microbiology
A glossary of bench microbiology terms
Plain definitions of colony, lawn, streak, pellet, transformant and the other bench words a cloning afternoon depends on.
8 October 2026 · 10 min read
Tag
cloning
Articles tagged cloning. Tags group methods across clusters so a technique can be found from more than one route.
All topicsBuffers and laboratory water26Cell culture26Chromatography26Cold chain and sample storage26Cytometry and microscopy26DNA sequencing26Gels and blotting26Gene expression26Genome editing26Immunoassays26Laboratory labware26Laboratory safety26Liquid handling26Microbiology26Molecular cloning26Nucleic acid purification26PCR and amplification26Protein biochemistry26Proteomics26Research sourcing and study design26
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14 articles
molecular cloning
Avoiding mutations during PCR cloning
Why a PCR insert can be the right length and still carry mutations, and how enzyme class, fewer cycles, extra colonies and a full sequence limit the damage.
8 October 2026 · 8 min read
Pillar · microbiology
Bacterial culture and transformation
How non-pathogenic E. coli cloning strains are grown and how plasmid DNA is introduced, with the controls that make a colony meaningful.
8 October 2026 · 10 min read
microbiology
Biosafety for non-pathogenic cloning work
Disabled K-12 cloning strains are still living bacteria. This page lists practices that match low-risk plasmid work and leaves the containment level to the institution.
8 October 2026 · 8 min read
molecular cloning
Choosing restriction sites that actually cut
Why a restriction site on a plasmid map may not cut the DNA in your tube, and how methylation, star activity and buffer choice decide the digest.
8 October 2026 · 9 min read
microbiology
Colony picking without mixing clones
How to move one isolated colony of a cloning strain into one labelled tube so the miniprep is not a mixture of neighbours.
8 October 2026 · 9 min read
molecular cloning
Golden Gate and type IIS concepts
How type IIS enzymes such as BsaI or BbsI cut outside their site so designed overhangs assemble and the site is lost, compared with ligation and Gibson.
8 October 2026 · 8 min read
molecular cloning
How to read a plasmid map
A decision procedure for reading origin class, resistance marker, promoter arrow, MCS, tags and cutters on a plasmid map before you order an enzyme.
8 October 2026 · 11 min read
microbiology
LB and other media as carbon and salt
What tryptone, yeast extract and salt actually supply in LB, and how SOB, SOC and defined media change cloning-strain growth.
8 October 2026 · 8 min read
molecular cloning
Orientation of an insert in an expression vector
Why a backward insert still grows on antibiotic, and how an asymmetric digest, a junction primer or a sequence read shows which way the ORF points.
8 October 2026 · 8 min read
microbiology
Phage contamination as a concept
Bacteriophage contamination makes many cloning strains fail together and lingers on surfaces. This guide covers how to recognise the pattern and when to stop.
8 October 2026 · 9 min read
Pillar · molecular cloning
Plasmid cloning from insert to colony
How an insert becomes a plasmid, a colony and a verified clone, and which checkpoint fails when the plate is empty or the insert is wrong.
8 October 2026 · 8 min read