LECTURE 1

INTRODUCTION TO MICROBIOLOGY

the scientific study of microorganisms

(living things that are too small to be
seen with the naked eye)

Groups of Microorganisms
Bacteria (archeans, eubacteria)
Protists (algae, protozoans, slime
molds)
Fungi (yeasts and molds)
Helminths
Viruses (acellular)
Importance of Microbes
- Aid in the digestion of cellulose in
ruminants
- Nutrient cycling
- Bioremediation
- Normal flora
- Probiotics
- Antibiotics
- Fermentation products
Negative impact on human health
Microbes cause many infectious
diseases.
o Vaccines, antibiotics, and many
other advances have lessened
the impact of infectious disease
in the developed world, but
infectious disease in developing
countries is high.
New illnesses caused by
microorganisms continue to emerge
and known pathogens are becoming
resistant to treatment.

History of Microbiology

The ancient Egyptians are the first

known civilization to use fermentation
to brew beer.
Historical evidence also suggests a
knowledge of infectious disease.
o As evident from archeological
excavations in Crete, India,
Pakistan, and Scotland, early
civilizations have realized a
connection between sewage
and disease.

Historical Roots
First Observations
Spontaneous Generation
Golden Age of Microbiology
o Birth of Modern Chemotherapy
(1st Golden Age)
o Microbial Genetics Era (2nd
Golden Age)
Modern Developments
First Observations
The history of biology largely rests on
the book Micrographia, published in
1665.
Robert hooke (1665) Micrographia
Antony van Leeuwenhoek (1673)
animalcules
Spontaneous Generation
Abiogenesis
A long-held theory that life could arise
spontaneously from non-living or
decaying organic matter.
It was based on observations of rotting
food seemingly producing living
organisms.
Francesco Redi (1668) strong opponent
of Abiogenesis.
John Needham (1745) abiogenesis
occurred due to the random "clumping of
organic molecules.
Lazaro Spallanzani (1765)
microorganisms in the air entered in
Needhams experiment.
Rudolf Virchow (1858) cells arise from
pre-existing living cells.
Louis Pasteur (1861) swan-neck flasks
show that spontaneous generation does not
occur.
Golden Age of Microbiology (1857-1914)
This period saw the discovery of the
causes of many diseases, advances in
the understanding of immunity,
advances in the understanding of
microbial metabolism, etc.

Fermentation
The anaerobic conversion of sugar to
carbon dioxide and alcohol by yeast.

infection, contamination of the

environment they are working in (e.g.
fomites), and contamination of the
specimen they are working on, which
is especially important when a pure
culture is desired.
Contributors:
Ignaz Semmelweis (hand
washing as a means of
minimizing surgical infection)

Pasteurization
The process of heating liquids for the
purpose of destroying viruses and
harmful organisms such as bacteria,
protozoa, molds, and yeasts.
Does not intend to kill all microorganisms (pathogenic) in the food.
Instead, aims to achieve a "log
reduction" in the number of viable
organisms, reducing their number so
they are unlikely to cause disease
(assuming the pasteurized product is
refrigerated and consumed before its
expiration date).
Germ Theory of Disease
A theory that proposes that
microorganisms are the cause of many
diseases.
Contributors:
Girolamo Fracastoro
Agostino Bassi
John Snow
Louis Pasteur
Robert Koch
Kochs postulate
1. An organism can be isolated from a
host suffering from the disease
2. The organism can be cultured in the
laboratory
3. The organism causes the same
disease when introduced into another
host
4. The organism can be re-isolated from
that host

Aseptic Technique
Technique used by microbiologists to
prevent microbial contamination of
themselves, which may result in

Joseph Lister (use of

chemical antimicrobials for the
"sanitization" of objects that
come into contact with surgical
wounds)

Vaccination
The process of administering
pathogens that can not reproduce
(due to being weakened or dead) to a
healthy person or animal, with the
intent of conferring immunity against
a targeted form of a related disease
agent.
Contributor:
Edward Jenner (use of cowpox
virus to vaccinate against
smallpox virus)
Chemotherapy
The use of substances (natural or
synthetic) to treat disease.
In its non-oncological use, the term
may also refer to antibiotics
(antibacterial chemotherapy).
Contributors:
Paul Ehrlich (arsphenamine)
Domagk (sulfonamides)
Alexander Fleming (penicillin)

Second Golden Age (1943-1970)

Microbial genetics era.

