Biology Investigatory Project

Subject: Microbes in Human Welfare

Submitted To,
Rajeswari Teacher

Submitted By,
Saji V Shajan
Std.XII B
Roll no.12

Contents
S.No.

Topic

Page No.

Acknowledgment

Introduction

Uses in Food

3-7

Uses in Water Treatment

7-9

Uses in Energy

9-11

Production of Chemicals

12-14

Importance in ecology

15

Conclusion

16

Bibliography

17

Acknowledgement
I would like to convey our sincere
gratitude to our Biology teacher for
letting us to do this project. I would
like to thank my friends for helping me
in this project and a special thanks to
Mrs. Rajeswari Miss (Biology teacher)
for guiding throughout the project. I
sincerely have worked hard to
complete this project. I tried to make
this project as Good as possible. Last
but not least I would like to thank my
classmate and parents for their
valuable suggestion about this project.

Introduction
A microorganism is a microscopic living organism, which may be
single celled or multicellular. Microorganism was discovered in 1674
by Antonie van Leeuwenhoek, using a microscope of his own design.
They are very diverse and include all the Bacteria and archaea and
almost all the protozoa. They also include some fungi, algae, and
certain animals, such as rotifers.
Microbes are present everywhere in soil, water, air, inside our
bodies and that of other animals and plants and even in Hot springs
and Oceans. Some are even observed in vacuum under certain test
conditions.
Microorganisms are crucial to nutrient recycling in ecosystems as
they act as decomposers. As some microorganisms can fix nitrogen,
they are a vital part of the nitrogen cycle. Microorganisms are also
exploited in biotechnology, both in traditional food and beverage
preparation, and in modern technologies based on genetic
engineering.
Microbes are vital to humans and the environment as they participate
in the carbon and nitrogen cycle as well as fulfilling other vital role in
virtually all ecosystem such as recycling other organisms dead
remains and waste products through decomposition.

Uses in Food
Microorganisms are used in brewing, wine making, baking, pickling
and other food-making processes. They are also used to control the
fermentation process in the production of cultured dairy products such
as yogurt and cheese. The cultures also provide flavour and aroma,
and inhibit undesirable organisms.

Cheese Making Process

Milk is often pasteurized to destroy pathogenic microorganisms and
to eliminate spoilage and effects induced by bacteria. The milk is then
inoculated with fermenting microorganisms and rennet, which
promote curdling.
The fermenting microorganisms carry out the anaerobic conversion of
lactose to lactic.. In the presence of lactic acid, rennet, or both, the
milk protein casein clumps together and precipitates out of solution;
this is the process known as curdling, or coagulation. Coagulated
casein assumes a solid or gel like structure (the curd), which traps
most of the fat, bacteria, calcium, phosphate, and other particulates.
The remaining liquid (the whey) contains water, proteins resistant to
acidic and enzymatic denaturation (e.g., antibodies), carbohydrates
(lactose), and minerals.
Enzymes released by the bacterial cells also influence flavour
development during ripening. The curd is then gently heated, causing
it to shrink. The degree of shrinkage determines the moisture content
and the final consistency of the cheese. Whey is removed by draining
or dipping.
Most cheese is ripened for varying amounts of time in order to bring
about the chemical changes necessary for transforming fresh curd into
a distinctive aged cheese. The ripening of cheese is influenced by the
interaction of bacteria, enzymes, and physical conditions in the curing
room. The speed of the reactions is determined by temperature and
humidity conditions in the room as well as by the moisture content of
the cheese.
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Wine Making Process

The process of winemaking involves numerous stages starting with
the grapes being harvested, taken into a winery and then prepared
for fermentation. At this stage, red wine is created during the
fermentation of the pulp (or "must") and skins of the red or black
grapes, which gives the wine its colour. White wine, on the other
hand, does not include the grape skins in the fermentation process;
only the juices are extracted.
To start primary fermentation, a process that typically takes
between one to two weeks, yeast is added which converts the sugars
in the grape juice into alcohol and carbon dioxide, which then
evaporates into the atmosphere. The produced liquid, which is
known as "free wine," is then pumped into tanks and the skins are
pressed in order to extract the remaining wine and juice. This wine,
known as the "press wine," can be added to the free wine to bring
more character and longevity to the wine.
Secondary fermentation is the next step, which is the bacterial
fermentation involving the conversion of malic acid to lactic acid.
This decreases the amount of acid in the wine and softens the taste.
The wine can then be transferred to oak barrels for maturation, with
further adjustments to taste and colour being made prior to filtering
and bottling.

