Branches of Microbiology

Science

Area of Study

Bacteriology

The bacteriathe smallest, simplest

single-celled organisms

Mycology

The fungi, a group of organisms that

includes both microscopic forms (molds
and yeasts)and larger forms (mushrooms,
puffballs)

Protozoology

The protozoaanimal-like and mostly

single-celled organisms

Branches of Microbiology
Science

Area of Study

Virology

Virusesminute, noncellular particles that

parasitize cells

Parasitology

Parasitism and parasitic organisms

traditionally including pathogenic protozoa,
helminth worms, and certain insects

Phycology or
Algology

Simple aquatic organisms called algae,

ranging from single-celled forms to large
seaweeds

Branches of Microbiology
Science

Area of Study

Microbial Morphology The detailed structure of microorganisms

Microbial function (metabolism) at the
Microbial Physiology cellular and molecular levels
Microbial Taxonomy

Classification, naming, and identification

of microorganisms

Microbial Genetics,
Molecular Biology

The function of genetic material and the

biochemical reactions of cells involved
in metabolism and growth

Applications of Microbiology

Microbes as synthesizers
A large complex fermentor manufactures drugs and enzymes using
microbial metabolism.

Applications of Microbiology

Microbes as Testing tools

Workers in a clean biotechnology lab isolate
genes for possible testing.

Applications of Microbiology

Microbes as Gene Carriers

Genetically engineered tomatoes have genes manipulated to
slow ripening and increase flavor and nutritional content

Applications of Microbiology

Microbes as Detoxifiers
A bioremediation platform placed in a river for the purpose of
detoxifying the water containing industrial pollutants.

Harmful Effects of Microbiology

Harmful Effects of Microbiology

Cellular Organization

Cellular Organization

Cellular Organization

History of Microbiology
The science of microbiology dates back only 200 years
Most important discoveries in the history of biology
occurred in 1665 with the help of a relatively crude
microscope.
Robert Hooke, observed a thin slice of cork
Reported to the world that life's smallest structural
Units were "little boxes" or "cells, as he called them.

History of Microbiology
Hooke was able to see individual cells.
His discovery marked the beginning of the Cell Theory
The theory that all living things are composed of cells.
Hooke's was capable of showing large cells,
Lack of resolution didnt allowed him to observe
microbes clearly.

History of Microbiology
The Dutch merchant and amateur scientist
Anton van Leeuwenhoek
first person to observe live microorganisms through
the magnifying lenses of more than 400 microscopes he
constructed
During 1673 and 1723, he wrote a series of letters to the
Royal Society of London describing the "animalcules" he
saw through his simple, single-lens microscope.

History of Microbiology

History of Microbiology
Spontaneous Generation
Until the second half of the nineteenth century, many
scientists and philosophers believed that some forms of
life could arise spontaneously from nonliving mailer;
called this hypothetical process
spontaneous generation.

History of Microbiology
Spontaneous Generation
life could come from nonliving things,
mice from corn,
flies from bovine manure,
maggots from rotting meat, and
fish from the mud of previously dry lakes
Spontaneous generation is the incorrect
hypothesis that nonliving things are capable of
producing life.

History of Microbiology
Spontaneous Generation
Francesco Redi (Italian physician)
A strong opponent of spontaneous generation, demonstrate
that maggots did not arise spontaneously from decaying
meat.
His antagonists were not convinced;
they claimed that fresh air was needed for spontaneous
generation.

History of Microbiology
Spontaneous Generation
No larvae appeared in
the gauze-covered jar, even
though air was present.
Maggots appeared only
when flies were allowed to
leave their eggs on the
meat.

History of Microbiology
Spontaneous Generation

Redi's results were a serious blow to the long-held

belief that large forms of life could arise from
nonlife.
However, many scientists still believed that small
organisms, such as van Leeuwenhoek's
"animalcules," were simple enough to be
generated from non-living materials.

