BIOLOGY

EXPERIMENT

AIM:
To study suitable conditions
for bread mould growth.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I would like to thank our bio teacher Ms Hema
malini maam for giving us an opportunity to do
such an interesting experiment and also for
spending her invaluable time helping us conduct
our experiment. I would like to thank my parents
who have stood by me and helped me complete the
experiment.

What is Mold?
Mold is something that we often take for granted, as something
that makes us have to throw the bread away or the cheese
smell bad.
Mold is, in fact, a fascinating organism which has had many
different uses over the years and our lives would not be the
same without it.
A mold or mould) is a fungus that grows in the form of
multicellular filaments called hyphae.In contrast, fungi that can
adopt a single celled growth habit are called yeasts.
The scientific name of bread mould is Rhizopus stolonifera
Molds are a large and taxonomically diverse number of fungal
species where the growth of hyphae results in discoloration and
a fuzzy appearance, especially on food. The network of these
tubular branching hyphae, called a mycelium, is considered a
single organism. The hyphae are generally transparent, so the
mycelium appears like very fine, fluffy white threads over the
surface. Cross-walls (septa) may delimit connected
compartments along the hyphae, each containing one or
multiple, genetically identical nuclei. The dusty texture of many
molds is caused by profuse production of asexual spores
(conidia) formed by differentiation at the ends of hyphae. The
mode of formation and shape of these spores is traditionally
used to classify molds.[4] Many of these spores are colored,
making the fungus much more obvious to the human eye at this
stage in its life-cycle.
Molds are considered to be microbes and do not form a specific
taxonomic or phylogenetic grouping, but can be found in the

divisions Zygomycota and Ascomycota. In the past, most molds

were classified within the Deuteromycota.

Most of us know that food seems to become moldy more

quickly in the summer than in the winter when it is colder. Food
in refrigerators seems to keep longer than food left out in the
sun. Is this true? Does temperature really affect the rate at
which mold grows?

Important Note
Please note that some people are allergic to mold; ask your
doctor or parents. If this is the case, do not pick the Mold Bread
Experiment. Always wear gloves and a mask, wash your hands,
and dont eat or drink whilst you are performing this study.
Performing the Mold Bread Experiment
Hypothesis
In the Mold Bread Experiment we are trying to prove that;
"Mold grows quicker at higher temperatures."
What You Need for the Mold Bread Experiment
5 slices of bread. Any sort will do but it is perfectly fine to use
cheap white sliced bread as then you will know that all of the
slices are a similar size, weight and thickness. You must
make a note of the brand and use-by date so that anybody

else wanting to repeat the Mold Bread Experiment can use

the same type.
5 boxes to

keep the

bread in
Clean knife
Chopping board
Sticky labels
Mold Spores -. There are mold spores all around us in the air
which will
on the

Agar plates

eventually grow
bread .

Mask
Gloves
Agar -agar
Method
Using the

sticky labels and

the marker

pen label the

different

boxes .

Cut each slice into two so that one con be wet while the other
dry.
Put the paired slices of bread into each box and seal the box
tightly.

Put the 1 box into the freezer, the 1 boxes into the refrigerator ,
1boxes somewhere safe in a warm room,1 box ouside in the
sun and the last one ouside in the shade. Because the boxes
in the freezer and fridge will not be getting much light .so light
is a factor here.
Every 24 hours, preferably at exactly the same time every day
moisten the wet slice and observe if there is any growth
You should repeat these counting processes for 10 days .
Keep a careful note of your results for each slice of bread for
the entire duration of the experiment
The mold can then be transferred to the agar plate for faster
growth.
Once you have finished, throw out all of the boxes without
opening them.
OBSERVATION TABLE
SL.N
O
1.

LOCATION OF
BREAD
Outside

2.

4.

Outside in the
shade
Inside a warm
room
Inside freezer

5.

Inside

3.

WETNESS/DRYNES
S
Wet
Dry
Wet
Dry
Wet
Dry
Wet
Dry
Wet

TIME TAKEN FOR

MOLD TO GROW
10 Days
14 Days
7 Days
13 Days
8 Days
No growth yet
No growth yet
No growth yet
No growth yet

refrigerator
Dry
No growth yet
Chart for comparison b/w location,moisture and
days taken for mold growth
25
20
15
10

Wet
Dry

5
0

Before

After

NO CHANGE IN THE ONES KEPT IN THE FREEZER

AND REFRIGERATOR

 The breads above are dry while the ones below

the dry ones are the wet ones.
But there was a change in those kept in the
shade:
The wet slice had growth of mold but not the
dry slices .Why?


INFERANCE
1. The slices in the shade had faster bread mold
growth than the ones in the sunlight.
2. The slices which were in a warmer temperature
had more mold growth than the ones in the colder
temperatures.
3. The slices which had moisture had more mold
growth than the drier ones.
4. So. The factors effecting bread mold growth are:
a.light lesser the light more the growth
b.moisture more the moisture more the
growth
c.temperature more the temperature
better the growth

Why are the Results Important?

The food industry spends millions of dollars every year on
refrigeration and it is very important that we use this
knowledge for preventing food spoilage.By preventing food
spoilage thee will be enough food for all.

Facts About Mold

Common molds[

Acremonium

Alternaria

Aspergillus

Cladosporium

Fusarium

Mucor

Penicillium

Rhizopus

Stachybotrys

Trichoderma

Mold is not a plant but a fungus like mushrooms and

toadstools. It grows on food and other organic matter,
breaking it down into slime and extracting nutrients for
growth.
Alexander Fleming discovered that a common type of mold
fungi kills germs. From this, he made a medicine called
penicillin which has saved millions of lives over the last 80
years. Many other life-saving drugs are made from chemicals
obtained from mold.

Mold is one of natures cleaners. It breaks down dead organic

material and recycles the nutrients back into the soil. It is
essential in nearly every ecosystem in the world.
We use molds for flavor in some foods such as blue cheese,
soy sauce and Quorn(TM).
Molds

cause biodegradation of natural materials, which can be

unwanted when it becomes food spoilage or damage to

property. They also play important roles in biotechnology and
food science in the production of various foods, beverages,
antibiotics, pharmaceuticals and enzymes. Some diseases of
animals and humans can be caused by certain molds:
disease may result from allergic sensitivity to mold spores,
from growth of pathogenic molds within the body, or from the
effects of ingested or inhaled toxic compounds (mycotoxins)
produced by molds.

BIBLIOGRAPHY:
1.www.health.state.mn.us/divs/eh/indoorair/m
old/
2.www.madsci.org/posts/archives/199705/863449273.Mi.r.html
3.www.fsec.ucf.edu
4.www.wiki.org
5.HTTPS://EXPLORABLE.COM/MOLD-BREADEXPERIMENT

THANK YOU

DONE BY:
NIKHIL.M
RAHUL.A