YAKULT TRIP IS SO MUCH FUN

REFLECTIVE JOURNAL

Assalamualaikum W.B.T

    Hello readers, Alhamdulillah we meet again for this entry. Im literally excited to update my journal this time. As you guys noticed my topic at the above of this entry, i'm going to write about my experience for YAKULT TOUR. 

     Have you all been there? For your information, our beloved country have only one Yakult factory which is located at Seremban, Negeri Sembilan. 

 

    For me, this is just a day to apply and relate what we have learnt on Microbiology's class. On that day, we have been in a lecture before we were touring the factory and watch all the processes in making Yakult. Of course, we need some ideas or informations regarding Yakult before we get to know the processes of Yakult production. 

   As a biotech student, we know that Yakult is a kind of cultured drinks which used probiotic strain. So, it must be related to microbial world. Let me introduce the founder of the Yakult before we go into details. 

  Yakult was first launched in Japan in 1935 by Dr. Minoru Shirota, a japanese famous scientist. He found and made researched on a microbe named as Lactobacillus casei strain Shirota. He was actually the fisrt in the world to isolate and culture a probiotic strain which could reached the intestines alive in large numbers and imparted health benefits to the host. Therefore, he used this strain to make Yakult!

Lactobacillus casei strain Shirota

    The name Lacto is reffered to milk, Bacillus is the shape of the bacteria, Casei is cheese where this bacteria have been cultured with & Shirota is the name of the founder.

     Why is it so important to gain a good microbe to reach our intestine? We have been told from the lecture in Yakult trip, our intestine is actually a part of our immune systems. So we know that some microbe could not resist to the bile and the secretion of gastric juice in our stomach. However, Lactobacillus casei strain Shirota is one of the microbe that is resistance to gastric juice and could reached our intestines. There are several proves that have been proven this bacteria reached and alive in our intestines. 

    Okay now i'm going to tell about the processes. Seriously guys this is the intersting part! But honestly, i could not remembered all the processes involved, how the machine works, what is the suitable & appropriate conditions in details but i do remember what I exactly seen on that day! There's a part where they boiled the milk at certain temperature and I'm thinking this is the process of pasteurization. I tried to relate on what we have leart on topic "Microbial Genetics & Genetics Engineering". Pasteurization is the process killing bacteria in food and from this case they were doing to kill bacteria from growing before they put and mixed the cultured of Lactobacillus casei strain Shirota into the milk. 

    The processes were very organizable and unfortunately the person who guide us for the tour not allowed us to take any photos. But there are a few photos of me and my friends at the factory. Oh ya, I also bought two cottons of Yakult and a cooler bag for us to keep it cold so that the bacteria will live happily. HAHA

   

    I think thats all for this entry, a very much thanks to Dr. Fairolniza the leader of our trip, she has did very much for us. We were bery appreciate on Dr. Fairol works because she is the one who's set the date and deal with Yakult factory for the visit. Thank you. 

Ecology

REFLECTIVE JOURNAL

Assalamualaikum w.b.t 

         Hello readers, thank you for willing to keep on updating my reflective journal. So i'm going to write on Ecology's topic on week 10 who's handled by Dr. Wan Zuhainis. 

       First of all, i would like to rate this topic about 9/10! Well, this topic is quite easy and i'm hoping it will be ask on test 2 more than other topics which are a bit tougher. Unfortunately, there is no any kind of questions related to ecology on test 2. I'm so sad. But it's okay guys, why do people test you on something that is easy for you right? Actually not really easy but at least this topic is kind of something that could use your logic thoughts by writing your own words and hoping the answers could be accepted. HAHA.

     In class, we were already divided into six groups. Since Dr Wan zuhainis is not feeling well on that day, so we all are willing to be the teachers to each other. Guys, seriously it was fun. The task is just simple. We already have studied this chapter before entering the class right? So this could make this task is more effective. 

      We have been given about 10 minutes to add up some more information on Ecology. Each person in each group is given a subtopic to make on research. After 10 minutes, the first group have to go the second group, teach and give all of  the information to them. Definitely, the second group will have more information regarding their subtopics including their own information previously. So next, the second group will pass the information to the third group. So this is how the flow of the information is pass to one another. 

     So, if we were looking at the terminology of ecology, what does cross on your mind? I bet we might think in the same way. It must be something like interaction between all living things from the producer up until the consumers and decomposers. There could be a pyramid diagram showing the energy flow about 10% and another 90% is heat lost. The lowest part which is the biggest population is the producer such as grasses and followed by first, secondary and tertiary consumers. Microbes are in the category of decomposer which play important roles in the ecosystem for the recycle of energy flow. 

TROPHIC LEVEL DIAGRAM

      Since we are taking on Microbiology class, so it is more related to microbialecology. The definition of microbialecology is the interaction or relationship between (microbe-environment) and (microbe-microbe). Microbial interaction can be evaluated based on their physical interactions and benificial/harmful effects. Three type of known interactions which are endosymbiosis, ectosymbiosis and endo/ectosymbiosis. From what i have found the definition of each physical interactions are:

• Endosymbiosis - Interaction between different organisms at which one symbiotic organism lives in another organisms.
• Ectosymbiosis - Symbiont lives outside other organisms on the body surface.
• Ecto/endosymbiosis - Both interaction inside or outside the organisms. 

    There are seven type of interactions all of it, three positive interactions (mutualism, cooperation, commensalism) and four negative interactions (predation, parasitism, amensalism, competition). For example, amensalism is opposite to commensalism. To make it easier to remember just choose either one interaction such as commensalism. We know that, symbiont A (host cell) will get neither benefits nor harms, it will remain neutral while symbiont B (commensal) will get benefits. So this is vice versa to amensalism. 

     As the best creature of God in this world, we need to protect and conserve our ecosystem from being destroyed and kills other living organisms. We already know our environment is totally sick and some of the organisms were extinct because of this kind of situation. So, as in person by hook or by crook we need to prevent further deterioration of our ecosystem. Otherwise, not only the animals but the human population are also affected because of this problem. We don't want to see our generation lives in a such worse and struggle life is it? So, it is time to start conserve our ecosystem.