History of Microbiology
Spontaneous Generation

Hypothesis of Spontaneous generation seemed to be

strengthened in 1745
John Needham, an Englishman, found that even
after he heated nutrient fluids (chicken broth and
corn broth) before pouring them into covered flasks,
t he cooled solutions were soon teeming with
Microorganisms.
Needham claimed that microbes developed
spontaneously from the fluids.

History of Microbiology
Spontaneous Generation

Twenty years later, Lazzaro Spallanzani, an Italian

scientist, suggested that microorganisms from the air
probably had entered Needham's solutions after they
were boiled.
Spallanzani showed that nutrient fluids heated after
being sealed in a flask did not develop microbial
growth.
Needham responded by claiming the "vital force"
necessary for spontaneous generation

History of Microbiology
Spontaneous Generation

In 1858, German scientist Rudolf Virchow

challenged the case for spontaneous generation with
the concept of biogenesis

He claim that living cells can arise only from pre

existing living cell s.

Arguments about spontaneous generation continued

until 1861, when the issue was resolved by the
French scientist Louis Pasteur.

History of Microbiology
Spontaneous Generation

Pasteur demonstrated that microorganisms are

present in the air and can contaminate sterile
solutions, but that air itself does not create microbes.

He filled several short- necked flasks with beef

broth and then boiled their contents.

Some were then left open and allowed to cool. In a

few days, these flasks were found to be
contaminated with microbes.

History of Microbiology
Spontaneous Generation

Pasteur first poured beef broth Into a long-necked

flask.
Next he heated the neck of the flask and bent it into
an S-shaped curve; then he boiled the broth for
several minutes.
Microorganisms did not appear in the cooled
solution, even after long periods.

History of Microbiology
Spontaneous Generation

History of Microbiology
Spontaneous Generation

Pasteur showed that microorganisms can be present

in nonliving matter-on solids, in liquids, and in the
air.

Furthermore, he demonstrated that microbial life can

be destroyed by heat

These discoveries form the basis of aseptic

techniques,

Contributors
Antonie van Leeuwenhoek:
(October 24, 1632 August 26, 1723)
was a Dutch tradesman and scientist.
He is known as "the Father of Microbiology and
Considered to be the first microbiologist.
He is best known for his work on the improvement of
the microscope and for his contributions towards the
establishment of microbiology.

Contributors
Antonie van Leeuwenhoek:
He had learned to grind lenses, making
simple microscopes, which he used to make
simple observations.
Seemingly inspired to into more serious
research after seeing a copy of Robert
Hooke's illustrated book Micrographia
started developing his own
Microscopes.

Contributors
Antonie van Leeuwenhoek:
First to see and describe bacteria (1674), yeast plants
He was also the first to record microscopic observations of
muscle
fibers, bacteria, spermatozoa,
and
blood
flow
in capillaries (small blood vessels).
Leeuwenhoek did not author any books; his discoveries came to
light through correspondence with the Royal Society, which
published his letters.

Contributors

Louis Pasteur

(December 27, 1822 September 28, 1895)

French chemist and microbiologist who was one of the

most important founders of medical microbiology.
His discoveries reduced mortality from puerperal fever
He created the first vaccines for rabies and anthrax.
His experiments supported the germ theory of disease.

Contributors

Louis Pasteur

He was best known to the general public for inventing

a method to treat milk and wine in order to prevent it
from causing sickness, a process that came to be
called pasteurization.

Contributors
Robert Koch

A doctor who was Born in

Prussia in 1843
Interested in Pasteurs Germ
Theory
He received a Microscope as a
present in 1873
Franco Prussian Rivalry

Franco-Prussian War 1870/1

German Government gave Koch
money to set up a research
institute to rival Pasteur

Contributors
Robert Koch
Germ Cultures

Kochs isolation technique pioneered the use of

culture plates

He extracted the blood from an infected animal

He found that if he injected an animal with the infected
blood it would catch the disease much quicker
The more times he did this the stronger the disease would
become
Eventually, this germ could be extracted and be
encouraged to breed a pure form in a glass culture plate.

