Is this normal/possible contamination? - (Nov/09/2008 )

Hello all.

When observing my 6-day insect cell culture under 100x, i saw that there was some little things that looked long, slim with nucleus (i am not sure whether it is the right way to describe it). These little things seemed interfere with my cells.

A photo is attached here. I have no idea whether it is a norm in my cells or any other freak things. No antibiotic in my culture. I appreciate your comments. Thank you.

I really welcome any comments from forumers because i do not have any idea what is it. Personally, i suspect it derives from the cells...really do not have any idea

If it is really a kind of contamination, please do let me know since its level is still low

The best way to confirm any contamination will be to inoculate a ml of sup into FTGM (Fluid Thioglycollate Medium)
However the picture taken at 100x doesn’t reveal to me that this would be a contamination

Do the numbers of them increase over time or remain constant?

If they remain constant, it could just be something as innocuous as dust, but if they are constantly increasing in number, then they might be worth worrying about.

Ginger

Thanks for all the replies!

This is Sf-9 insect cells. I am glad to hear that it is not contaminated. Anyway, it seems that my sterility technique still to be improved if it is artifact or dust

I am thinking whether it is introduced into the medium from the filter itself when i filter-sterile my medium

Actually when firstly saw them, i related it to abestos deposition in the lung. Yes they looked similar