ABSTRACT
Before explaining how to recognize the various bacterial consorms defined via the alpha classification scheme (first covered in Chapter 3), it is important to gain some understanding of the concepts used. The traditional need was to ensure that an individual bacterial culture was “pure” (not a contaminated mixture of bacterial strains). The first challenge in defining bacterial consorms must be to adapt relationships to the definition of the term “pure” to define dynamic communities of bacteria that are, by their very nature, mixtures of bacterial strains. Defining a bacterial consorm involves descriptive observations of the growing biomass within its natural environment along with details of the nature and form of the environment within which it flourishes. Note that a number of implicit errors inevitably occur as soon as samples are taken from the biomass:
1. Selective isolation of the part of the consorm removed. 2. Disruption of the natural environment within which the consorm was active,
causing trauma that may lead to radical changes in the bacteriological composition of the biomass.
