Sam, Elana, Andrew, Sarah, Aaron and Beth. Mentor- Ms. Krasnick
Microbiology
Microbes are found everywhere, and they are small single-celled organisms. Our bodies are home to trillions of microbes. They are billions of years old because they can adapt to inconstant environments.
What is a microbe?
Oldest form of life on earth
Some types of microbes existed for billions of years make 3-4 billion years ago
Single cell organisms
Can’t be seen by the naked eye
Can be seen with microscopes
95% of microbes are harmless
Some microbes look like pom poms
Micobes are in the food you eat, the water you drink and the air you breathe
They are everywhere
Can multiply in minutes
Types of microbes:
Bacteria Are found virtually everywhere
Can withstand extreme temperatures, acidities and radiation
Can cause disease but are also very helpful
Prokaryotes. Do not have nuclei
Earliest forms of life
Some organelles are bacteria
Rod, spiral or spherically shaped. Some are singular and some group together
Get around by long hair (called flagella) or slime so they can glide
Photosynthetic bacteria makes own “food” others absorb it
“food” can be unusual (iron, sulfur) Archaea.
Cousin of bacteria and are very similar to them
Earliest forms of life
Three types: Crenarchaeota, Euryarchaeota, Korarchaeota
Crenarchaeota characterized to tolerate exte=remes in temperature and acidity
Euryarchaeota methane producers and salt lovers
Korarchaeota Everything else
Archaea look like bacteria
Found almost everywhere
Prokaryotes. No nucleus
Get around by long hair (called flagella)
Viruses
Made of DNA or RNA and a coating of protein
Only purpose is to reproduce. Reproduce by attaching to other cells. Once attached they infect and take over the cell and it explodes with a new batch of viruses.
Can be 10,000 times smaller than bacteria. Smallest microbe
Found anywhere there are cells to infect and have evolved to infect anything
Viruses are generally specific to one type of cell and related cells
Fungi
Range in size from microscopic to the largest known living organism
Largest is a 3.5 mile underground mushroom
Eukaryotes. Has nucleus, enclosed is DNA
Can look like plants but are not photosynthetic
Some used as antibiotics to fight bacterial infection.
In yeast
Can cause disease in plants, animals and humans
Ruin ¼ of fruits and vegetables harvested annually
Eats dead plants and tissues of living plants and animals
Don’t move other than growing
Protists
Eukaryotes
Some algae morph with fungi to from lichen…
Four main types: water molds, slime molds, protozoa and algae
Microbial Mergers:
Microbes can merge with other plants or cells or microbes. Here are some examples:
Algae can live in coral polyps and help the coral mimic the process of photosynthesis by converting sunlight into nutrients. It helps build the coral’s hard shell and supplies much of its energy. In return it gets a stable environment to grow.
About 50,000,000 years ago, Ants started to farm Fungi. This means that the ants clean, and provide food for the fungi, and the fungi helps the ants digest leaves and roots. Ants make the Fungi gardens in big, underground nests, that are safe for the fungi. Fungi Reproduction- The queen ant brings fungi with them when they move and mate.
Lichen- An Algae merged with a fungi. Fungi feed by absorbing, and Algae uses photosynthesis. Together they can live in places most things can’t live in- up to 20,000 species. Fungi give size and shelter. Algae gives food and nutrients. Fungi do more work eats 60% of food. Lichen like sponge- retains lots of water and lets in out slowly.
Cell’s organelles- perform special functions just like the heart and lungs. Mitochondria- energy factories in each cell of fungi, protozoa, insects and animals. Chloroplasts- similar function in cells, algae and some protozoa. These Organelles are absolutely essential to life. Mitochondria & Chloroplasts and bacteria cells have similar appearances. These two organelles contain their own DNA or gene set, organized very much like the DNA in bacteria. They reproduce independently from cells they are in.
Mouthless Gutless Worms
No sun at the bottom of the sea
Slender tubeworms live on the bottom of the ocean near hydrothermal vents
They have no mouth, stomach or intestines yet they thrive and grow up to 8 feet tall
They don’t eat because they house billions of bacteria that feeds them
Their tissues are lined with bacteria that convert hydrogen sulfide, from the hydrothermal vents, into molecules that serve as nutrients for the worms.
Their gills look like a red plum sticking out of it’s tube
It’s blood has special hemoglobin that transports sulfides, oxygen and carbon dioxide into it’s tissue where the bacteria turns it into food for it’s host and themselves
The worm provides the bacteria protection
Virus vs. Bacterium:
People confuse viruses and bacterium because they both cause diseases, but they are actually very different. Here are some differences:
Size- The biggest viruses are the size of the smallest bacterium.
