Lesson plan
Inoculation loop
An inoculation loop (also called a smear loop, inoculation wand or microstreaker) is a simple tool used mainly by microbiologists to pick up and transfer a small sample of microorganisms called inoculum from a microbial culture, e.g. for streaking on a culture plate. This process is called inoculation. The tool consists of a thin handle with a loop about 5 mm wide or smaller at the end. It was originally made of twisted metal wire (such as platinum, tungsten or nichrome), but disposable molded plastic versions are now common. The size of the loop determines the volume of liquid an inoculation loop can transfer. An early report of the use of an inoculation loop as an analytical tool was by O'Sullivan et al. in a 1960 published protocol developed to improve methods for culturing urine samples. A 3mm diameter loop was used to deliver a consistent volume of urine for analysis. Loops can now be purchased to transfer volumes ranging from 1-10 microliters, though pipettes have replaced inoculation loops as more reliable tools to deliver small volumes of liquid.
Article summary
An inoculation loop (also called a smear loop, inoculation wand or microstreaker) is a simple tool used mainly by microbiologists to pick up and transfer a small sample of microorganisms called inoculum from a microbial culture, e.g. for streaking on a culture plate. This process is called inoculation. The tool consists of a thin handle with a loop about 5 mm wide or smaller at the end. It was originally made of twisted metal wire (such as platinum, tungsten or nichrome), but disposable molded plastic versions are now common. The size of the loop determines the volume of liquid an inoculation loop can transfer. An early report of the use of an inoculation loop as an analytical tool was by O'Sullivan et al. in a 1960 published protocol developed to improve methods for culturing urine samples. A 3mm diameter loop was used to deliver a consistent volume of urine for analysis. Loops can now be purchased to transfer volumes ranging from 1-10 microliters, though pipettes have replaced inoculation loops as more reliable tools to deliver small volumes of liquid.
Key claims
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Discussion questions
- Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
- Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
- If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?
Bibliography
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Key claims and bibliography are generated from the same tracked claims and sources as the article page.