The variables were the treatment (the different concentrations from our serial dilution of Astragalus extract and our positive and negative controls) against the absorbance value from a spectrophotometer. Something would be classified as a “hit” for a potential antibiotic if the value of the absorbance fell outside of the 2 standard deviation +/- the DMSO mean. A hit would indicate that the certain concentration could act as an antibiotic.
Great job! I really enjoyed listening to your presentation. When you discussed the potential future research goals, you mentioned the possibility of amplifying the activating ingredient in the powder. How do you suggest going about this? Are there any specific chemical or lab procedures/methods that you would suggest using?
The most promising lead we found in literature was that by performing an extraction with ethanol, it can increase the amount of the active ingredient (polysaccharides) obtained from the extract compared to a water extraction! Extraction procedures are done in organic chemistry labs, so hopefully this would be something that is obtainable.
Partially! Because our stock solution was a different color than our controls, it mainly caused the issues with absorbance of the light. However, because our extract was also powder and needed to be made into solution, the solubility of the compound came into play. With the solubility of the powder being difficult to work with, our stock solution ended up extremely dark since it wouldn’t dissolve well in DMSO.
Question Asked: What variables were used to make the growth response curve, and what is meant when you say “hits”?
The variables were the treatment (the different concentrations from our serial dilution of Astragalus extract and our positive and negative controls) against the absorbance value from a spectrophotometer. Something would be classified as a “hit” for a potential antibiotic if the value of the absorbance fell outside of the 2 standard deviation +/- the DMSO mean. A hit would indicate that the certain concentration could act as an antibiotic.
Great job! I really enjoyed listening to your presentation. When you discussed the potential future research goals, you mentioned the possibility of amplifying the activating ingredient in the powder. How do you suggest going about this? Are there any specific chemical or lab procedures/methods that you would suggest using?
The most promising lead we found in literature was that by performing an extraction with ethanol, it can increase the amount of the active ingredient (polysaccharides) obtained from the extract compared to a water extraction! Extraction procedures are done in organic chemistry labs, so hopefully this would be something that is obtainable.
Do you believe the absorbance problems you were having were directly related to the Astragalus being in a powder form, or is that unrelated?
Partially! Because our stock solution was a different color than our controls, it mainly caused the issues with absorbance of the light. However, because our extract was also powder and needed to be made into solution, the solubility of the compound came into play. With the solubility of the powder being difficult to work with, our stock solution ended up extremely dark since it wouldn’t dissolve well in DMSO.