Curd Making Process

Curds are a dairy product obtained by coagulating milk in a process
called curdling. The coagulation can be caused by adding rennet or
any edible acidic substance such as lemon juice or vinegar, and then
allowing it to sit. The increased acidity causes the milk proteins to
tangle into solid masses. Lactobacillus is a genus of bacteria which
can convert sugars into lactic acid by means of fermentation. Milk
contains a sugar called lactose, a disaccharide (compound sugar)
made by the glycosidic bonding between glucose and galactose
(monosaccharide). When pasteurized milk is heated to a temperature
of 30-40 C, or even at room temperature or refrigerator temperature,
and a small amount of old curd or whey added to it, the lactobacillus
in that curd or whey sample starts to grow. These convert the lactose
into lactic acid, which imparts the sour taste to curd. Raw milk
naturally contains lactobacillus. And in this way Curd is made.

Uses in Water Treatment

Microbes play a Major role in treating million of Gallons of
wastewater everyday across the globe. Water pollution is due to
presence of particulate matter or presence of inorganic or organic
Compounds or because of too many or non native microorganisms.
Sewage Treatment consists of three stages called Primary, Secondary
and Tertiary Treatment.

Primary treatment
In the primary sedimentation stage, sewage flows through large tanks,
commonly called pre-settling basins, primary sedimentation tanks
or primary clarifiers". The tanks are used to settle sludge while
grease and oils rise to the surface and are skimmed off. Primary
settling tanks are usually equipped with mechanically driven scrapers
that continually drive the collected sludge towards a hopper in the
base of the tank where it is pumped to sludge treatment facilities.
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Lactobacillus Bacteria

Water Treatment

Grease and oil from the floating material can sometimes be recovered
for saponification (soap making).

Secondary Treatment
Secondary treatment is designed to substantially degrade the
biological content of the sewage which are derived from human
waste, food waste, soaps and detergent. The majority of municipal
plants treat the settled sewage liquor using aerobic biological
processes. To be effective, the biota requires both oxygen and food to
live. The bacteria and protozoa consume biodegradable soluble
organic contaminants (e.g. sugars, fats, organic short-chain carbon
molecules, etc.) and bind much of the less soluble fractions into floc.
Secondary treatment systems are classified as fixed-film or
suspended-growth systems.

Tertiary Treatment
The purpose of tertiary treatment is to provide a final treatment stage
to further improve the effluent quality before it is discharged to the
receiving environment (sea, river, lake, wet lands, ground, etc.). More
than one tertiary treatment process may be used at any treatment
plant. If disinfection is practised, it is always the final process. It is
also called effluent polishing.

Uses in Energy
Microorganisms are used in fermentation to produce ethanol, and in
biogas reactors to produce methane. Scientist are researching the use
of algae to produce liquid fuels and bacteria to convert various form
of agricultural and urban waste into usable fuels

Algae Fuel
Algae fuel or algal bio fuel is an alternative to liquid fossil fuels that
uses algae as its source of energy-rich oils. Several companies and
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government agencies are funding efforts to reduce capital and

operating costs and make algae fuel production commercially
viable. Like fossil fuel, algae fuel releases CO2 when burnt, but unlike
fossil fuel, algae fuel and other bio fuels only release CO 2 recently
removed from the atmosphere via photosynthesis as the algae or plant
grew. The energy crisis and the world food crisis have ignited interest
in alga culture (farming algae) for making biodiesel and other bio
fuels using land unsuitable for agriculture. Among algal fuels'
attractive characteristics are that they can be grown with minimal
impact on fresh water resources can be produced using saline
and wastewater, have a high flash point and are biodegradable
and relatively harmless to the environment if spilled.

Cellulosic ethanol
Cellulosic ethanol is a biofuel produced from wood, grasses, or the
non-edible parts of plants. It is a type of biofuel produced from
lignocellulose, a structural material that comprises much of the mass
of plants. Lignocellulose is composed mainly of cellulose,
hemicellulose and lignin. Corn stover, switchgrass, miscanthus,
woodchips and the by products of lawn and tree maintenance are
some of the more popular cellulosic materials for ethanol production.
Production of ethanol from lignocellulose has the advantage of
abundant and diverse raw material compared to sources like corn and
cane sugars, but requires a greater amount of processing to make the
sugar monomers available to the microorganisms that are typically
used to produce ethanol by fermentation.The main advantage
of Cellulosic ethanol is that it reduces greenhouse gas emissions
(GHG) by 85% over reformulated gasoline.

