Birla Public School, Doha – Qatar

Microorganisms- Friend and foe

CLASS-VIII
Reference notes

Microorganisms:
(i) Organisms which are too small to be seen by the naked eye, especially a single celled
organism is called microorganisms or microbes.
(ii) Microorganisms are classified into four major groups- bacteria, fungi, protozoa and
some algae.

Where do Microorganisms Live:

(i) Microorganisms may be single celled (bacteria, some algae and protozoa) or multi
cellular (algae and fungi) can survive under all types of environment, ranging from ice
cold climate to hot springs and deserts to marshy lands.
(ii) They are also found inside the bodies of other organisms including humans.
(iii) Growth of some microorganisms depends on other organisms while other organisms
exist freely.
iv) Microorganisms like amoeba can live alone, while fungi and bacteria may live in
colonies.
Bacteria
 Bacteria are unicellular prokaryotic microorganisms.
 Some bacteria are useful for humans while some can be harmful.
 They are of four major types: Bacillus, Vibrio, Cocci and Spirilla
Probiotics
 Probiotics are live bacteria and yeasts that are good for your health, especially the
digestive system.

Fungi

 Fungi are saprophytic or parasitic organisms.

 They are mostly multicellular and not microscopic.
 However, yeast is a unicellular and microscopic organism.

Protozoa

o They are mostly Unicellular i.e. made of one cell

o Some of them are autotrophic (prepare their own food), while others are
heterotrophic (depend on others for their food)
 o They prefer moist & aquatic habitats
o They can live singly, unlike bacteria & fungi
o Some common examples of protozoa are: Amoeba, Paramecium,
Trypanosoma

Algae

o They are multicellular i.e. Made of multiple cells

o They prefer mostly aquatic habitats
o Some common examples of protozoa are: Spirogyra, Ulothrix,
Chlamydomonas

Viruses: An exception

 Viruses are also microscopic, but they are not considered as micro-organism.
They behave like non-living when outside host cell, and reproduce only when
inside the host cell.

Microorganisms and Us:

Some of Microorganisms are beneficial in many ways while some others are harmful and
cause diseases.

Friendly Microorganisms:
Microorganisms are used for various purposes.
(i) Some microorganisms are used in the production of curd, bread and cake.
(ii) Some microorganisms have been used for the production of alcohol since ages.
(iii) They are also used in cleaning up of the environment as composers. For example,
the organic wastes (vegetable peels, remains of animals, faeces, etc.) are broken down
into harmless and usable substances by bacteria.
(iv) In agriculture fields, microorganisms are used to increase soil fertility by fixing
nitrogen.

Commercial Use of Microorganisms:

(i) For large scale production of alcohol, wine and acetic acid (Vinegar) Microorganisms
are used
(ii) For commercial production of alcohol and wine yeast is grown on natural sugars
present in grains like barley, wheat, rice and crushed fruit juices, etc.
Medicinal Use of Microorganisms:
(i) Whenever we fall ill the doctor may give us some antibiotic tablets, capsules or
injections like peenicillin which are made up of microorganism.
(ii) These days the medicines produced from Bactria and fungi kill or stop the growth of
the disease-causing microorganisms. Such medicines are called antibiotics.
(iii) Streptomycin, tetracycline and erythromycin medicines which are made from fungi
and bacteria are some of the commonly known antibiotics.
(iv) The antibiotics are made by growing specific microorganisms and are used to cure a
variety of diseases. Antibiotics should be taken only on the advice of a qualified doctor.
(v) Antibiotics are even added with the feed of livestock and poultry for checking
microbial infection in animals.
(vi) Microorganisms are also used to control many plant diseases.

Vaccine:
(i) When a disease-carrying microbe enters our body, the antibodies produced by our
body fight with the invader. If microbes enter again, the body also remembers that how to
fight with the microbes.
(ii) If dead or weakened microbes are injected in a healthy body, the body fights and kills
them by producing suitable antibodies.
(iii) The antibodies remain in the body for protecting from the disease causing microbes.
This is how a vaccine works.
(iv) Several diseases like cholera, tuberculosis, smallpox and hepatitis can be prevented
by vaccination.

Increasing Soil Fertility:

(i) Some bacteria and blue green algae are able increase the fertility of soil by fix nitrogen
from the atmosphere to enrich soil with nitrogen. These microbes are commonly called
biological nitrogen fixers.

Cleaning the Environment:

At the time of making manure, we collect wastes of plants, vegetables and fruits from
nearby houses and gardens. They put them in a pit meant for waste disposal. After some
time, it decomposed by microorganisms and gets converted to manure. By this method
environment is cleaned.
Harmful Microorganisms:
(i) Some of microorganisms are harmful in many ways.
(ii) In human beings, plants and animals, some of the microorganisms cause diseases.
Such disease-causing microorganisms are called pathogens.
(iii) Food, clothing and leather are spoiled due to some harmful microorganisms.

