When you start a new job or employ a new member of staff, checks are carried out. Employers usually ask for references and evidence of qualifications. New recruits may even be asked to show their passport or driving license. All these checks are carried out to ensure that new recruits are who they say they are and that they are qualified to do the job that they have been appointed to. So why should you be any less careful about the strains that you work within the laboratory?

Contamination of cultures and genetic drift can easily occur, especially when strains are being used for long-term programmes of work - it is all too easy to lose track of how many times your strain has been cultured since it was originally isolated or received.  A few easy steps can ensure that the integrity of your strain is maintained and that you always have pure cultures at your fingertips.

NCIMB’s booklet, titled “Do I know you?” highlights the pitfalls of repeated sub-culturing, and outlines the basic steps that you can take to avoid strain drift, and make sure that you really know the strains that you are working within the laboratory.

Download your free copy here.