How Does Amylase Used Absorb Starch

The results for my organism Escherichia coli consist of performing several tests to determine the organism’s characteristics. One of the tests I chose to perform is a starch hydrolysis test this is a differential test to help determine if the organism can produce enzymes amylase used absorb starch. This test helps to determine if E. coli can break down starch, and if it can we know that it has the ability of producing coenzymes called Amylase use in breaking down glucose bonds. If the organism can break down glucose then it produces a necessary enzyme called amylase used in breaking sugar bonds apart because they are to large to enter the cells. To determine the results in this test iodine is used after the medium has been inoculated and incubated so that the organism has time to absorb the starch in the plate. After at least two days the organism has had time to grow on the plate and absorb starch if it is possible. When determining if starch is present we place several drops of iodine around the organism because iodine reacts with starch. If starch is present around the organism it will leave dark color around the organism from the iodine, but if no starch is present then it should be clear around the organism similar to a hallo around it. The results for E. coli were identified as negative. I could see no clearing around the organism to indicate it could hydrolyze

By doing this test we can rule out several organisms that do not produce the particular enzyme for breaking down starch and gives us a better understanding what type of environment E. coli can survive