Microbial Ecology & Eco Systems

Bioluminescent bacteria are light-producing bacteria that are predominantly present in sea water, marine sediments, and the surface of decomposing fish and in the gut of marine animals. While not as common, bacterial bioluminescence is also found in terrestrial and freshwater bacteria. These bacteria may be free living (such as Vibrio harveyi) or in symbiosis with animals such as the Hawaiian Bobtail squid (Aliivibrio fischeri) or terrestrial nematodes (Photorhabdus luminescens).

An algal bloom, also called an "algae bloom" in AP style, is a rapid increase or accumulation in the population of algae in freshwater or marine water systems, and is recognized by the discoloration in the water from their pigments.

Bright green blooms in freshwater systems are frequently a result of cyanobacteria (colloquially known as blue-green algae) such as Microcystis. Blooms may also consist of macroalgal (non-phytoplanktonic) species. These blooms are recognizable by large blades of algae that may wash up onto the shoreline.

A microbial mat is a multi-layered sheet of microorganisms, mainly bacteria and archaea. Microbial mats grow at interfaces between different types of material, mostly on submerged or moist surfaces, but a few survive in deserts. They colonize environments ranging in temperature from –40 °C to 120 °C. A few are found as endosymbionts of animals. Microbial mats are the earliest form of life on Earth for which there is good fossil evidence, from 3,500 million years ago, and have been the most important members and maintainers of the planet's ecosystems.

Microbial metabolism is the means by which a microbe obtains the energy and nutrients (e.g. carbon) it needs to live and reproduce. Microbes use many different types of metabolic strategies and species can often be differentiated from each other based on metabolic characteristics. The specific metabolic properties of a microbe are the major factors in determining that microbe's ecological niche, and often allow for that microbe to be useful in industrial processes or responsible for biogeochemical cycles.

Aggregate of microorganisms in which cells that are frequently embedded within a self-produced matrix of extracellular polymeric substance (EPS) adhere to each other and/or to a surface. A biofilm is a system that can be adapted internally to environmental conditions by its inhabitants. The self-produced matrix of extracellular polymeric substance, which is also referred to as slime, is a polymeric conglomeration generally composed of extracellular biopolymers in various structural forms.

The microbial food web refers to the combined trophic interactions among microbes in aquatic environments. These microbes include viruses, bacteria, algae, heterotrophic protists(such as ciliates and flagellates).

In aquatic environments, microbes constitute the base of the food web. Single celled photosynthetic organisms such as diatoms and cyanobacteria are generally the most important primary producers in the open ocean.

Biochar (BC) plays a critical but poorly understood role in the global carbon cycle. Because it is a highly stable form of carbon compared to the original biomass from which it is produced, its production and management has been proposed as a technology for reducing atmospheric CO₂ stocks, which contribute to climate change.

It will explore how the phospholipid fatty acids can be used to determine how biochar affects the structural, compositional, and functional capacities of microbial communities in different soil ecosystems. Used in combination with natural isotope or radioisotope (¹³C or ¹⁴C)-labeled substrates, it has the potential to determine soil organic matter cycling rate, monitor C flows from plants to soil microbes, and identify below-ground trophic relationships. Insights into biochar effects on soil phospholipid fatty acids, alternatives to data analysis, its limitations, and knowledge gaps are highlighted.

Microbes inhabit virtually all sites of the human body, yet we know very little about the role they play in our health. In recent years, there has been increasing interest in studying human-associated microbial communities, particularly since microbial dysbioses have now been implicated in a number of human diseases. Recent advances in sequencing technologies have made it feasible to perform large-scale studies of microbial communities, providing the tools. Rapidly developing sequencing methods and analytical techniques,  the human microbiome on different spatial and temporal scales, including daily time series datasets spanning months. Furthermore, emerging concepts related to defining operational taxonomic units, diversity indices, core versus transient microbiomes, are enhancing our ability to understand the human microbiome.

