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S.NO CONTENTS PG.NO

1. INTRODUCTION 3
1.1 General Introduction 3
1.2 Importance of medicinal plants 3
1.3 Benefits of herbal medicines 4
2. Preparation of Media 4
2.1 Bacterial count 5
2.2 Fungal count 5
3. Microbial test 6
3.1 Staphylococcus test 6
3.2 Ecoli test 7
3.3 Pseudomonas test 7
3.4 Serial Dilution 8
3.5 Pour Plate and Spread Plate Method 9
4. Instruments 12
4.1 B.O.D incubator 12
4.2 Auto clave 13
4.3 Hot air oven 15
4.4 Laminar air flow 16
4.5 Colony counter 18
4.6 Tablet compression machine 20
4.7 Hand operated capsule filling machine 22

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 Plants have been used for medicinal purposes long before prehistoric period. There medicinal
plants are also used as food, flavonoid, medicine or perfume, cosmetics and also in certain spiritual
activities. Some plants are considered as important source of nutrition and as a result of that they
are recommended for their therapeutic values. Some of these plants include ginger, green tea, also
pepper and turmeric etc. some plants and their derivatives are considered as important source for
active ingredients which are used in aspirin and toothpaste etc. medicinal plants such as aloe, tulsi,
neem, turmeric, and ginger cure several common ailments. These are considered as home remedies
in many parts of the country. Herbs that have medicinal quality provide rational means for the
treatment of many internal disease.

Herbal medicine is the fulcrum of complementary and alternative medicine, which in recent times
is increasingly gaining widespread popularity all over the world and gradually steaming toward
integration into the mainstream healthcare.

HM includes preparation of biologically active natural products that consist largely of herbs or
herbal materials such as minerals, ash, shells, insects, and animal part, and are used for the
maintenance of health and management of various diseases.

Medicinal plants are considered as a rich resource of ingredients which can be used in drug
development either pharmacopeial, non- pharmacopeial or synthetic drugs. A part from that, these
plants play a critical role in the development of human cultures around the whole world.

Importance of some herbs with their medicinal values:

❖ Herbs such as black pepper, cinnamon, myrrh, aloe, sandalwood, ginseng, red clover,
burdock, bayberry, and safflower are used to heal wounds, sores, and boils.
❖ Many herbs are used as blood purifiers to alter or change a long-standing condition by
eliminating the metabolic toxins. These are also known as 'blood cleansers'. Certain herbs
improve the immunity of the person, thereby reducing conditions such as fever.
❖ Some herbs are also having antibiotic properties. Turmeric is useful in inhibiting the growth
of germs, harmful microbes, and bacteria. Turmeric is widely used as a home remedy to heal
cut and wounds.
❖ Sandalwood and Cinnamon are great astringents apart from being aromatic. Sandalwood is
especially used in arresting the discharge of blood, mucus etc.
❖ Ginger and cloves are used in certain cough syrups. They are known for their expectorant
property, which promotes the thinning and ejection of mucus from the lungs, trachea, and
bronchi. Eucalyptus, Cardamom, Wild cherry, and cloves are also expectorants. Herbs such
as Chamomile, Calamus, Ajwain, Basil, Cardamom, Chrysanthemum, Coriander, Fennel,
Peppermint and Spearmint, Cinnamon, Ginger, and Turmeric are helpful in promoting good
blood circulation. Therefore, they are used as cardiac stimulants.

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Herbs can be…

• Adaptogenic – meaning they help the body adapt to stress by exerting a normalizing effect
upon bodily processes
• Nootropic – meaning they enhance memory or other cognitive functions
• Immunomodulatory – meaning they modify the body’s immune response
• Anti-microbial – meaning they fight bacteria or funguses
• Anti-viral
• Anti-inflammatory
• Antioxidants – meaning they stop the chemical reaction in the body that can produce free
radicals + damage cells

Some of the popular herbal medicines which many people were prefer by using the
Turmeric: Turmeric (Curcuma longa) is an herb that belongs to the ginger family. Used for
thousands of years in cooking and medicine alike, it has recently garnered attention for its potent
anti-inflammatory properties Curcumin is the major active compound in turmeric. It may treat a host
of conditions, including chronic inflammation, pain, metabolic syndrome, and anxiety.

