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Microbial ecology (or environmental microbiology) is the ecology of microorganisms: their relationship with one another and with their environment. It concerns the three major domains of life— Eukaryota , Archaea , and Bacteria —as well as viruses . [ 2 ]
Microbes are important in human culture and health in many ways, serving to ferment foods and treat sewage, and to produce fuel, enzymes, and other bioactive compounds. Microbes are essential tools in biology as model organisms and have been put to use in biological warfare and bioterrorism. Microbes are a vital component of fertile soil.
[12] Antonie van Leeuwenhoek (1632–1723) Statue of Robert Koch, one of the founders of microbiology, [13] in Berlin Martinus Beijerinck is often considered a founder of virology. In 1676, Antonie van Leeuwenhoek, who lived most of his life in Delft, Netherlands, observed bacteria and other microorganisms using a single-lens microscope of his ...
It is also important for understanding the cycling of nutrients in the environment, and the behavior of microorganisms or actors in various environments. In humans , gut microecology is the study of the microbial ecology of the human gut which includes gut microbiota composition, its metabolic activity, and the interactions between the ...
Bacteria. In the microbial food web, bacteria play a crucial role in breaking down organic materials and recycling nutrients. They transform DOC into bacterial biomass so that protists and other higher trophic levels can consume it. Additionally, bacteria take part in the nitrogen and carbon cycles, among other biogeochemical cycles. [4] Algae
Microbial decomposition releases nitrogen compounds from dead organic matter in the soil, where plants, fungi, and bacteria compete for it. Some soil bacteria use organic nitrogen-containing compounds as a source of carbon, and release ammonium ions into the soil. This process is known as nitrogen mineralization.
Microbes are highly abundant, diverse and have an important role in the ecological system. Yet as of 2010 [update] , it was estimated that the total global environmental DNA sequencing effort had produced less than 1 percent of the total DNA found in a liter of seawater or a gram of soil, [ 86 ] and the specific interactions between microbes ...
Bioremediation: use of micro-organisms to clean air, water and soils. Water microbiology (or aquatic microbiology): The study of those microorganisms that are found in water. Aeromicrobiology (or air microbiology): The study of airborne microorganisms. Biotechnology: related to recombinant DNA technology or genetic engineering.