Humans and the Microbial World

Chapter 1

What is a Microorganism?

1. Definition

2. Prokaryotic or Eukaryotic?

3. Unicellular or Multicellular?

What is a Microorganism?

1. Prokaryotic Microbes

Bacteria

Archaea

2. Eukaryotic microbes

Fungi, Algae and Protozoa

3. Viruses????

Microbes and diseases

• Infectious diseases of humans, animals and plants.

• Food Spoilage

• Can -> food poisoning

Microbes and Human diseases

• Pathogenicity of a microbe

Vs.

Resistance of the host

• Etiological agent

Microbes and Human diseases

1. Biological warfare:

Bacillus anthracis, Clostridium botulinum

2. Bacterial resistance to antibiotics.

-very big concern in modern world

3. Emerging Infectious diseases

Ability to infect different Host species

ex. Avian flu

Microbes and Human life

1. Recycling of chemical elements: N2 fixation

   2. Decomposition of organic

matter: sewage treatment   3. Bioremediation: Pseudomonas

and Bacillus

Bioremediation

Microbes and Human life

4. Insect pest control:

Bacillus thuringensis (insecticide)

 

5. Food industry: vinegar, wine, beer, cheese, yogurt, bread, pickles

Microbes and Human life

6. Genetic Engineering: production of proteins, vaccines, enzymes, growth hormones etc. eg. Insulin

7. Gene therapy: use of viruses to carry replacement for defective gene

8. Genomics

How to properly write scientific name of a microorganism

Bacillus anthracis

Bacillus anthracis: continuous = wrong

B. anthracis