Ginger: Ginger is a commonplace ingredient and herbal medicine. You can eat it fresh or
dried, though its main medicinal forms are as a tea or capsule. Much like turmeric, ginger is a
rhizome, or stem that grows underground. It contains a variety of beneficial compounds and has
long been used in traditional and folk practices to treat colds, nausea, migraines, and high blood
pressure.

Bacteria and fungi are grown on or in microbial media of various types. Commercial culture media are
provided in dehydrated or powdered form in liquid concentrate or as working solutions. Dehydrated
media for broth cultured need to be prepared by dissolving in distilled water and adjusting the final
pH prior to sterilization. Powdered media for agar cultures must be dissolved in distilled water, stirred,
then boiled or autoclave prior to pouring into sterile petri dishes using aseptic techniques.

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Aim:
To prepare the media for bacterial count, soyabean casein digest agar must be used. It is a general-
purpose media for isolation and cultivation of a wide variety of fastidious and non- fastidious
microorganisms.

MATERIALS REQUIRED:
1) Measuring Cylinder
2) Pipette
3) Distilled Water
4) Autoclave
5) Cotton
6) Incubator

COMPOSITION:
1) Pancreatic digest of casein: 15.0 g/L
2) Papaic digest of soya bean: 5.0 g/L
3) Sodium chloride: 5.0 g/L
4) Agar: 15.0 g/L

PREPARATION:
1) Add 40-gram powder to 1.0 litre distilled water is added into conical flask and mix it
thoroughly.
2) Cover it with cotton plug and aluminium foil.
3) Autoclave at 121 c for 15 mins.

Aim:
To prepare the media for fungus count, savoured dextrose agar will be used. It is a agar which is
used for isolation, cultivation, and maintenance of non-pathogenic and pathogenic species of fungi
and yeast. The pH is adjusted to approximately 5.6 in order to enhance the growth of fungi,
especially dermatophytes and to slightly inhibit bacterial growth in clinical specimens.

MATERIALS REQUIRED:
1) Distilled Water
2) Autoclave
3) Agar
4) Measuring Cylinder
5) Pipette
6) Cotton
7) Petri Plates
8) Incubator

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COMPOSITION:
1) dextrose (glucose) :40 gm
2) peptone :10 gm
3) Agar :15 gm
4) Distilled water :100 ml

PREPARATION:
1) Combine all ingredients in 900 ml of distilled water.
2) Adjust pH 5.6 with hydrochloric acid and adjust final volume to 1 litre.
3) Heat by boiling the media to dissolve completely.
4) Autoclave at 121 c for 15 mins.

Aim:
To find out the presence of staphylococcus on the given sample.

Materials required:
1) Test sample,
2) Nutrient broth,
3) Mannitol salt agar,
4) Distilled water.

Procedure:
• Add 1 gram of sample in nutrient broth and incubate for 24 hours.
• Take 111.02 gram of mannitol salt agar in 1000ml of H20.
• Heat to boiling to dissolve the medium completely.
• Autoclave at 121c for 15 minutes.
• Add 5.0% egg yolk emulsion and mixed it well.
• After the mannitol agar plate is prepared to use, a loop full of culture is streaked on sterile
mannitol salt agar medium and incubate it for 24 hours.

Observation:
No yellow colour appears.

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Aim:
To find out the presence of Ecoli on the given sample

Materials required:
1) Test sample,
2) Distilled water,
3) Nutrient broth,
4) MacConkey broth,
5) Peptone broth,
6) Kovax reagent.

Procedure:
• Take 1gram of sample to add in 50ml of nutrient broth.
• Incubate for 37c for 24 hours per day.
• Take 1ml of nutrient broth sample to add 5ml of MacConkey broth.
• Incubate at 37c for 24 hours
• Take 1ml of nutrient broth with MacConkey broth sample to add peptone broth.
• Incubate in 37c for 24 hours.
• Take 1ml of nutrient, MacConkey, and peptone broth sample to add 0.5ml of kovax reagent

Observation:
Pink layer not present.

Aim:
To find out the presence of pseudomonas on the given sample.

