Microbes

1. Microbes Bibhabasu Mohanty Asst. Prof. Dept . of civil Engineering SALITER, Ahmedabad

2. Content… Types of microbes, Growth and their role in environment.

3. Microbes Are invisible to the naked eye, you need a powerful microscope to see them. Are everywhere around us, inside us, on us, in our food, in our homes, in the air we breathe and the water we wash in. Are mostly useful, but some are harmful Are vital for life on Earth.

4. What do Microbes look like ? Magnified 1000’s of times and coloured using dye, we see -

5. Microbes exist in huge numbers In one single teaspoon of garden soil, there are over 100,000 microbes. In 1ltr of seawater, there are over 1bn microbes. On your hands there are more microbes than there are people in the world. There are so many microbes, that scientists have only named 0.5% of them. Microbes outnumber all other species and make up most of the living matter on the planet.

6. Microbes live among us In our food Cleaning up our waste Killing pests Making medicines In the making of such things as leather, soy sauce, cheese and paper. In our bodies.

7. Types of Microbes N amed based on their particular physiological and nutritional characteristics . Oxygen Description Aerobe Capable of using oxygen as a terminal electron acceptor Anaerobe Grows in the absence of oxygen Facultative anaerobe Can grow aerobically or anaerobically Microaerophile Capable of oxygen-dependent growth but only at low oxygen levels

8. Temperature Description Psychrophile/ facultative psychrophile Optimal temperature for growth is 15 °C or lower, maximal temperature is approximately 20 °C, and minimal temperature is 0 °C or lower Psychrotroph Capable of growing at 5 °C or below, with maximal temperature generally above 25 °C to 30 °C Mesophile optimal temperature for growth, which is approximately 37 °C; frequently grows in the range from 8 °C to 10 °C and from 45 °C to 50 °C Thermophile Grows at 50 °C or above Hyperthermophile Grows at 90 °C or above, although optimal temperature for growth is generally above 80 °C; maximal growth of pure cultures occurs between 110 °C and 113 °C,

9. pH Description Acidophile Grows at pH values less than 2 Alkalophile Grows at pH values greater than 10 Neutrophile Grows best at pH values near 7 Salinity Description Halophile Requires salt for growth: extreme halophiles (all are archaea ), 2.5 M to 5 M salt; moderate halophiles , usually low levels of NaCl as well as 15 to 20 percent NaCl Hydrostatic pressure (100 atmospheres per 1,000-m depth) Description Barophile Obligate barophiles, no growth at 1 atmosphere of pressure; barotolerant bacteria, growth at 1 atmosphere but also at higher pressures. (0.987 atm = 1 bar = 0.1 megapascal [ Mpa ])

10. Nutrition Description Autotroph Uses carbon dioxide as its sole source of carbon Heterotroph Unable to use carbon dioxide as its sole source of carbon and requires one or more organic compounds Chemoorganoheterotroph Derives energy from chemical compounds and uses organic compounds as a source of electrons Chemolithoautotroph Relies on chemical compounds for energy and uses inorganic compounds as a source of electrons. hydrogen bacteria, iron bacteria, sulfur bacteria, ammonia oxidizers, and nitrite oxidizers. Mixotroph Capable of growing both chemoorganoheterotrophically and chemolithoautotrophically Oligotroph Can develop at first cultivation on media containing minimal organic material (1 to 15 micrograms carbon per liter )

11. Microbes – three types Bacteria strep bacteria Virus rotavirus Fungi mould

12. Bacteria Have three main shapes spiral ( boriella ) little balls(- cocci ) rods (-bacilli ) Can move about on their own Join up together to form chains called ‘bio-films’. As on teeth !

13. Virus Come in 1000s of different shapes and sizes. They hang about waiting to meet a ‘host’ which they then invade, hijacking the host’s cells. Beware the air you breathe and door handles !

14. Fungi Not just mushrooms – athlete’s foot, penicillin, and yeast. Yeast is used in bread making, and brewing

15. Algae are also Microbes Algae photosynthesise – taking their energy from the sun, and producing oxygen in the process. Algae are thought to produce over 50% of the oxygen in the world.