Contributors
Robert Koch

Koch hypothesized that anthrax bacillus, a gram positive

bacterium, was the cause of the anthrax disease.
Koch proved his hypothesis correct by infecting mice with the
bacillus strains taken from the spleens of animals who died from
the disease.

When the infected mice showed identical symptoms, Koch proved his
hypothesis correct.

Koch then sought to prove that anthrax that had no prior contact
with animals could cause the same disease when introduced to an
animal host.

Koch grew the bacilli in pure cultures over several generations; he then
showed that they could still cause anthrax in later generations.

Contributors
Robert Koch

Koch perfected his methods of diagnostics and expanded

on the work of others.

Kochs work on diseases and diagnostics culminated with

the creation of what are now known as Kochs Postulates.

Koch invented the method of cultivating bacteria on nutrient

mediums, using potatoes as his source of nutrients for bacteria,
and created a medium that could be stored in dishes created by
his colleague Petri.

Kochs Postulates are the 4 steps necessary to confirm if a

suspected pathogen is indeed the cause of a disease.

Koch's postulates are (next slide):

Contributors
Koch's postulates
1. The organism must always be present, in every case of the disease.
2. The organism must be isolated from a host containing the disease
and grown in pure culture.
3. Samples of the organism taken from pure culture must cause the
same disease when inoculated into a healthy, susceptible animal in
the laboratory.
4. The organism must be isolated from the inoculated animal and
must be identified as the same original organism first isolated from
the originally diseased host

Contributors
Robert Koch

Contributors
Joseph Lister

Prof of Surgery, Glasgow

Royal Infirmatory
Introduced Antiseptic
Surgery
Called Father of
Antiseptic Surgery

Contributors
Joseph Lister
known for using antiseptics in hospitals.
1. using Pasteur's knowledge about germs and their origins,
Lister used strong chemicals to kill bacteria in operating
rooms.
2. antiseptics, as they later be called, prevented the spread
of infection within hospitals.

Classification and Naming of

Microorganisms

Classification by structure

Subcellular DNA or RNA surrounded by a

protein coat viruses

Prokaryotic simple cell structure with no

nucleus or organelles bacteria

Eukaryotic complex cell structure with nucleus

and specialized organelles protozoans, fungi,
parasites

Viruses

Smallest known
infectious agents
Subcellular
microorganism

Have only nucleic acid

surrounded by a protein
coat
Must live and grow in
living cells of other
organisms

Hepatitis virus

Viruses (cont.)

Illnesses caused by viruses

Colds
Influenza
Herpes
Hepatitis
Warts

AIDS
Mumps
Rubella
Measles

Vaccines are available for many viruses

Bacteria

Single-celled prokaryotic organisms

Reproduce rapidly
Classification

Shape
Ability to retain dyes
Ability to grow
with / without air
Biochemical reactions

Bacillus bacterial
classification

Bacteria: Classification and

Identification

Shape

Coccus spherical, round, or ovoid

Bacillus rod-shaped

Spirillum spiral-shaped

Virbrio comma-shaped

Spirillum bacterial
classification

Bacteria: Classification and

Identification (cont.)

Ability to retain certain dyes

Ability to grow in presence or absence of air

Grams stain
Acid-fast stain

Aerobes grow best in the presence of oxygen

Anaerobes grow best in the absence of oxygen

Biochemical reactions

Bacteria: Classification and

Identification (cont.)