Materials required:
1) Test sample,
2) nutrient broth,
3) distilled water,
4) glycerol,
5) Petri plates,
6) pseudomonas agar.
Procedure:
• Add 1ml of sample in nutrient broth and incubate for 24 hours.
• Take 38 gram of pseudomonas agar in 1000ml of H2O and add 10ml of glycerol.
• Heat to boiling to dissolve the medium completely. 6
• Autoclave at 121c for 15 minutes. • Cool it for 45-50c and Pour the medium into Petri plates.
• After the pseudomonas agar plate is prepared to use, a loop full of culture is streaked on the
plate and incubate for 24 hours.

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Observation:
No green colonies present

Serial dilution, as the name suggests, is a series of sequential dilutions that are performed to
convert a dense solution into a more usable concentration. It is a process of stepwise dilution of a
solution with an associated dilution factor. It is often associated with reducing the concentration of
cells in a culture to simplify the operation.

Calculation:
The dilution factor in a serial dilution can be determined either for an individual test tube or can
be calculated as a total dilution factor in the entire series. Then a small measured volume of each
dilution is used to make a series of pour or spread plates.

The dilution factor of each tube in a set:

𝒗𝒐𝒍𝒖𝒎𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒔𝒂𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒆
𝒗𝒐𝒍𝒖𝒎𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒔𝒂𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒆 + 𝒗𝒐𝒍𝒖𝒎𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒅𝒊𝒍𝒖𝒆𝒏𝒕

For a ten – fold dilution, 1ml of sample is added to 9ml of diluent. In this case, the dilution factor for
that test tube will be:

Dilution factor: 1ml \ 1ml + 9ml = 1\10 = 10-1

After the first tube, each tube is the dilution of the previous dilution tube.

Now, for the total dilution factor

𝐓𝐨𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐝𝐢𝐥𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐮𝐛𝐞

= 𝐃𝐢𝐥𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐭𝐮𝐛𝐞 × 𝐃𝐢𝐥𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐮𝐛𝐞

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Procedure:
• The sample is taken in a test tube and six tubes, each with 9ml of sterile diluents, which can
either be distilled water or 0.9% saline are taken
• A sterile pipette is taken.
• 1ml of properly mixed sample is drawn into the pipette,
• The sample is then added to the first tube to make the total volume of 10ml. this provides
an initial dilution of 10.
• The dilution is thoroughly mixed by emptying and filled the pipette several times.
• The pipette tip is discarded and a new pipette tip is attached to the pipette.
• Now, 1ml of mixture is taken from the 10 dilution and is emptied into the second tube. The
second tube now has a total dilution factor 10^2
• The same process is then repeated for the remaining tube, taking 1ml from the previous
tube and adding it to the next 9ml diluents.
• As six tubes are used, the final dilution for the bacteria/cells will be 10^6 ( 1 in 1,000,000)

Observation:
White dots of colonies will be present.

Uses:
• It is used in microbiology to estimate the concentration or number of cells/organisms in a
sample to obtain an incubated plate with an easily countable number of colonies.

• In homeopathy, homeopathic dilutions are used where a substance is diluted in distilled water
or alcohol. It believed that dilution increase the potency of the diluted substance by activating its
vital energy.

Pour Plate Method:

Pour plate method is usually the method of choice for counting the number of colony-forming
bacteria present in a liquid specimen. Because the sample is mixed with the molten agar medium, a
larger volume can be used than the spread plate.

The number of microorganisms present in the test sample is determined using the formula:

CFU/Ml = CFU*dilution factor * 1/aliquot

Materials required:
1) Test sample
2) Plate count agar (PCA) or nutrient agar
3) Hot water bath 45c
4) Sterile Petri plates
5) Flame
6) Colony counter with a magnifying glass
7) Sterile capped 16*150 mm test tubes
8) Pipettes of various sizes (e.g., 01,1.0 and 2,0 ml)

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 Procedure:

• Prepare the dilution of the test sample expected to contain between 30-300 CFU/mL (follow
the serial dilution technique)
• Inoculate labelled empty petri dish with specified mL (0.1 or 1.0 mL) of diluted specimen

Pour the molten agar and incubation:

1) Collect one bottle of sterile molten agar (containing 15ml of melted plate count agar) from the
water bath
2) Hold the bottle in the right hand; remove the cap with the little finger of the left hand.
3) Flame the neck of the bottle.
4) Lift the lid of the petri dish slightly with the left hand and pour the sterile molten agar into the
petri dish and replace the lid.
5) Flame the neck of the bottle and replace the cap.
6) Gently swirl the plate on the benchtop to thoroughly mix the culture and medium. Ensure that
the medium covers the plate evenly and do not slip the agar over the edge of the petri dish
7) Allow the agar to gel completely without disturbing it. It will take approximately 10 minutes.
8) Seal and incubate the plate in an inverted position at 37c for 24-48 hours.

Results:
After 24-48 hours, count all the colonies (note that the embedded colonies will be much smaller
than those on the surface) A magnifying colony counter can aid in counting small embedded
colonies.

Calculate CFU/mL using the formula = (number of colonies X dilution factor / volume of culture
plated*)

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Spread Plate Technique:
Spread plate technique is the method of isolation and enumeration of microorganisms in a
mixed culture and distributing it evenly. The technique makes it easier to quantify bacteria in a
solution. In this method, the substance to be tested if not in liquid form is ground and dissolved in a
suitable liquid medium. The sample is then diluted in 10- fold serial dilutions and plated in an
appropriate medium.

Materials required:
1) Glass wares
2) Screw-capped test tubes
3) Sterile pipettes
4) Sterile bent glass roads (bent in the shape of a hockey stick) or commercially available
sterile spreaders
5) Medium: plate count agar or nutrient agar. The surface of the plate must not be too
moist because the added liquid must soak in, so the cells remain stationary.
6) Alcohol

Procedure:
• a dilution series from a sample
• Pipette out 0.1ml from the appropriate desired dilution series onto the centre of the surface
of an agar plate.
• Dip the L- shaped glass spreader into alcohol.
• Flame the glass spreader (hockey stick) over a Bunsen burner.
• Spread the sample evenly over the surface of agar using the sterile glass spreader, carefully
rotating the Petri dish underneath at the same time.
• Incubate the plate at 37c for 24 hours.
• Calculate the CFU value of the sample. Once you count the colonies, multiply by the
appropriate dilution factor to determine the number of CFU/mL in the original sample.

Result:
After incubation, isolated countable colonies are present in the evenly spread across the surface
of the agar. Count the number of colonies and multiply it by the appropriate dilution factor to
determine the colony-forming units (CFU) present per ml in the original sample.

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 B.O.D. Incubator
Auto Clave
Hot Air Oven
Laminar air flow
Colony counter
Tablet compression machine
Hand operated capsule filling machine

BOD Incubator also known as Biological Oxygen Demand

incubator. In microbiology laboratories, it is broadly used for cell
culture and fungal growth, BOD test, fermentation, crop and
physiology, and various pharmaceutical tests etc. BOD Incubator
is additionally recognized as a lowtemperature incubator or
refrigerated incubator because it produces a temperature limit
between 5°C to 60°C or including cooling and heating capacities
under one unit. It is a special type of incubator which is used to
generate an insular environment with a constant temperature of
20 degrees centigrade. Many industries use this incubator to
create such environments. Some industries use this to check the
optimum BOD level in a specific temperature for their products.

In laboratories BOD incubator also used to study the germination,

insects, and culturing of bacteria. It is also known as biological
oxygen demand or biochemical oxygen demand. In BOD incubator
oxygen depletion is occurs when microbes are started to consume
oxygen. They use oxygen as an electron receptor. When microbes
intake organic material it provides them energy to survive and
multiply. Similarly, the oxidation method is proceeding without
the assistance of the microorganisms.

Principle:
• Power is supplied by channels MCB. Temperature is fixed within a digital PID temperature
controller, normally at 20°C
• The machine is kept working for 5 days. The cooling system starts only after fixing the
temperature.
• An Axial fan distributes air inside the container. The temperature sensor senses the
prevailing temperature and provides data to the PID controller, which furthermore grips the
set heat constant till the aspired time.