Biogas
Biogas, naturally occurring gas that is generated by the breakdown of
organic matter by anaerobic bacteria and is used in energy production.
Biogas is primarily composed of methane gas, carbon dioxide, and
trace amounts of nitrogen, hydrogen, and carbon monoxide. Biogas
differs from natural gas in that it is a renewable energy source
produced biologically through anaerobic digestion rather than a fossil
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fuel produced by geological processes. Biogas occurs naturally

in compost heaps, as swamp gas, and as a result of
enteric fermentation in cattle and other ruminants. Biogas produced in
anaerobic digesters can be burned to generate heat or used
in combustion engines to produce electricity. Organic material used to
produce biogas industrially includes animal waste, such as manure
and sewage, and municipal solid waste (MSW) harnessed from
landfills.
Animal and plant wastes can be used to produce biogas. They are
processed in anaerobic digesters as a liquid or as a slurry mixed with
water. Anaerobic digesters are generally composed of a feedstock
source holder, a digestion tank, a biogas recovery unit, and heat
exchangers to maintain the temperature necessary for bacterial
digestion. Heat is usually required in digesters to maintain a constant
temperature of about 35 C (95 F) for bacteria to decompose the
organic material into gas. The use of biogas is a green technology
with environmental benefits. Biogas technology enables the effective
use of accumulated animal waste from food production and of
municipal solid waste from urbanization. The conversion of animal
waste into biogas reduces production of the greenhouse gas methane,
as efficient combustion replaces methane with carbon dioxide.

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Uses in Production of Chemicals

Use in production of chemicals, enzymes ,antibiotics etc. Many
microbes are used for commercial and industrial production of
chemicals, enzymes and other bioactive molecules. Examples of
organic acid produced include
Acetic acid : Produced by the bacterium Acetobacter aceti and other
acetic acid bacteria (AAB) Acetic acid bacteria (AAB) are bacteria that
derive their energy from the oxidation of ethanol to acetic acid
during fermentation. They are Gram-negative, aerobic, rod-shaped
bacteria. They are not to be confused with the genus
Acetobacterium, which are anaerobic homoacetogenic facultative
autotrophs and can reduce carbon dioxide to produce acetic acid, for
example, Acetobacterium woodii .
Butyric acid (butanoic acid): Produced by the bacterium Clostridium
butyricum. Clostridium butyricum is a strictly anaerobic endosporeforming Gram-positive butyric acid producing bacillus subsisting by
means of fermentation using an intracellularly accumulated
amylopectin-like -polyglucan (granulose) as a substrate. It is
uncommonly reported as a human pathogen and widely used as a
probiotic in Asia (particularly Japan). C. butyricum is a soil inhabitant
in various parts of the world, has been cultured from the stool of
healthy children and adults, and is common in soured milk and
cheeses.
Lactic acid : Lactobacillus and others commonly called as lactic acid
bacteria (LAB) The lactic acid bacteria (LAB) comprise a clade of
Gram-positive, low-GC, acid-tolerant, generally non-sporulating, nonrespiring rod or cocci that are associated by their common metabolic
and physiological characteristics.
These bacteria, usually found in decomposing plants and lactic
products, produce lactic acid as the major metabolic end-product of
carbohydrate fermentation. This trait has, throughout history, linked
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LAB with food fermentations, as acidification inhibits the growth of

spoilage agents. Proteinaceous bacteriocins are produced by several
LAB strains and provide an additional hurdle for spoilage and
pathogenic microorganisms. Furthermore, lactic acid and other
metabolic products contribute to the organoleptic and textural
profile of a food item. The industrial importance of the LAB is further
evinced by their generally recognized as safe (GRAS) status, due to
their ubiquitous appearance in food and their contribution to the
healthy microflora of human mucosal surfaces.
Citric acid : Produced by the fungus Aspergillus niger .Aspergillus
niger is a fungus and one of the most common species of the genus
Aspergillus. It is ubiquitous in soil and is commonly reported from
indoor environments, where its black colonies can be confused with
those of Stachybotrys (species of which have also been called "black
mould").
Antibiotics are chemical substances, which are produced by some
microbes and can kill or retard the growth of other (disease-causing)
microbes. You are familiar with the commonly used antibiotic
Penicillin. Alexander Fleming while working on Staphylococci
bacteria, once observed a mould growing in one of his unwashed
culture plates around which Staphylococci could not grow. He found
out that it was due to a chemical produced by the mould and he
named it Penicillin after the mould Penicillium notatum. However, its
full potential as an effective antibiotic was established much later by
Ernest Chain and Howard Florey. This antibiotic was extensively used
to treat American soldiers wounded in World War II. Fleming, Chain
and Florey were awarded the Nobel Prize in 1945, for this discovery.
Microbes are used for preparation of bioactive molecules and
enzymes. Streptokinase produced by the bacterium Streptococcus
and modified by genetic engineering is used as a clot buster for
removing clots from the blood vessels of patients who have
undergone myocardial infarctions leading to heart attack.
Cyclosporin A is a bioactive molecule used as an immunosuppressive
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agent in organ transplantation Stains produced by the yeast

Monascus purpureus is commercialised as blood cholesterol lowering
agents which acts by competitively inhibiting the enzyme responsible
for synthesis of cholesterol.

Acetobacter aceti

Clostridium butyricum

Aspergillus niger

Penicillium notatum

Monascus purpureus

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Importance in Ecology
One of the most important roles of microbes is breaking up the
complex substances in decaying plants and animals so that they can
be used again by living plants. This involves microbes as catalysts in
a number of natural cycles, among the most prominent being the
nitrogen, and sulfur cycles.
Proteins are the basic stuff of organic tissues, and nitrogen is an
essential element of all proteins. The availability of nitrogen in forms
that plants can use is a basic determinant of the fertility of soils; the
role of microbes in facilitating the nitrogen cycle is therefore of great
importance. When a plant or animal dies, microbes break up the
complex proteins, polypeptides, and nucleic acids in their bodies and
produce ammonium, ions, nitrates, and nitrites that plants then use to
build their body tissues.
Both bacteria and blue-green algae can fix nitrogen directly from the
atmosphere, but this is less vital to plant development than the
symbiotic relationship between the bacteria genus Rhizobium and
leguminous plants and certain trees and shrubs. In return for
secretions from their host that encourage their growth and
multiplication, Rhizobia fix nitrogen in nodules of the host plants
roots, providing nitrogen in a form usable by the plant.
Microbes also participate in the sulfur cycle, mostly by breaking up
the naturally abundant sulfur compounds in the soil so that this vital
element is available to plants. Sulfur cycle, is the circulation of sulfur
in various forms through nature. Sulfur occurs in all living matter as a
component of certain amino acids. It is abundant in the soil
in proteins and, through a series of microbial transformations, ends up
as sulfates usable by plants.
Sulfur-containing proteins are degraded into their constituent amino
acids by the action of a variety of soil organisms. The sulfur of the
amino acids is converted to hydrogen sulfide (H2S) by another series
of soil microbes. In the presence of oxygen, H2S is converted to sulfur
and then to sulfate by sulfur bacteria. Eventually the sulfate becomes
H2S.
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Conclusion
Microbes are a very important component of life on earth. Not all
microbes are pathogenic. Many microbes are very useful to human
beings. We use microbes and microbially derived products almost
every day. Microbes are essential in processes like Wine making and
Cheese making. Bacteria called lactic acid bacteria (LAB) grow in
milk to convert it into curd. The dough, which is used to make bread,
is fermented by yeast called Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Certain dishes
such as idli and dosa, are made from dough fermented by microbes.
Bacteria and fungi are used to impart particular texture, taste and
flavour to cheese. Many microbes are used for commercial and
industrial production of chemicals, enzymes and other bioactive
molecules .Antibiotics like penicillins produced by useful microbes
are used to kill disease-causing harmful microbes. For more than a
hundred years, microbes are being used to treat sewage (waste water)
by the process of activated sludge formation and this helps in
recycling of water in nature. Microorganisms are used in fermentation
to produce ethanol, and in biogas reactors to produce methane
Methanogens produce methane (biogas) while degrading plant waste.
Biogas produced by microbes is used as a source of energy in rural
areas. It is clear from the diverse uses human beings have put
microbes to that they play an important role in the welfare of human
society.

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Bibliography

Referred Books:
Biological Science: Third Edition
By, N. P. O. Green (Author), G. W. Stout (Author),
D. J. Taylor (Author), R. Soper (Editor)

Exploring Biology
By, Ella Thea Smith

NCERT Text Book

Tell Me Why
Encyclopaedia Britannica

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