16. And finally Without microbes, life on this planet would be entirely different – they generate oxygen, are part of the carbon and nitrogen cycles, and can survive the harshest conditions. Without microbes, our bodies would not process the food we eat. They drive the chemistry of life, breaking things down into their parts so that life can being again. Microbes are small but mighty !

17. Microbial Growth refers to the no. of cells, not the size of the cells

18. Factors that Influence Growth Growth vs. Tolerance “Growth” is generally used to refer to the acquisition of biomass leading to cell division, or reproduction Many microbes can survive under conditions in which they cannot grow

19. The suffix “- phile ” is often used to describe conditions permitting growth, whereas the term “tolerant” describes conditions in which the organisms survive, but don’t necessarily grow For example, a “thermophilic bacterium” grows under conditions of elevated temperature, while a “thermotolerant bacterium” survives elevated temperature, but grows at a lower temperature

20. Factors that Influence Growth Obligate (strict) vs. facultative “Obligate” (or “strict”) means that a given condition is required for growth “Facultative” means that the organism can grow under the condition, but doesn’t require it The term “facultative” is often applied to sub-optimal conditions For example, an obligate thermophile requires elevated temperatures for growth, while a facultative thermophile may grow in either elevated temperatures or lower temperatures

21. Factors that Influence Growth Temperature psychrophiles (cold loving microbes ) range 0 C - 20 C mesophiles (moderate temp. loving microbes) range 20 C - 40 C thermophiles (heat loving microbes) range 40 C - 100 C

22. pH Most bacteria grow between pH 6.5 - pH 7.5 Very few can grow at below pH 4.0 many foods, such as sauerkraut, pickles, and cheeses are preserved from spoilage by acids produced during fermentation Factors that Influence Growth

23. Factors that Influence Growth Salt concentration Halophiles require elevated salt concentrations to grow; often require 0.2 M ionic strength or greater and may some may grow at 1 M or greater; example, Halobacterium. Osmotolerant ( halotolerant ) organisms grow over a wide range of salt concentrations or ionic strengths; for example, Staphylococcus aureus .

24. Factors that Influence Growth Oxygen concentration Strict aerobes: Require oxygen for growth (~20%) Strict anaerobes: Grow in the absence of oxygen; cannot grow in the presence of oxygen Facultative anaerobes: Grow best in the presence of oxygen, but are able to grow (at reduced rates) in the absence of oxygen Aerotolerant anaerobes: Can grow equally well in the presence or absence of oxygen Microaerophiles : Require reduced concentrations of oxygen (~2 – 10%) for growth

25. Osmotic Pressure Microbes obtain almost all their nutrients in solution from surrounding water Tonicity isotonic hypertonic hypotonic

26. Factors that Influence Growth Macro & Micro Elements C HOPKINS CaFe Mg NaCl

27. Limiting factors in the environment Lack of food, water or nutrients space accumulation of metabolic wastes lack of oxygen changes in pH temperature

28. Phases of Growth 4 Phases 1. Lag Phase 2. Log Phase 3. Stationary Phase 4. Death Phase

29. Lag Phase Bacteria are first introduced into an environment or media Bacteria are “checking out” their surroundings cells are very active metabolically no of cells changes very little 1 hour to several days

30. Log Phase Rapid cell growth (exponential growth) population doubles every generation microbes are sensitive to adverse conditions antibiotics anti-microbial agents

31. Stationary Phase Death rate = rate of reproduction cells begin to encounter environmental stress lack of nutrients lack of water not enough space metabolic wastes oxygen pH Endospores would form now

32. Death Phase Death rate > rate of reproduction Due to limiting factors in the environment

33. Roles of microbes in environment Microbes—life forms too tiny to see—play a surprisingly large role in life on Earth. Humans depend on microbial communities in more ways than you can imagine.

34. Make air breathable Keep us healthy Provide sources of new drugs Help us digest food Clean up hazardous chemicals Support and protect crops

35. Microbes keep us healthy Partners for life Invite a microbe to dinner Nature’s master chemists New possibilities

36. Microbes keep our planet healthy Liveable climate. Healthy farms Cleaning up Productive ecosystem

37. Any Questions?