Oswald Avery, Colin MacLeod, and

Maclyn McCarty
-show that DNA is the transforming
material in cells.

Albert Schatz, E. Bugie, and

Selman Waksman
- discover streptomycin, soon to be
used against tuberculosis

Joshua Lederberg and Edward L.

Tatum- publish on conjugation in
bacteria.

Microbiologist John Franklin Enders,

virologist Thomas H. Weller and
physician Frederick Chapman
Robbins
- together develop a technique to grow
polio virus in test tube cultures of
human tissues.

Joshua Lederberg and Esther

Lederberg
- publish their replica plating
method and provide firm evidence
that mutations in bacteria yielding
resistance to antibiotics and viruses
are not induced by the presence of
selective agents.

James Watson and Francis Crick

- publish a description of the doublehelix structure of DNA

Peter Mitchell
- proposes the chemiosmotic theory
in which a molecular process is
coupled to the transport of protons
across a biological membrane

Francois Jacob, David Perrin,

Carmen Sanchez and Jacques
Monod
- propose the operon concept for
control of bacteria gene action.

Marshall Nirenberg and J.H.

Matthaei
- observe that a synthetic
polynucleotide, poly U, directs the
synthesis of a polypeptide
composed only of phenylalanine.

Modern Developments

Advancement in Molecular
microbiology and Immunology

Microbial Genetics
Microorganisms have served as
important biochemical and genetic
model systems
Understanding the molecular role of
DNA in the hereditary process
occurred as a consequence of studies
employing microorganisms.
Recombinant DNA and engineering,
DNA technology
Howard Temin and David Baltimore
- independently discover reverse
transcriptase in RNA viruses.
Stanley Cohen, Annie Chang, Robert
Helling, and Herbert Boyer
they show that if DNA is broken into
fragments and combined with plasmid DNA,
such recombinant DNA molecules will
reproduce if inserted into bacterial cells.

Taxonomy
system for organizing, classifying &
naming living things.
Levels
Domain
Kingdom
Phylum or Division
Class
Order
Family
Genus
Species

Major Taxonomic Groups of Bacteria

in Bergeys manual
1. Gracilicutes gram-negative cell
walls, thin-skinned

2. Firmicutes gram-positive cell

walls, thick skinned
3. Tenericutes lack a cell wall & are
soft
4. Mendosicutes archaea,
primitive procaryotes with unusual
cell walls & nutritional habits
FIELDS OF STUDY
1. Microbial physiology
The study of how the
microbial cell functions
biochemically.
Includes the study of
microbial growth, microbial
metabolism and microbial
cell structure
2. Microbial genetics
The study of how genes are
organized and regulated in
microbes in relation to their
cellular functions.
Closely related to the field of
molecular biology
3. Medical microbiology
The study of the role of
microbes in human illness.
Includes the study of
microbial pathogenesis and
epidemiology and is related
to the study of disease
pathology and immunology

4. Veterinary microbiology
The study of the role in
microbes in veterinary
medicine or animal
taxonomy.
5. Environmental microbiology
The study of the function and
diversity of microbes in their
natural environments.
Includes the study of
microbial ecology, microbemediated nutrient cycling,
geomicrobiology, microbial
diversity and bioremediation.

Characterization of key
bacterial habitats such as the
rhizosphere and
phyllosphere.
6. Evolutionary microbiology
The study of the evolution of
microbes.
Includes the study of
bacterial systematics and
taxonomy.
7. Industrial microbiology
The exploitation of microbes
for use in industrial
processes.
Examples include industrial
fermentation and wastewater
treatment. Closely linked to
the biotechnology industry.
This field also includes
brewing, an important
application of microbiology.
8. Aeromicrobiology
The study of airborne
microorganisms.
9. Food Microbiology
The study of microorganisms
causing food spoilage.
10.
Pharmaceutical
microbiology
the study of microorganisms
causing pharmaceutical
contamination and spoilage.
11.
Parasitology
The study of parasites, their
hosts, and the relationship
between them.
The focus of study is on
relationship and NOT the
organisms.
Protozoology
Focuses on protozoans
Helminthology
Focuses of helminths