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Application of BOD incubators:
• Many industries use BOD incubators such as pharmaceutical, agriculture, beverages and
research laboratories.
• In manufacturers, it is employed in waste processing plants to define the performance of the
treatment system.
• BOD incubator is employed in liquors to distinguish the nourishment in intended working
situations.
• It is employed in the farming industry to define the germination of anaerobic bacteria.

Operating Procedure of BOD Incubator:

• Before run a BOD incubator make sure the incubator is connected with the power supply.
• After that turn on the main switch on the mainboard then turn on the switch on the cabinet.
• After that set the desired temperature on the controller by pressing the set knob and soft
key.
• Control the temperature every day as by the following procedure.
• Record the temperature which is displayed on the controller. 17
• Monitor the temperature displayed on the digital screen. The temperature should not
deviate by 2 degrees centigrade.

Precautions:
• Always disconnect the BOD incubator from the socket when it is not in use.
• To avoid downtime and maintain the working condition of the incubator periodic servicing is
important.
• Before run a BOD incubator read the instruction manual carefully and don’t overuse it.
• During cleaning the incubator make sure the incubator is disconnected from the power
supply.
• Clean the BOD incubator regularly to maintain its working performance.
• Monitor the temperature changes in the BOD incubator on monthly basis.

Autoclave, also known as steam sterilizer, is the most effective

machine for the sterilization of lab equipment, water, or media. The
machine uses steam under pressure to kill bacteria, viruses, and spores
present in/on the equipment or culture media.

PRINCIPLES:
• The autoclave works on the principle of moist heat
sterilization.
• The high pressure inside the chamber increases the boiling
point of water for the sterilization of equipment.

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 • The higher pressure also ensures the rapid penetration of heat into the deeper parts of
equipment.
• The moisture present in the steam causes coagulation of proteins of microbes causing
irreversible loss of their activity and functions.

TYPES:
• Today, different types of autoclaves are present according to your needs. It includes:
• Pressure cooker type/ Laboratory bench autoclaves (N-type): It’s a domestic pressure cooker
that is a perfect fit for tissue culture enthusiasts or hobbyists.
• Gravity displacement type autoclave: It’s the most common type of autoclave used in
research laboratories. In this autoclave, steam displaces air in the chamber by gravity
through a drain port.
• Positive pressure displacement type (B-type): This is an advanced autoclave, in which steam
is generated in a separate steam generator, which is then passed into the autoclave for
sterilization of equipment.
• Negative pressure displacement type (S-type): This is the most expensive type of autoclave.
It comes with a vacuum generator and steam generator that works efficiently to achieve
complete sterilization of equipment.

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PRECAUTION:
• Do not sterilize waterproof or water-resistant materials like oil or powders.
• Do not overcrowd the autoclave with the vessel and equipment. If possible, sterilize your
equipment in a shift-wise manner.
• Only use autoclavable bags to autoclave packages wastes.
• Use autoclavable bags to sterilize your equipment. Do not use aluminium foils.
• Do not fill the autoclave chamber up to the lid.

A hot air oven is a laboratory instrument that uses

dry heat to sterilize laboratory equipment and other
materials. That equipment cannot be wet or material
that will not melt, catch fire, or change form when
exposed to high temperatures are sterilized by using
the dry heat sterilization method. Hot air oven also
known as forced air circulating oven. Some examples
of material which cannot be sterilized by employing a
hot air oven such as surgical dressings, rubber items,
or plastic material. We can sterilize Glassware (like
petri dishes, flasks, pipettes, and test tubes), Powder
(like starch, zinc oxide, and sulfadiazine), Materials
that contain oils, Metal equipment (like scalpels,
scissors, and blades) by using hot air oven. To destroy
microorganisms and bacterial spores, a hot air oven
provides extremely high temperatures over several hours. The widely used temperature-time
relationship in hot air ovens to destroy microorganisms are 170 degrees Celsius for 30 minutes, 160
degrees Celsius for 60 minutes, and 150 degrees Celsius for 150 minutes.

