Learning objectives
The course of Laboratory of general microbiology and principles of food microbiology aims to enable the student to autonomously draw conclusions regarding the microbiological analysis of food matrices with particular focus on those of dairy origin in accordance with what is defined in the specific objectives of the professionalising course of study in Dairy Technology and Management and the area of food microbiology.
In particular, the student must be able to understand the meaning of a direct and indirect microbiological analysis and express the result in the correct way.
The expected learning outcomes are:
Knowledge and ability to understand: Knowledge of the analytical parameters to be determined and the methods to be applied for both qualitative and quantitative microbiological analysis of a food matrix
Application skills: to apply methodologies and techniques for the microbiological analysis of foodstuffs
Autonomy of judgement: assessing the microbiological quality of a food based on the result of a microbial count
Communication skills: Communication of a result of a microbiological analysis of a liquid and solid food.
Ability to learn: Ability to critically consult databases and websites relating to microbial count methods for specific microorganisms
Prerequisites
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Course unit content
The teaching complements the contents of General Microbiology and Principles of Food Microbiology and covers the application of microbiological analysis techniques. There are 2 CFU of lectures divided between classroom and laboratory exercises.
The first part of the exercises involves the explanation and meaning of the different microbiological counting techniques. Then there is the practical application part in the laboratory. Attendance of the laboratory exercise hours is compulsory, unless justified by the lecturer. The lecturer will inform students at the beginning of the lessons of the maximum number of absences allowed. Attendance is assessed according to the methods and criteria established by the individual lecturer, who informs the students at the beginning of the lessons.
Full programme
The purpose of microbiological food analysis.
Direct and indirect methods of microbiological counting
The decimal dilution
The microbiological count media
The plate count
Expression of the result of a microbiological analysis of an agro-food raw material
Principles of microscopy applied to microbiological analysis of foodstuffs
Online search for microbiological characteristics of foods and count methods for different microorganisms in different foods
Bibliography
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Teaching methods
Teaching will be by means of frontal exercises both in the classroom and in the laboratory. Lectures will be carried out with the aid of slides that will represent teaching material to supplement the recommended texts. The slides will be available online on the Elly website in pdf format for students and some videos will be useful for viewing the operational sequences of the plate count analysis. During the lectures, the appropriate use of technical language will be emphasised, and links between the various parts of the course will be stressed.
The content of the lectures will be covered both in the classroom and in the laboratory, individually and in groups, and will be an integral part of the final assessment.
Assessment methods and criteria
At the end of the course, the level of learning of all the contents offered during the lessons will be verified. The evaluation will be carried out through a written examination consists of three parts. 1. The first part consists of 10 closed-ended questions. The correctness of 9/10 answers is binding for the second and third part correction. 2. The second part consists of 31 closed-ended questions, each correct answer is 1 point. The achievement of the threshold of sufficiency (18/30) of this second part is binding for the correction of the third part. The mark of this second part will weigh 50% on the final mark. 3. The third part consists of 3 open-ended questions where the student must demonstrate that he knows how to correctly understand the acquired concepts with the specific scientific microbiological language. The answers will be evaluated in thirtieths. The mark (average of 3 answers) in this third party will weigh 50% on the final mark. The exam results are published on the ESSE3 portal within a reasonable time compatible with the number of students enrolled.
Other information
Attendance is mandatory
