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CHAPTER 10
Quick Revision Notes MICROBES IN HUMAN WELFARE Important Terms Flocs Masses of bacteria associated with fungal hyphae that form mesh like structures. Biochemical Oxygen Demand It is a measure of the oxygen needed by the aerobic decomposers in the sewage/polluted water. Methanogens Bacteria which produce large quantites of methane during decomposition of organic matter. Baculoviruses Viral pathogens that attack insects and other arthropods. Biogas Mixture of gases that contains predominantly methane produced by the activity of microbes. Microbes in household products Name of the microbe 1) Lactobacillus (LAB). (i) Effect Produce acids that coagulate and partially digest the milk proteins.(ii) Increases the vitamin B12 content

(iii) LAB keeps a check on disease causing microbes. 2) Saccharomyces cerevisiae (Bakers yeast) 3) Propionibacterium sharmanii MICROBES IN INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTS (i) Saccharomyces cerevisiae Called Brewers yeast also. Apart from being used in making bread, used to ferment malted cereals, fruit juices to produce ethanol. Antibiotics such as Penicillin is obtained from Penicillium notatum. Chemicals, Enzymes and other Bioactive Molecules 1) Aspergillus niger Produces citric acid 2) Acetobacter aceti Produces acetic acid. 3) Clostridium butylicum Produces butyric acid 4) Lactobacillus Produces lactic acid 5) Lipases enzymes derived from microbes Used in detergents to remove oily stains. 6) Streptococcus Produces streptokinase which is used as a clot buster to remove clots from the blood vessels of patients. 7) Cyclosporin Trichoderma polysporum derived from immunosuppressive agent in organ transplant patients. microbes Used as an (i) Fermentation of dosa, idli (ii) Making bread. (i) Produces large amounts of CO2 which produce large holes in Swiss cheese.

8) Statins produced by Monascus purpureus Used as blood cholesterol lowering agents.

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9)

Methanogens such as Methanobacterium Used in the production of Biogas

10) Bacillus thuringiensis Biological control of pests. 11) Trichoderma A fungi used for the treatment of plant diseases. 12) Baculovirus Eg. Nucleopolyhedrovirus - Species specific, narrow spectrum insecticides. 13 Rhizobium (biofertiliser) Fixes atmospheric nitrogen in symbiotic association with leguminous plants. 14) Azospirillum and Azotobacter Free living nitrogen fixing bacteria present in the soil. 15) Mycorrhiza (Glomus fungi) Fungi symbiotically associated with roots of higher plants; help to absorb phosphorus from the soil for the plant. 16) Cyanobacteria such as Anabaena, Nostoc, Oscillatoria - Fix atmospheric nitrogen. TREATMENT OF SEWAGE Sewage is treated in sewage treatment plants Primary treatment Secondary treatment Primary treatment (i) Involves physical removal of particles from the sewage through filtration and sedimentation. (ii) All solids that settle down forms the primary sludge and is discarded, whereas the supernatants which form the effluents are taken for secondary treatment. Secondary or Biological treatment Primary effluent is passed into large aeration tanks and constantly agitated and air is pumped into it. Growth of flocs take place which consume the major organic part of the effluent thus reducing its BOD. The effluent is then passed into a settling tank, where the bacterial flocs are allowed to sediment. This sediment is called activated sludge. A small part of this sludge is used as an inoculum and sent back to the aeration tank. Rest of the sludge is pumped into anaerobic sludge digesters. In these tanks anaerobic bacteria and fungi in the sludge are digested. A mixture of gases comprising of methane, hydrogen sulphide and CO2, collectively called biogas is produced. The effluent from the secondary treatment is released into natural water bodies.

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BIOGAS PLANT

A typical biogas plant It consists of a concrete tank, 10-15 feet deep in which a slurry of dung is collected. A floating cover is placed over the slurry which keeps on rising as the gas is produced in the tank. The plant has an outlet which is connected to a pipe to supply biogas to nearby houses. The used slurry is removed through another outlet and used as a fertiliser.