Most of the medical industries use hot air ovens to sterilize laboratory instruments and material
due to its simple standard operating procedure and low price. It also provides quick-drying
processes. The process of dry heat sterilization using a hot air oven originally developed by Louis
Pasteur. The temperature range of a hot air oven is 50 to 300 ° C. It can be controlled by using a
temperature regulator. The forced air circulation provided by the oven ensures the temperature
uniformity throughout the oven. In a hot air oven first, the surface of the material is sterilized then
the temperature slowly enters the centre of the item.

Principle:
Sterilization by dry heat is performed by conduction. The temperature is consumed by the surface
of the objects, then moves towards the core of the object, coating by coating. The whole object will
ultimately attain the temperature needed for sterilization to take place. Dry heat causes most of the
injury by oxidizing particles. The primary cell components are damaged and the organism dies.

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Dry Sterilisation:
It is originally used in a hot air oven. This method is proper for items like glassware, powders, oil
containing materials, metal material. Hot air oven acts in a manner so that items stored inside the
oven don’t grab fire or meltdown. It primarily acts on the principle of structure where heat moves on
the outside of the substance and then to the core of the item. It is termed a dry sterilization process
because the procedure is performed by employing the hot air. While the air shifts hot, it becomes
thinner and transfers towards the ceiling of the chamber. If air hits the roof of the chamber it travels
towards the ground of the chamber. It helps in the circulation of air within the chamber. This current
flow assures the proper and uniform heating everywhere in the chamber. This is approaching a
longer method than autoclaving or moist sterilization. Hence, a few organizational facilities are 20
needed if it is practiced in the medical laboratory, so that workers can create a schedule of the
sterilization method.

Applications:
• It is used to dry glassware, sterilize N95 masks, general instruments, and packaging items in
life science, microbiology laboratory.
• It is also used in chemical and pharmaceutical industries, food and beverage industries,
textile industries.
• It helps in the elimination of moisture from the material thus it is used in curing, drying,
baking, and annealing.

According to the principle of thermal inactivation by oxidation, it cannot slaughter some living
organisms, such as prions due to the use of dry heat rather than wet heat.

Most of the materials are not fit with hot air ovens such as surgical dressings, rubber items, or plastic
material; they can be a meltdown at low temperatures.

Laminar airflow refers to the airflow system in which the filtered air through the HEPA filter moves
within a definite space at uniform velocity and direction.

PRINCIPLES:
• To run the laminar airflow, you need to wipe the laminar airflow chamber. After that, you
need to surface sterilize the workstation by closing the glass shield and switching on the UV
light for 15 minutes.
• Then, switch on the blower for 5 minutes before the operation. After that, open the sash
and also turn on the fluorescent light to perform the desired experiment.
• After performing the experiment, close the sash or glass shield .

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TYPES:

➢ Vertical airflow chamber:

✓ It is extensively used in labs. Here, the room
air goes to the HEPA filter vertically from the
prefilter through the blower or fan in
between.
✓ Air flows downward from the top of the
laminar airflow.
✓ The vertical laminar cabinet does not need
more workspace.
✓ In addition, its operation is much safer than
the horizontal laminar cabinet, as the air does
not blow directly towards the user handling
the operation.
➢ Horizontal airflow chamber:
✓ Here, the room air enters the HEPA filter placed
on the back of the cabinet.
✓ Air flows horizontally from the back of the
laminar airflow.
✓ In the horizontal laminar cabinet, the air moves
parallel to the workspace and sterilizes the
workstation with a steady airflow.
✓ The effluent air directly hits the user.

USES:
• It is ideal for performing plating methods of the prepared culture media. We can also
perform tissue culture in the horizontal laminar airflow.
• We can perform the culturing of the biological specimens.

PRECAUTION:
• You need to turn on the UV light before and after the experiment.
• Never use the blower and UV lamp at the same time.
• You need to surface sterilize the workspace and sash before and after the experiment by
using ethyl alcohol.
• The user should wear a mask, gloves and lab coat while performing the experiment.

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 Colony counter offers an alternate, sustainable solution to
this issue by facilitating the rapid and precise counting of
colonies. A colony counter is an equipment used to count
colonies of microorganisms growing on agar plates.

TYPES OF COLONY COUNTER:

➢ Manual colony counters: The manual colony counter
procedure is straightforward: Petri plates are placed
inside the colony counter and illuminated and enlarged.
A digital display will show the total number of discovered
colonies while operators can mark them with a specially
designed marker.

