anything under ordinary light microscope you have to use stain.
Ususaly I have seen people to keep their bacteria slides within wooden boxes with proper index.

cheers,
DG

[katherine_ft]

Hello DNA Gyrase, Thanks for the reply. Actually, I am really green in bacterial study. I used phase contrast microscope, so I wondering if I could observe bacterial morphology without staining. Howver, my main problem is after heat fix, could I just simply use glycerol to mount the slide? Could it be kept for long term?

[DNA Gyrase]

Hello katherine,
I don't know what is [y]our major and for what purpose you want to prepare slides of bacteria but if you want it for reference/educational/identification I think it is best to use Gram stain;because in most microbiological reference books bacteria classified according to their gram+/gram- characteristics.
For fixation, No I don't think heat fix is enough to preserve bacteria for a long time. You have to find a good fixator recipe. unfortunately I don't have one ready to give you but I barely recall one of their ingredients was formaldehyde or glutaraldehyde depending on the fixator. The latter can be even better because it cross-links proteins and nucleic acids.

cheers
DG

[katherine_ft]

I see. I am going to demostrate mounting silde and using microscope. So, staining is not nessary. But I have problem in preparing slide by using bacterial (live) for teaching. Do you have any suggestion on this?

[DNA Gyrase]

hello katherine,
What do you teach that needs bacteria 'alive'?
what kind of problem exactly?

cheers,
DG