Population Growth in Yeast

PURPOSE AND BACKGROUND In any population of organisms, two categories of factors control population size and growth: biotic potential which refers to all the "right" conditions for population success such as optimum light, overabundance of food, ideal temperature, and sufficient water and environmental resistance which refers to conditions that limit population growth such as inadequate light, scarce food, extreme temperatures, and drought. The least of these is referred to as the limiting factor the one condition that will provide the "cap" to population size or define the carrying capacity !"# of a population. $ometimes limiting factors are long lasting% however, evolution and the dynamic nature of the environment often promotes a shift in limiting factors thus rarely is a carrying capacity every exactly the same number in a population for an extended period of time. In order to experience sustainable growth and numbers, those that do not overly tax an environment or its resources, most populations will experience a short period of & curve or exponential growth, an unsustainable period where biotic potential exceeds environmental resistance, before lapsing into $ curve or logistic growth about a carrying capacity. 'bserve the graph of the white tailed deer population above. (uring the exponential period of growth, some populations have growth rates that can be calculated mathematically using a natural log !ln# or e formula. In )* +nvironmental $cience, we concern ourselves primarily with the point at which the population will double. This time is identified as DT for doubling time and defined based on r, the population growth rate. The natural log equation for doubling time is: DT = ln ( ! " r # where r is the population growth rate in decimal form The population growth rate of yeast, a microorganism Saccharomyces cerevesiae. ,iven a plentiful quantity of food, it should demonstrate a growth pattern consistent with the one shown above in the graph. Thus, it will experience three distinct periods in its population growth. -ag period, when the population is beginning reproduction or pre reproductive. -og period, when their exists & curve growth and a log relationship between number and time. $tationary period is when the population appears to stabilize its numbers in a logistic growth. )nd death period when population numbers collapse due to intense loss !population drops below its ./*# when the carrying capacity is exceeded. $ATER%A&S AND E'U%P$ENT USED .edium sized test tube )pple 3uice (ry super active yeast *lastic pipettes !4# 011 m- bea2er *aper and *aper Towels $quare plastic cuvette 5olorimeter

PROCEDURE 5onnect your colorimeter to your -ab*ro and set it up for single point data collection. $elect 676 nm for the wavelength on the colorimeter. 8ash your cuvette thoroughly to ensure that the sides are perfectly clear and clean !light needs to be able to transmit through your cuvette without encountering scratches or smudges to distort it.# . 9sing a plastic pipette, fill your cuvette with (I water to the top, cap it, and place it in the calorimeter and close the lid. 9se a paper towel to hold the cuvette to prevent smudging. *ress calibrate on the calorimeter !you do not calibrate from the -ab*ro menu:# In five minutes, press calibrate again. 8hile 6 minutes pass, acquire a medium sized test tube and clean it thoroughly, then place it inside your 011 m- bea2er. *repare a yeast culture solution by adding 4 pac2ages !;g. each# dry super active yeast to ;11 m- of apple 3uice !our medium or habitat# in a <111 mflas2. .ix by placing a stopper over the <111 m- flas2 and sha2ing. =This will be enough culture solution for the entire class.> Transfer enough of the culture solution from the <111 m- flas2 to fill your medium test tube. ?ote the time@this is time 1 !unless youAre using a solution from another class:# ?ow press calibrate again on the colorimeter. Then collect a data point@it should be near zeroBif it isnAt, go into setup and re zero but do not use the -ab*ro calibration@re zero, clic2 '", and then hit the calibrate button on the colorimeter: +mpty your cuvette, wash it, and fill it to the top with pure apple 3uice, cap it, close the lid. 9se a paper towel to hold the cuvette to prevent smudging. 5ollect a data point. Cinally, evenly mix your solution by covering and inverting your test tube '?5+ only. +mpty your cuvette, wash it, and fill it to the top with some of your culture solution. 9se a paper

towel to hold the cuvette to prevent smudging. 5ap it, close the lid, and collect a data point. ?ote the time to the nearest quarter hour. Demove your cuvette, return the contents to your test tube and clean your cuvette. "eep this cuvette with your lab. It will be yours for the duration of the experiment. Demember that you will need to ta2e )T -+)$T 7 readings for the next ;E hours. +ach reading should be at least < hour from the last. Fou do not need to ta2e reading of (I water or pure apple 3uice again. )n example of times and a table follow. F'9D TI.+$ 8I-G+ (ICC+D+?T, $' (' ?'T 5'*F TH+$+ /+DG)TI.::: Recommended Times: 1.6 hrs. I << am (ay < E6 hrs. I << am (ay E 0J hrs. I << am (ay 4 7 hr. I 0 pm (ay < 4< hrs. I 0 pm (ay E 60 hrs. I 0pm (ay 4

RESU&TS Ti(e (hours! !(I 8ater# !*ure )pple &uice# 1.6 7 E6 4< 0J 60 A)sor)an*e (+!

ANA&YS%S 5reate an KLF graph of absorbance !y# as a function of time !x#, print, and label ", and the three periods described in the IntroductionLGac2ground to the lab. (etermine the doubling time of the yeast population at the steepest point in your initial & curve. 9se the doubling time equation to find the D. CONC&US%ON (id you experience any experimental anomaliesM !i.e. any point where the reliability of your data should be in question.# 8hat are they and why are they a concernM +xplain what your results proved. SUGGEST%ONS ,OR ,URT-ER %N.EST%GAT%ON 8hat changes would you ma2e to this lab to advance your studies on this sub3ect matterM