Week 9 (Success)

Figure 1: Pseudomonas fluorescens co-incubated with different
microplastics

            This week was a great week for the team (remember the arrow analogy from last week? I told you we were being launched to great findings). Last month, P. fluorescens bacteria didn’t show growth on media plate when co-incubated with our different types of our microplastics. The result shocked us all because I had a poster presentation for WAESO that needed results, and showing no growth for my specific bacteria, P. fluorescens, made my presentation loose value. But, I explained it’s pulmonary research so results aren’t always pretty. Now, I don’t have to worry about that anymore. P. fluorescens showed growth on media plates containing microplastics (PVC 3, LDPE 4, PP 5) (figure 1). This wasn’t a worry for me because growth was observed on a micro level (under the Scanning Electron Microscope) but showing growth on a macro level is more appealing.