> Date: Mon, 19 Feb 2007 16:06:00 -0700
> From: David Fay <davidfay from uwyo.edu>
> Subject: [Celegans] crusty lawns
> To: celegans from magpie.bio.indiana.edu> Message-ID: <8a0f75360d36e01acc491d857cb5121e from uwyo.edu>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=WINDOWS-1252; format=flowed
>> Hi,
>> We've had a problem recently with some of our plates having OP50
> lawns
> that have the consistency of creme brulee – meaning that they are
> kind
> of crusty on top instead of smooth and creamy. No one in the lab,
> including the plate pourers and spotters, seem to know what's going
> on
> and why some of our plates do this. Our worms don't like it though.
> Any
> insights?
>
What broth are you using? I had trouble with crusty OP50 lawns when I
was growing up my OP50 stock in LB broth; one of the online discussion
boards noted this was common when using LB. My worms were extremely
unhappy with it, too. L1s that hatched on top of the crust would starve
sometimes. However, our worm labs at HSU generally have good results
using 3XD to grow OP50 for spotting plates.
Something else I thought of--perhaps you have too--if this is a recent
problem, could your lab have very low humidity from winter heating?
Good luck, and please post back if you solve the problem.
Sincerely,
Kathryn Hedges
Graduate Student, Biology
Humboldt State University
1 Harpst St., Arcata, CA 95521
619-602-9839 cell