The cells- The cells in bacterium are complicated. They have a rigid cell wall, and a rubbery membrane surrounding the cytoplasm. There is DNA in the chromosomes and also floating around in other parts of the cell. They also have ribosomes for copying DNA so that they can reproduce. Some have flagella, which is used to move.
The biggest difference between bacteria and viruses is the way they reproduce.
Reproduction:
Sam, Elana, Andrew, Sarah, Aaron and Beth. Mentor- Ms. Krasnick
Microbiology
Microbes are found everywhere, and they are small single-celled organisms. Our bodies are home to trillions of microbes. They are billions of years old because they can adapt to inconstant environments.
What is a microbe?
- Oldest form of life on earth
- Some types of microbes existed for billions of years make 3-4 billion years ago
- Single cell organisms
- Can’t be seen by the naked eye
- Can be seen with microscopes
- 95% of microbes are harmless
- Some microbes look
like pom poms - Micobes are in the food you eat, the water you drink and the air you breathe
- They are everywhere
- Can multiply in minutes
Types of microbes:Bacteria
Are found virtually everywhere
- Cousin of bacteria and are very similar to them
- Earliest forms of life
- Three types: Crenarchaeota, Euryarchaeota, Korarchaeota
- Crenarchaeota characterized to tolerate exte=remes in temperature and acidity
- Euryarchaeota methane producers and salt lovers
- Korarchaeota Everything else
- Archaea look like bacteria
- Found almost everywhere
- Prokaryotes. No nucleus
- Get around by long hair (called flagella)
Viruses- Made of DNA or RNA and a coating of protein
- Only purpose is to reproduce. Reproduce by attaching to other cells. Once attached they infect and take over the cell and it explodes with a new batch of viruses.
- Can be 10,000 times smaller than bacteria. Smallest microbe
- Found anywhere there are cells to infect and have evolved to infect anything
- Viruses are generally specific to one type of cell and related cells
Fungi- Range in size from microscopic to the largest known living organism
- Largest is a 3.5 mile underground mushroom
- Eukaryotes. Has nucleus, enclosed is DNA
- Can look like plants but are not photosynthetic
- Some used as antibiotics to fight bacterial infection.
- In yeast
- Can cause disease in plants, animals and humans
- Ruin ¼ of fruits and vegetables harvested annually
- Eats dead plants and tissues of living plants and animals
- Don’t move other than growing
ProtistsMicrobial Mergers:
Microbes can merge with other plants or cells or microbes. Here are some examples:
Algae can live in coral polyps and help the coral mimic the process of photosynthesis by converting sunlight into nutrients. It helps build the coral’s hard shell and supplies much of its energy. In return it gets a stable environment to grow.
About 50,000,000 years ago, Ants started to farm Fungi. This means that the ants clean, and provide food for the fungi, and the fungi helps the ants digest leaves and roots. Ants make the Fungi gardens in big, underground nests, that are safe for the fungi. Fungi Reproduction- The queen ant brings fungi with them when they move and mate.
Lichen- An Algae merged with a fungi. Fungi feed by absorbing, and Algae uses photosynthesis. Together they can live in places most things can’t live in- up to 20,000 species. Fungi give size and shelter. Algae gives food and nutrients. Fungi do more work eats 60% of food. Lichen like sponge- retains lots of water and lets in out slowly.
Cell’s organelles- perform special functions just like the heart and lungs. Mitochondria- energy factories in each cell of fungi, protozoa, insects and animals. Chloroplasts- similar function in cells, algae and some protozoa. These Organelles are absolutely essential to life. Mitochondria & Chloroplasts and bacteria cells have similar appearances. These two organelles contain their own DNA or gene set, organized very much like the DNA in bacteria. They reproduce independently from cells they are in.
Mouthless Gutless Worms
Virus vs. Bacterium:
People confuse viruses and bacterium because they both cause diseases, but they are actually very different. Here are some differences:
Size- The biggest viruses are the size of the smallest bacterium.
The cells- The cells in bacterium are complicated. They have a rigid cell wall, and a rubbery membrane surrounding the cytoplasm. There is DNA in the chromosomes and also floating around in other parts of the cell. They also have ribosomes for copying DNA so that they can reproduce. Some have flagella, which is used to move.
The biggest difference between bacteria and viruses is the way they reproduce.
Reproduction: