Biology - Bacteria

Introduction

• Bacteria normally comprises a large number of prokaryotic microorganisms.

• Bacteria most probably were among the first life that formed to appear on the Earth.

• Bacteria belong to Monera kingdom.

• Bacteria usually inhabit in all range of environments, such as soil, water, acidic hot springs, radioactive waste, and the deep portions of Earth's crust.

• The study of bacteria is known as bacteriology.

• Bacteria play an important role in many stages of the nutrient cycle by recycling nutrients including the fixation of nitrogen from the atmosphere.

• Bacteria grow to a fixed size and after maturity reproduce through asexual reproduction i.e. basically binary fission.

• Under favorable conditions, bacteria can grow and divide very swiftly, and the bacterial populations can double merely in every 9.8 minutes.

• When viruses that infect bacteria is known as Bacteriophages.

• In order to modify themselves (to survive in the adverse environment), Bacteria frequently secrete chemicals into their environment.

Advantages of Bacteria

• Bacteria are advantageous in many ways, such as −

  • Bacteria help in atmospheric nitrogen fixation.

  • Bacteria decompose dead plants and animals and clean the environment.

  • Bacteria are the major element that convert milk into curd and wine into vinegar.

  • Some specific types of bacteria are used in making proteins.

  • Some types of bacteria are also used as pesticides.

Disadvantages of Bacteria

• Bacteria cause many diseases and infection to living organisms.

Bacterial Diseases

• Bacteria cause many diseases, significant of them are −

  • Anthrax - caused by Bacillus anthracis

  • Brucellosis - caused by Brucella abortus

  • Botulism - caused by Clostridium botulinum

  • Coliform diseases - caused by Escherichia coli

  • Leprosy - caused by Mycobacterium leprae

  • Plague - caused by Yersinia pestis

  • Typhoid fever - caused by Salmonella typhi

  • Trachoma - caused by Chlamydia trachomatis

  • Diphtheria - caused by Corynebacterium diphtheria

  • Tetanus - caused by Clostridium tetani

  • Tuberculosis - caused by Mycobacterium bovis

  • Cholera - caused by Vibrio cholera

  • Syphilis - caused by Treponema pallidum

  • Whooping cough - caused by Bordetella pertussis

  • Gonrhoea - caused by Gonococcus

  • Potato wilt - caused by Pseudomonas solanacearum

  • Blight of rice - caused by Xanthomonas orzae

  • Fire blight of apple - caused by Invenia