Trond Erik Vee Aune wrote:
>>> Anne Thomas wrote:
>>>>> What about subculturing the swarmer onto a plate with a stronger agar
>>>> concentration? We used to use one (6% agar if I remember correctly)
>>>>>>>> which
>>>>>> would stop the swarmers.
>>>>>>>>> Does this mean that swarming bacteria spreads through the agar and not
>>> on top of it?
>>>>>> Trond Erik
>>>>>>>>> No, Proteus mirabilis, for example, grows as a discrete colony onstead of
>> swarming.
>>> I don't get this. Why would increasing the agar concentration help
> prevent swarming if they don't move through the agar?
>
Because it decreases the availability of water at the surface of the
agar. It's a 'dryer' surface for them to move across, so they move more
slowly. Kind of like a slug trying to move across a wet surface versus a
dry surface.
--
Scott J. Coutts
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