Bread, mold, and environment: A lesson in biology and the

environment
Emily Cribas
Hypothesis. Cold temperature inhibits the growth of mold.
Prediction. Mold does not grow as well in an environment of 4 C than in 55 C
on bread with no preservatives.
Treatment and Controls. A slice of white bread with preservatives was placed
in a bag and left to grow for 5 days after being sprayed twice with a mixture of
spores and water. This experiment tested these bread samples at 4, 25, and 55 C
temperatures, respectively.
The positive control in this experiment was white bread with preservatives and 2
sprays of spores and water, while the negative control was the same bread sprayed
twice with only water. Based on the hypothesis, it is predicted that the mold will
grow best on much higher temperatures, 55 C, than in lower temperatures, 4 C,
while 25 C was used as the positive control.
Results. Moldiness scale: 0-10, 10 - completely covered in mold, 0 - no mold
Label Temperature( C) Trial 1
A
4
0, normal, no mold
spore spray visible
B
25 (+)
9, light green and
mostly white mold
C
55
0, soggy, no mold
D
25 (-)
0, no mold

Trial 2
0, normal, no mold
spore spray visible
7, mostly light green
with some white
0, soggy, no mold
X

Trial 3
0, normal, no mold
spore spray visible
5, light green, white
mold on the sides
0, soggy, no mold
X

Figure 1. White Mold

Based on the above results, the coloration and appearance of each of the growths
in the 25 C medium is most likely the mold grown from the sprays. Furthermore,
1

Figure 2. Green Mold

the spore growth was validated through the use of a microscope where the images
above were seen.
Conclusions. Mold is temperature dependent, but the spores do not sprout unless they reach an optimum temperature, in this case, room temperature. Spores
do not germinate in extreme temperatures. Further experiments could include using temperatures closer to room temperature, and test whether mold grows better
at slightly colder or warmer temperatures.
The separate trials for the same temperature showed varying degrees of growth,
but the result is still the same: only growth on the room temperature medium
was apparent. No growth was seen from the two extreme temperatures, indicating
that the spores do not prefer one extreme to another.
All in all, the hypothesis was wrong, and should be modified to incorporate
that mold does not prefer one extreme to the other, and grows at an optimal
temperature close to room temperature.
Key Question. One of the key questions the results from this experiment answers is the following:
How might the biological environment affect the ability of a human or plant to
be infected by a pathogen?
From this experiment, different factors, especially temperature may affect the
ability of a pathogen to proliferate within host cells. In places where there is
either extreme cold or extreme heat, spores from the pathogen may not have
reached conditions that are suitable enough for them to start reproducing within
the host. Some pathogens that inhabit areas around room temperature for example
may not proliferate within a human, whose body temperature is 12 C higher.
The same goes for cold-blooded animals, for example. Overall, different types of
pathogens inhabit different optimal environments, and too much deviation from
this environment will cause the pathogen to remain in their spore, dormant state.