Disease— causing Microorganisms in Humans:

(i) Pathogens enter our body through the different way like air when we breathe, the
water when we drink or the food when we eat. They can also get transmitted by direct
contact with an infected person or carried through an animal.
(ii) Microbial diseases such as cholera, common cold, chicken pox and tuberculosis that
can spread from an infected person to a healthy person through air, water, food or
physical contact are called communicable diseases.
(iii) There are some insects and animals which act as carriers of disease causing
microbes. For example housefly is one such carrier that flies sit on the garbage and
animal excreta etc. Pathogens stick to their bodies. When these flies sit on uncovered
food they transfer the pathogens. Whoever eats the contaminated food is likely to get
sick. Some more examples of carrier microbes are the female Anopheles mosquito,
which carries the parasite of malaria. Female Aedes mosquito acts as carrier of dengue
virus.
(iv) All mosquitoes breed in water. So, one should not let water collect anywhere like in
coolers, tyres, flower pot etc. By keeping the surroundings clean and dry we can prevent
mosquitoes from breeding.

Some Common Human Diseases caused by Microorganisms:

Human Disease Causative Microorganism Mode of Preventive measures

Transmission (General)

Tuberculosis Bacteria Air Keep the patient in

complete isolation.
Keep the personal
Measles Virus Air belongings of the
patient away from those
of the others.
Chicken Pox Virus Air/Contact
Vaccination to be given
at suitable age
Polio Virus Air/Water

Cholera Bacteria Water/Food Maintain personal

hygiene and good
sanitary habits.
Typhoid Bacteria Water Consume properly
cooked food and boiled
 drinking water.
Vaccination

Hepatitis B Virus Water Drink boiled drinking

water. Vaccination.

Malaria Protozoa Mosquito Use mosquito net and

repellents. Spray
insecticides and control
breeding of mosquitoes
by not allowing water to
collect in the
surroundings

Disease-causing Microorganisms in Animals:

Some of microorganisms not only cause diseases in humans and plants, but also in
other animals. For example: anthrax is an example of dangerous human and cattle
disease caused by a bacterium. Foot and mouth disease of cattle is caused by a virus.

Disease-causing Microorganisms in Plants:

Some of microorganisms cause diseases in plants such as wheat, rice, potato,
sugarcane, orange, apple and others. These diseases reduce the yield of crops. They can
be controlled by the use of certain chemicals or pesticides which kill the microbes, which
affect the yield the crops.

Some Common Plant Diseases caused by Microorganisms

Food Poisoning:
Food poisoning in humans could be due to the consumption spoiled food by some
microorganisms. Microorganisms that grow on our food produce toxic substances and
make the food poisonous causing serious diseases. So, it is very important that we
preserve food to prevent it from being spoilt by the microorganisms.

Food Preservation:
Microorganisms spoil our food. Spoiled food emits bad smell and has a bad taste and
changed colour. Here some common methods to preserve food in our homes.

a. Chemical Method:
(i) Preservatives like Salts and edible oils are the common chemicals generally used to
check the growth of microorganisms.
(ii) We add salt or acid preservatives to pickles to prevent the attack of microbes. Sodium
benzoate and sodium meta bisulphite are common preservatives which are used in the
jams and squashes to check their spoilage.

b. Preservation by Common Salt:

(i) To preserve meat and fish for ages, common salt is used. Meat and fish are covered
with dry salt to check the growth of bacteria.
(ii) Salting is also used to preserve amla, raw mangoes, tamarind, etc.

c. Preservation by Sugar:
(i) Sugar is used for preserving jams, jellies and squashes are preserved.
(ii) It reduces the moisture content which inhibits the growth of bacteria which spoil food.

d. Preservation by Oil and Vinegar:

(i) Oil and vinegar are used to prevent spoilage of pickles because bacteria cannot live in
such an environment.
(ii) Vegetables, fruits, fish and meat are often preserved by this method.

e. Heat and Cold Treatments:

(i) Boiling of milk kills many microorganisms, after that it is stored or used.
(ii) We keep our food in the refrigerator. Low temperature inhibits the growth of
microbes.
(iii) Pasteurized milk can be taken without boiling as it is free from harmful microbes. The
milk is heated to about 700C for 15 to 30 seconds and then suddenly chilled and stored.
By doing so, this process prevents the growth of microbes. This process was discovered
by Louis Pasteur. It is called pasteurization.

f. Storage and Packing:

Dry fruits and even vegetables are sold in sealed air tight packets to prevent the attack of
microbes.
Nitrogen Fixation:
(i) Rhizobium is involved in the fixation of nitrogen in leguminous plants (pulses).
(ii) Nitrogen also gets fixed through the action of lightning. But the amount of nitrogen
remains constant in the atmosphere.

Nitrogen Cycle:
(i) Nitrogen is one of the essential constituents of all living organisms as part of proteins,
chlorophyll, nucleic acids and vitamins, available 78% in our environment. Bacteria and
blue green algae present in the soil for fixing nitrogen from the atmosphere and then
convert into compounds of nitrogen.
(ii) After this, usable compounds can be utilised by plants from the soil through their root
system. These compounds are then used for the synthesis of plant proteins and other
compounds. Animals feeding on plants get these proteins and other nitrogen
compounds.
(iii) When plants and animals die, bacteria and fungi present in the soil convert the
nitrogenous wastes into nitrogenous compounds to be used by plants again. Certain
other bacteria convert some part of them to nitrogen gas which goes back into the
atmosphere. As a result, the percentage of nitrogen in the atmosphere remains more or
less constant.
 Nitrogen

Nitrog
en Cycle