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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.
There is considerable overlap between the specific branches of microbiology with each other and with other disciplines, and certain aspects of these branches can extend beyond the traditional scope of microbiology [2] [3] In general the field of microbiology can be divided in the more fundamental branch (pure microbiology) and the applied ...
Bacteria (/ b æ k ˈ t ɪər i ə / ⓘ; sg.: bacterium) are ubiquitous, mostly free-living organisms often consisting of one biological cell. They constitute a large domain of prokaryotic microorganisms. Typically a few micrometres in length, bacteria were among the first life forms to appear on Earth, and are present in most of its habitats.
The organisms that constitute the microbial world are characterized as either prokaryotes or eukaryotes; Eukaryotic microorganisms possess membrane-bound organelles and include fungi and protists, whereas prokaryotic organisms are conventionally classified as lacking membrane-bound organelles and include Bacteria and Archaea.
Scanning electron micrograph of Escherichia coli, a common human pathogen and research organism.. Bacteriology is the branch and specialty of biology that studies the morphology, ecology, genetics and biochemistry of bacteria as well as many other aspects related to them.
The reason for this is the differences in species concepts between the bacteria and macro-organisms, the difficulties in growing/characterising in pure culture (a prerequisite to naming new species, vide supra) and extensive horizontal gene transfer blurring the distinction of species. [89]
While not typical of all bacteria some microbes contain intracellular membranes in addition to (or as extensions of) their cytoplasmic membranes. An early idea was that bacteria might contain membrane folds termed mesosomes, but these were later shown to be artifacts produced by the chemicals used to prepare the cells for electron microscopy. [7]
At that time, biology was focused on macroorganisms. Later, with the advent of microscopy, the new discovered ubiquitous microorganisms were fit in this system. Then, Fauna included moving organisms (animals and protist as "micro-fauna") and Flora the organisms with apparent no movement (plants/fungi; and bacteria as "microflora").