Special groups

Mycobacteria bacilli
with a cell wall that
differs from most bacteria

Rickettsiae

Very small
Live and grow within
other living organisms
such as mites and ticks

Chlamydiae

Cell wall structure

differs from other
bacteria
Live and grow within
other living cells

Mycoplasmas
completely lack the
rigid cell wall

Protozoans

Single-celled eukaryotic organisms, larger than

bacteria

Found in soil and water

Illnesses

Malaria
Amebic dysentery
Trichomoniasis vaginitis

Protozoan
Trichomonas
vaginalis

Leading cause of death in developing countries

Fungi

Eukaryotic organisms
with rigid cell wall
Yeasts

Single-celled
Reproduce by budding

Yeast: a singlecelled fungi

Molds

Large, fuzzy,
multicelled organisms
Produce spores

Superficial infections

Athletes foot
Ringworm
Thrush

Can cause systemic

infections

Multicellular Parasites

Organisms that live on or in another organism and

use it for nourishment

Parasitic worms

Usually due to poor

sanitation
Roundworms
Flatworms
Tapeworms

Parasitic insects

Bite or burrow under

the skin
Mosquitoes
Ticks
Lice
mites

Apply Your Knowledge

Matching: ANSWER:
___
D Yeast or mold

A. Virus

___
E Tapeworm / lice

B. Bacteria

___
B Classified by shape

C. Protozoan

A Subcellular organism
___

D. Fungus

B May be aerobic or anaerobic

___

E. Multicellular parasite

A Smallest known organism

___
C Found in soil and water
___

Very
Good
!

Nomenclature

Scientific name (Systematic Name)

Binomial System of Nomenclature

Genus name + species name

Italicized or underlined
Genus name is capitalized and may be abbreviated
Species name is never abbreviated
A genus name may be used alone to indicate a
genus group; a species name is never used alone
eg: Bacillus subtilis
B. subtilis

Nomenclature

Common or descriptive names

(trivial names)

Names for organisms that may be in common

usage, but are not taxonomic names

eg: tubercle bacillus

(Mycobacterium tuberculosis)
meningococcus
(Neiserria meningitidis)
Group A streptococcus
(Streptococcus pyogenes)

Nomenclature

For viruses - common names are used e.

g. Polio virus, HIV, Influenza virus
For parasites Either binomial or
common names are used e.g.

Round worm, Ascaris lumbricoides, A.

lumbricoides
Dog tape worm, Echinococcus granulosus,
E. granulosus

Taxonomy
The formal system for organizing, classifying, and naming living
things is taxonomy.*
This science originated more than 250 years ago when Carl von
Linn (Linnaeus; 17011778), a Swedish botanist, laid down the
basic rules for taxonomic categories, or taxa.
Von Linn realized early on that a system for recognizing and
defining the properties of living things would prevent chaos in
scientific studies by providing each organism with a unique
name and an exact slot in which to catalogue it.

Classification scheme

The levels in classification from domain to species

operate like a set of nesting boxes. Humans are the example here.

Sample taxonomy

A common species of protozoan, Paramecium caudatum,

traced through its taxonomic series.

Taxonomy
Taxonomy is the formal filing system scientists use to
classify living organisms. It puts every organism in its
place and makes a place for every living organism.
The taxonomic system has three primary functions:
classification, nomenclature, and identification of species.
The eight major taxa, or groups, in the taxonomic system
are (in descending order): domain, kingdom, phylum or
division, class, order, family, genus, and species.

Taxonomy
The binomial system of nomenclature describes each
living organism by two names: genus and species.
Taxonomy groups organisms by phylogenetic
similarity, which in turn is based on evolutionary
similarities in morphology, physiology, and genetics.
Evolutionary patterns show a treelike branching from
simple, primitive life forms to complex, advanced life
forms.

Taxonomy
The Woese-Fox classification system places all
eucaryotes in the Domain (Superkingdom) Eukarya
and subdivides the procaryotes into the two Domains
Archaea and Bacteria.
The Whittaker five-kingdom classification system
places all bacteria in the Kingdom Procaryotae and
subdivides the eucaryotes into Kingdoms Protista,
Myceteae, Animalia, and Plantae.

Taxonomy
The Woese-Fox classification system places all
eucaryotes in the Domain (Superkingdom) Eukarya
and subdivides the procaryotes into the two Domains
Archaea and Bacteria.
The Whittaker five-kingdom classification system
places all bacteria in the Kingdom Procaryotae and
subdivides the eucaryotes into Kingdoms Protista,
Myceteae, Animalia, and Plantae.

Taxonomy

Traditional Whittaker system of classification