World of microbes: Beneficial effects of micro-organisms

Micro-organisms are living organisms that are too small to be observed or seen with the naked eyes. They are therefore seen with the aid of a microscope. Hence, they are said to be microscopic.

Micro-organisms include: Bacteria (singular: bacterium), fungi ( singular: fungus), protozoa, Algae and viruses.

The aim of this write-up is to open the eyes of people to the good that micro-organisms do than the harm they cause. It has been observed that when most people hear about micro-organisms, what comes to mind is something harmful to them or their food.

However, not all micro-organisms are harmful. Below is a list of microbes and their usefulness.

a) Bacteria :

                               I.            Preparation of beverages: bacteria play an important role in the preparation of tea, coffee and tobacco.

                             II.            Production of anti-biotics: bacteria such as Bacillus Substilis are used in the production of substilin. The anti-biotics polymixin is made from the bacteria Bacillus Polymyxa.

                          III.            Leather industries: Bacteria help in the removal of hairs from leather.

                          IV.            Preparation of Vitamins: Bacteria like Escherichia Coli, Aceetobacter Aerogenes, can produce different vitamins such as Vitamin B, Thiamen, Vitamin K, etc.

                            V.            Production of Milk Products: Yoghurts, cheese, butter, etc, are produced from milk after fermentation by bacteria.

                          VI.            Digestion of cellulose in ruminant animals: the digestion of cellulose in the stomach of cattle, cows and goats when they consume cellulolytic materials are only made possible by the help of bacteria. This aid gas production.

                       VII.            Decomposition: They are useful in degradation and decomposition of waste and dead parts of plants and animals. They are often employed in the degradation of solid waste to produce cooking gas.

                     VIII.            Nitrogen fixation: some soil bacteria like Azobacter, Pseudomonas, etc can fix nitrogen directly from the air and help to develop soil fertility.

b)  Fungi:

                               I.            These include mushrooms (agarias), though macro, which are eaten the world over. It is important however to note that not all mushrooms are edible. Some of them can be poisonous. Edible mushrooms are commonly grown nowadays. Volvariella sp. is an edible mushroom that grows on ipil-ipil leaves, rice stalks and banana. To these substrates, honey, coconut water and urea are added.

                             II.            Yeast: is another type of fungi that is useful in bread making, bear brewing and wine production.

                          III.            Antibiotic production: Sir Alexander Flemming discovered penicillin in 1928; produced from the fungi, Penicillium Notatum.

                          IV.            Citric acid and production of food additives: Filamentous fungi are used in the production of food additives and citric acid production.

                            V.            Fermentation process: Fungi are useful in mixed fermentation process leading to the production of soy sauce, ogi (corn pudding) and several other foods.

c)   Viruses: viruses which are known to be most harmful and pathogenic (disease causing) of all micro-organisms still have beneficial effects which include

                   I.            Vaccine production: Vaccine, which is a special preparation of antigenic materials that can be used to stimulate the development of anti-bodiesand thus confer active immunity against a specific form of disease that can be produced from viruses. E.g, Small Pox Vaccine.

                 II.            Research: Viruses are useful for scientific study in molecular biology and genetic engineering.

It should be noted in conclusion that micro-organisms from the normal flora on the body has micro-organisms in the different part of the body. E.g, Staphylococcus aureus is found on the face and mucus membrane.