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Microbiology > microbial applications (environment and food) > Flashcards

microbial applications (environment and food) Flashcards

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Biology 101 flashcards
1
Q

what is assimilation and what types of microbes act on this process?

A

converts carbon from CO2 into biomass
type of microbe: producers

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1
Q

what do ecosystems in balance do?

A

produce food webs that equally balance assimilation and dissimilation

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2
Q

what is dissimilation and what types of microbes act on this process?

A

breaks down biomass
type of microbe: decomposers

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3
Q

what 3 factors mediate microbial growth in all environments?

A

1- oxygen
2- salinity
3- pH

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4
Q

biochemical oxygen demand (BOD)

A

the amount of O2 removed from the water through aerobic respiration

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5
Q

2 major factors that increase BOD

A

it increases when microbial levels increase
1- increases in organic compounds (sewage)
2- increases in other nutrients (nitrates)

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6
Q

what is the effect on the environment when BOD increases

A

eutrophic lakes (have excess nutrients to support growth of algae and bacteria in high densities (algal blooms)

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7
Q

Dead zones

A

when sewage or nitrates are introduced into the ocean there are hypotoxic regions of the ocean devoid of fish and intervertebraes

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8
Q

primary producers on land? in water?

A

plants, microbes

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9
Q

in the ocean where are you most likely to find phototrophs and heterotrophs?

A

coastal ecosystems

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10
Q

in the ocean where are you most likely to find oligotrophs and lithotrophs

A

deep ocean ecosystems

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11
Q

oligotrophs

A

can survive in areas of low nutrients

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12
Q

what do we appreciate about soil?

A

it is essential dead organic matter from plants, contains the densest sources of microbes on earth

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13
Q

what are the primary producers and decomposers in soil?

A

plants are the producers (co2 into biomass) fungi and bacteria are the decomposers (break down biomass) which feeds protists and nematodes which feed larger invertebrates and vertebrates

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14
Q

what are the sources of O2 and CO2 in soil?

A

respiration that occurs underground for CO2 and O2 comes into play through producers fixing CO2

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15
Q

wetlands

A

region of land that undergoes seasonal fluctuations in water level

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16
Q

what do we appreciate about wetlands?

A

wetlands produce biomass at the highest rate of all ecosystems due to the constant access to rich minerals, oxygen, and sunlight all at once

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17
Q

what are the carbon and nitrogen cycles?

A

biogeochemical cycles because they depend on both biotic (living components) and abiotic (non-living component) processes

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18
Q

carbon cycle (roughly)

A

life relies on carbon in the form of atmospheric or oceanic CO2.
phototrophs and lithotrophs will fix CO2 which create biomass that produces O2 which is then used by heterotrophs to break it back down into CO2, excess goes into atmospheric stores as a reservoir or sink

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19
Q

nitrogen cycle (roughly)

A

accessible nitrogen is in the atmosphere as N2 but needs to be fixed by microbes (bacteria and archaea) into a usable form which requires a lot of energy.

20
Q

humans do what

A

act as a rapid decomposer ( breaking down biomass) and produce excess Co2 that the producers are unable to recycle back into biomass.

21
Q

why is excess Co2 a problem

A

it is being stored which is accumulating faster than the biosphere can recycle heating the earth

22
Q

what forms of life can fix N2?

A

bacteria and archaea

23
Q

why is the Harber process amazing for agriculture but disastrous for the nitrogen cycle?

A

amazing- mass-produce fertilizers?
disastrous- large excess of nitrates dissolved in lakes, rivers, and oceans permits algal blooms then dead zones, nitrogen cycle is the most disrupted

24
Q

fermented goods

A

biochemically modified by microbial growth

25
Q

what are foods best fermented under?

A

anaerobic conditions

26
Q

3 main benefits of food fermentation

A

1- preserves food
2- improves digestibility
3- adds nutrients and flavor

27
Q

what waste product of fermentation reacts with milk to form solids? and what makes up these solids

A

bacterial lactic acid; coagulated milk protein- curd

28
Q

Milk fermentation

A

converts a liquid solution of proteins and carbohydrates to a semisolid (yogurt) or solid (Cheese) product

29
Q

aging

A

incubating under controlled humidity for months to develop flavor

30
Q

brining

A

treated with concentrated salt to limit bacterial growth and develop flavor

31
Q

ripening

A

inoculation with mold

32
Q

major benefits of soybean fermentation

A

it allows the indigestible parts of the soybean to be digested increasing the availability of its proteins and nutrients

33
Q

alcoholic beverages = ?

A

yeast fermentation

34
Q

what are the products fermented by yeast in beer?

A

fermenting grains

35
Q

what are the products fermented by wine in beer?

A

fermenting fruit

36
Q

what are the resulting chemicals released by fermentation?

A

glucose -> ethanol + CO2

37
Q

alcohol dehydrogenase

A

produced by the liver breaks down the alcohol produced by our gut microbiota

38
Q

what are the major classes of food change?

A

1- enzymatic processes
2- chemical reactions with the environment
3- microbiological processes

39
Q

when do food changes contribute to food spoilage?

A

microbial changes that render a product unfit for consumption

40
Q

1- enzymatic processes

A

after plants and animals die, organic molecules begin to break down

41
Q

2- chemical reactions with the environment

A

most commonly oxidation by air, which can generate rancid odors

42
Q

3- microbiological processes

A

microbes on the surface begin to consume it, generating a wide range of chemical products

43
Q

food contamination

A

presence of human pathogens in food

44
Q

physical food preservation methods

A

dehydration or freeze-drying
refrigeration or freezing
modified atmosphere
pasteurization
canning
ionizing radiation

44
Q

food preservation

A

methods to prevent spoiling due to microbial contamination

45
Q

chemical food preservation methods

A

salt
sugar
acids
other organic compounds
inorganic compounds

46
Q

why do we care about treating human and industrial/agricultural waste?

A

all water will eventually end up back in the water cycle, so it is critical to minimize contamination of aquatic systems.
highly concentrated organic waste is oxidized faster than oxygen, causing hypotonic conditions due to high BOD

47
Q

three treatments in wastewater treatment plants

A

primary- filtering of solids
secondary- aerobic and anaerobic microbial decomposition
tertiary-chlorination and other chemicals

Microbiology (4 decks)

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