Author Profile

Laurie Comstock is an Associate Professor at Harvard Medical School with a primary appointment in Infectious Diseases at Brigham and Women's Hospital. She obtained a Ph.D. from Wake Forest University Medical Center studying Borrelia burgdorferi. She performed her postdoctoral work at the Center for Vaccine Development at the University of Maryland Medical Center studying Vibrio cholerae. With a background in bacterial pathogenesis and genetics, she began a new research direction more than 20 years ago studying the Bacteroidales, the most abundant order of human gut bacteria. Her lab has made fundamental discoveries regarding the biology of these important gut bacteria. Her lab is currently engaged in studying the ecology of the mammalian gut microbiota, specifically studying how abundant bacterial members of this ecosystem compete with each other.

About The Book

Microbiology is a dynamic science. It is constantly evolving as more information is added to the continuum of knowledge, and as microbiological techniques are rapidly modified and refined. This book provides a blend of traditional methodologies with more contemporary procedures to meet the pedagogical needs of all students studying microbiology. The text imparts a wide variety of critically selected and tested experiments suitable for undergraduate students in allied health programs, as well as elementary and advanced general microbiology courses. The scope and sequencing requirements for a Microbiology course for non-majors are covered in this book. The fundamental ideas of microbiology are presented in the book, with an emphasis on how they apply to allied health professions. The didactic aspects of microbiology keep the career application focus and scientific rigour inherent in the subject matter while making the topic engaging and approachable for students. The text has taken into account the needs of universities that provide microbiology to a mixed audience of science majors and non-majors by commonly combining themes like environmental and applied microbiology and the history of science that might not have clear clinical relevance. The content of this textbook has been organised with these goals in mind, progressing logically from basic to more sophisticated concepts. The introductory chapters give a general overview of the field, with individual chapters focused on microscopy, cellular biology, and every type of microorganism. Students then investigate the fundamentals of microbial biochemistry, metabolism, and genetics, subjects that serve as a foundation for comprehending the many strategies for regulating and thwarting microbial growth. Focusing on how interactions between microorganisms and the human immune system affect human health and disease, the introduction chapter is followed by a chapter on microbial pathogenicity. The text's final several chapters offer an overview of medical microbiology and list the traits of microbial illnesses in alphabetical order by body system. Tools and Techniques of Microbiology has the advantage that educators can modify it to fit the teaching style that works best in their classroom. To research and comprehend the metabolic processes, genetics, functions, and interactions of bacteria with other creatures, a number of microbiological techniques and procedures have been specially developed over the years. These microscopic creatures are mostly studied using methods for cultivating, identifying, isolating, staining, and engineering. Given the wide range of applications for microbiology and its fundamental methods, this book also provides an overview of the fundamental methods employed in microbiological laboratories.

Table of Contents

Preface
Chapter 1. Introduction to Microbiology
Chapter 2. Microscopy in Microbiology
Chapter 3. Staining Techniques
Chapter 4. Culture Media and Growth Conditions
Chapter 5. Isolation and Cultivation of Microorganisms
Chapter 6. Sterilization and Disinfection
Chapter 7. Microbial Growth Measurement
Chapter 8. Biochemical Tests for Microbial Identification
Chapter 9. Molecular Techniques in Microbiology
Chapter 10. Immunological Techniques
Bibliography
Index