➢ Automatic colony counters: A colony counter that is

automated reduces counting time from minutes to
seconds, eliminates recording mistakes, and
standardised counts between users.

PARTS OF MANUAL COLONY COUNTERS:

Light source: A source of backlight is utilised for illuminating reasons.

Auto marker probe pen: When a counter pen is pressed against a colony, a beep is heard and the
count is shown on a computer screen.

Digital display: It shows how many times the counter pen has been used.

Lens: It helps make things bigger.

PRINCIPLE:
• The digital display shows a number based on how hard you touch it.
• The pressure can be changed depending on what is needed.
• Colonies can be small and crowded, which makes it hard to count.

PROCEDURE:
• Press the on/Off Switch to turn the instrument ON.
• Put the Petri Plate on top of the grid made of glass.

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 • Remove the cap from the Pen and press hard, keeping the Pen straight, on the Petri Dish
where a Bacteriological Colony is located. The Counter will record a number, make a beep,
and mark the Petri dish with a dot of ink. Keep going until all of the colonies have been
counted this way.
• As each colony is marked with ink as it is counted, it is impossible to miss a count or count it
twice. When there are no more numbers to count. Take note of what the counter says.
• The COUNT push button switch, which is next to the RESET switch, can be used to count
plates with few people on them or for other counting tasks.
• Switch to “decrement” to drop the count by one.

PARTS OF AUTOMATIC COLONY COUNTER:

Culture dish: The automatic colony counter can be used with many different types of culture
dishes, like traditional plate inoculation, spiral inoculation, etc.

Imaging: For imaging, the traditional artificial colony counter uses a magnifying glass with 3–6 times
magnification.

Light source: The automatic colony counter uses a long-lasting LED light source as its light source.

Image processing: The automatic colony counter is very powerful in its ability to process images.

Database: In terms of database processing, automatic colony counters are better than traditional
colony counters because they increase data storage, intelligent query, data export, etc.

PRINCIPLE:
• A fully automatic colony counter uses a document scanner, digital camera, webcam, charge-
coupled device (CCD), or video equipment to take pictures of the colonies.
• The last step is to use a single/multi-threshold segmentation procedure to separate and find
the colonies in the digited image.
• With its 1.4-megapixel CCD, the modern tool can take HD (high definition) colour pictures.

ADVANTAGES:
❖ Saves time
❖ Increases the total number of samples each hour
❖ Improves accuracy
❖ Standard results
❖ Eliminates human error.

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 Tablets are being formed by compressing the
granules by using the compression machine. Tablet
formed in compression machine by pressing the
granules in die with lower and upper punch. Tablet
formation takes place by the combined pressing action
of two punches (lower and upper) and a die. Now it is
possible to produce more than 500,000 tablets per
hour due to different innovations to tablet
compression machines.

Principle of Tablet Compression Machine:

• In the tablet compression machine main
principle is compressing of the upper and
lower punch in a die hole, the hydraulic
pressure plays a key role.
• This pressure is transmitted unreduced
through the static fluid.
• Any externally applied pressure is transmitted
via static fluid to all the direction in same
proportion.
• It also makes it possible to multiply the force
as needed. If we increase the hydraulic
pressure more compressing force on tablet
then it becomes harder.

Different Stages of Tablet Compression Process:

Tablet compression process is divided into four distinct stages. This stage including filling,
metering, compressing and ejection.

Tablet compressing stage:

1. Filling: Formulation is overfilled at the compressing station.

2. Metering: Overfill is removed.

3. Compression: Tablet is formed by pressure of punches within die.

4. Ejection: Tablet is ejected from die.

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1. Filling:
The filling stage of tablet compression process involves transfer of raw materials into
position for tablet compression. These raw materials have undergone prior processing by wet
granulation, dry granulation (roller compaction), sizing or other process. The final formulation is then
blended to yield a homogeneous blend. The blend then flows to the compressing machine punch-die
cavity. The punch die cavity is composed of punch die and lower punch. The position of lower punch
within the die determines the volume of the punch-die cavity. This volume must be appropriately
sized for the weight of granulation to be compressed into tablets. The granulation is overfilled on the
die table (turret) to ensure complete filling of the punch-die cavity volume.