Microorganisms are diverse in nature. Because majority of the microorganisms are nonculturable, it is important to utilize culture autonomous systems to examine the uncultured organisms. Metagenomics is tool which comprehends genetic makeup of uncultivable microorganisms. As of now, Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) is a standout amongst the most progressive innovations utilized as a part of metagenomics.

Microbial enzymes play a crucial role in industries and medicine. Several commercial enzymes such as amylases, invertase, glucose oxidases and proteases are produced by bacteria and fungi. These microbial enzymes replaced the whole organism. For instance, in textile desizing malt or pancreatin has been replaced by bacterial amylase.

Metabolomics is the examination of endogenous and exogenous low nuclear mass metabolites within a cell, tissue, or bio fluid of a living thing in light of an external stressor. Plant Metabolomics is to consider the plant structure at the sub-nuclear level giving complete portrayal of metabolome of plants under specific conditions. Utilizing Metabolomics, a superior comprehension of the relationship amongst qualities and the biochemical piece of a plant tissue because of its condition can be acquired, and this data can be additionally used to evaluate quality capacity.

Natural products (secondary metabolites) have been the most successful source of leads for potential drug discovery. Natural products have been well documented for their medicinal uses for thousands of years. Plants have evolved and adapted over millions of years to withstand bacteria, insects, fungi and weather to produce unique, structurally diverse secondary metabolites. Their ethno pharmacological properties have been used as a primary source of medicines for early drug discovery. Macro and micro fungi have been part of human life for thousands of years. They were used as food (mushrooms), in preparation of alcoholic beverages (yeasts), medication in traditional medicine and for cultural purposes.

The bacteria, fungi, and viruses that colonize these environments help shape the human microbiome, and can fundamentally alter the trajectory of our health. Designing our buildings and city spaces with the microbiome in mind may help to improve energy efficiency, health, sustainability, and consequently, worker performance and economic productivity. By mapping the microbiome of our built environments we may track biothreats and diseases, develop sophisticated early warning systems, and understand how a changing climate and increasing population density will shape this world.

Industrial microbiology is an area of applied microbiology which deals with screening, management, and exploitation of microorganisms for the engenderment of utilizable end products on an immensely colossal scale. It plays a key role in the various industries such as food, dairy, medical, brewing and cosmetic industry.

The largest communities of living organisms can’t be found on land or sea- they are underground, beneath the land and seafloor surface. A broad range of microorganisms populate the subsurface environment. Some exist in extreme environments, where nutrients are scarce and temperatures extreme. Others carry out important biological or geochemical processes that alter their surroundings, such as breaking down pollutants or changing the mineral content of groundwater.

Aeromicrobiology is the study of occurrence and spread of airborne microorganisms, including vira and bacteria and the spores of bacteria and fungi.These organisms are named as bioaerosols. These organisms are caused illness in people, creatures, and plants. Certain microbes are even capable of altering the chemical composition of the clouds and hence causing precipitation. They include the factors like physical environment, microbial communities and microbial processes.

Plant-microbe interactions describe a broad range of scientific study concerning the molecular biology and molecular genetics of pathological, symbiotic and associative interactions of microbes with plants. Plant-microbe encounters can be friendly or hostile. The Plant-Microbe Interactions group aims to contribute to knowledge of the underlying mechanisms involved in the interactions of plants with pathogens and symbionts and to unravel at the molecular level how the plant immune system orchestrates interactions with beneficial microbes, pathogens and insects.

Marine Microbiology is the study of microorganisms that living in saltwater, open oceans, estuaries, sea sediments etc. It focusses mainly on the interaction of the macro organisms and microorganisms within these communities. 50% of earth’s oxygen is generated by these marine organisms. It includes the biodiversity, ecology and biogeochemistry of marine organisms.

Soil microbiology deals with the study of microorganisms in soil and how they affect its properties. The bacteria fix the nitrogen and releases oxygen in atmosphere. This factor led to more advanced microorganisms. Each of groups of microorganisms has characteristics that define them and their functions in soil. Microorganisms in soil are important because they affect soil structure and fertility.