2.Metering:
The metering stage of the tablet compressing process involves removal of excess
granulation from the compressing machine. This stage enables the exact weight (volume) of
granulation to be compressed into tablets. The exact weight of granulation is controlled by the
height of the lower punch in the die. The height of the lower punch is controlled by the metering
cam (also called the dosage cam). The lower punch is raised to the appropriate level in the die to
provide the exact weight of granulation in the punch-die cavity. The excess granulation is scraped
from the surface of the die table. The metering stage is similar to the method used to measure flour
when baking a cake. A measuring cup is first over-filled with flour; then a knife is used to scrape off
the excess. The exact amount of flour is then left in the measuring cup.

3.Compression:
The compression stage of the tablet compressing process forms the tablet. This stage
involves bringing together the upper and lower punches under pressure within the die to form the
tablet. As the punches enter the compressing stage, the upper and lower punches move between
two large wheels called pressure rolls. These pressure rolls push the punches together to form the
tablet. The distance between the upper and lower punches determines the thickness and the
hardness of the tablet. When the punches are close together, a thin and hard tablet is created.
When the punches are farther apart, the tablet made is softer and thicker. The proper balance of
thickness and hardness determines the optimum roll distance for any specific product. These
adjustments are made while keeping the tablet weight constant.

4.Ejection:
The ejection stage of the tablet compressing process involves removal of the tablet from the
lower punch-die station. In this stage, the upper punch retracts from the die cavity and rises above
the turret table. Then the lower punch rises in the die, which in turn pushes the tablet upward to the
top surface of the die table and out of the die cavity. A scraper (also called take-off scraper or tablet
rake-off) then pushes the tablet off the die table away from the compressing machine into the
collection container.

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 Hand Operated Capsule Filling Machine is table top
machine suitable for pilot & production batch
requirements. Machine is having 300 holes with 25 x 12
combinations made in Stainless Steel constructions
meeting GMP requirements. Machine can fill size 00 to
size 5 capsules with help of different machines and
interchangeable parts. Assembly has been done in such
a way that it can be easily dismantle for cleaning
operations. Though all the operations are manual, the
machine calls for precision machined components and
assembled with highly skilled personnel. Machine having
wide usage in R&D laboratories, Research Institutions,
Herbal & Nutraceutical preparations, Unani & Ayurvedic
medicines, Pilot batch productions etc.

We provide Automatic Capsule Orienteer and Manual Capsule Orienteer as optional equipment
along with Capsule Filler to speed up the production

Synonyms: Hand Operated Capsule Filler, Manually Operated Capsule Filling Machine

Application: Filling Capsules with powder, pellets, granules & tablets

Usage: Pharmaceutical, Nutritional, Biotech, Health Supplement, Food Product & Cosmetics

Suitability: Hard Gelatine, HPMC & Veg Capsules in 00, 0, 1, 2, 3, 4 & 5 sizes

Versions: Standard Model, GMP Model, Stainless Steel 316 Model.

Process Operation:

• Place empty capsules onto the loading tray and place tray onto the machine. Check the front
knob it should be turned to the right.
• Pull locking lever forward. Push down long handle which will lifts the caps off all the bodies.
Set aside the tray containing all the caps.

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• Push locking lever back, by which capsule bodies will drop down and become level with
filling surface.
• Place powder tray on filler: keeps powder from spilling.
• Pour & spread the pre-measured powder. Move extra powder onto powder tray's shelf.
Lower tamper and lock.
• Turn handle to compress powder: this allows you to fill more powder in each capsule.
• Raise tamper & spread extra powder from shelf into capsules: ensures uniform fill weights.
• Return the tray containing caps to filler. Turn front knob to the left and lower locking plate.
Engage lock for locking plate.
• Hold tamper handle and push down on long handle. Bodies are pushed up into caps: all the
capsules are now locked in one step.
• Disengage lock for locking plate. Lift locking plate and turn front knob to the right.
• Push down long handle and remove tray of completed capsules.
• Capsules are filled now. You can turn tray and all the capsules will get out from the tray.

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