© Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC. NOT FOR SALE OR DISTRIBUTION Cells of Vibrio cholerae, transmitted to humans in contaminated water and food, are the cause of cholera. Courtesy of CDC. PART Foundations of Microbiology 51 CHAPTER 1 Microbiology: Then and Now CHAPTER 2 The Chemical Building Blocks of Life CHAPTER 3 Concepts and Tools for Studying Microorganisms CHAPTER 4 Structure of Bacterial and Archaeal Cells CHAPTER 5 Microbial Growth and Nutrition CHAPTER 6 Microbial Metabolism CHAPTER 7 Control of Microorganisms: Physical and Chemical Methods n 1676, a century before the Declaration of Independence, a Dutch merchant named Antony van Leeuwenhoek sent a noteworthy letter to the Royal Society of London. Writing in the vernacular of his home in the United Netherlands, I Leeuwenhoek described how he used a simple microscope to observe vast populations of minute, living creatures. His reports opened a chapter of science that would evolve into the study of microscopic organisms and the discipline of microbiology. During the next three centuries scientists would discover how profoundly these organisms influence the quality of our lives and the environment around us. We begin our study of the microorganisms by exploring the grassroot developments that led to the establishment of microbiology as a science. These developments are surveyed in Chapter 1, where we focus on some of the individuals who stood at the forefront of discovery. Today we are in the midst of a third Golden Age of microbiology and our understanding of microorganisms continues to grow even as you read this book. Chapter 2 reviews basic chemistry, inasmuch as microbial growth, metabolism, and control are grounded in the molecules and macromolecules these organisms contain and in the biological processes they undergo. Chapter 3 sets down some basic microbiological concepts and describes one of the major tools for studying microorganisms. We will concentrate on the bacterial organisms in Chapter 4, where we survey their structural frameworks. In Chapter 5, we build on these frameworks by examining microbial growth patterns and nutritional requirements. Chapter 6 describes the metabolism of microbial cells, including those chemical reactions that produce and use energy. Part 1 concludes by considering the physical and chemical methods used to control microbial growth and metabolism (Chapter 7). Much as the alphabet applies to word development, in each succeeding chapter we will formulate words into sentences and sentences into ideas as we construct an understanding of microorganisms and concentrate on their importance to public health and human welfare. 3RD PAGES © Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC. NOT FOR SALE OR DISTRIBUTION MICROBIOLOGY PATHWAYS Being a Scientist Science may not seem like the most glamorous profession. So, as you read many of the chapters in this text, you might wonder why many scientists have the good fortune to make key discoveries. At times, it might seem like it is the luck of the draw, but actually many scientists have a set of characteristics that put them on the trail to success. Robert S. Root-Bernstein, a physiology professor at Michigan State University, points out that many prominent scientists like to goof around, play games, and surround themselves with a type of chaos aimed at revealing the unexpected. Their labs may appear to be in disorder, but they know exactly where every tube or bottle belongs. Scientists also identify intimately with the organisms or creatures they study (it is said that Louis Pasteur actually dreamed about microorganisms), and this identification brings on an intuition—a “feeling for the organism.” In addition, there is the ability to recognize patterns that might bring a breakthrough. (Pasteur had studied art as a teenager and, therefore, he had an appreciation of patterns.) © Comstock/Thinkstock. The geneticist and Nobel laureate Barbara McClintock once remarked, “I was just so interested in what I was doing I could hardly wait to get up in the morning and get at it. One of my friends, a geneticist, said I was a child, because only children can’t wait to get up in the morning to get at what they want to do.” Clearly, another characteristic of a scientist is having a child- like curiosity for the unknown. Another Nobel laureate and immunologist, Peter Medawar, once said “Scientists are people of very dissimilar temperaments doing different things in very different ways. Among scientists are collectors, classifiers, and compulsive tidiers-up; many are detectives by temperament and many are explorers; some are artists and others artisans. There are poet-scientists and philosopher-scientists and even a few mystics.” In other words, scientists come from all walks of life. For this author, I too have found science to be an extraordinary opportunity to discover and understand something never before known. Science is fun, yet challenging—and at times arduous, tedious, and frustrating. As with most of us, we will not make the headlines for a breakthrough discovery or find a cure for a disease. However, as scientists we all hope our hard work and achievements will contribute to a better understanding of a biological (or microbiological) phenomenon and will push back the frontiers of knowledge and have a positive impact on society. Like any profession, being a scientist is not for everyone. Besides having a bachelor’s degree in biology or microbiology, you should be well read in the sciences and capable of working as part of an interdisciplinary team. Of course, you should have good quantitative and communication skills, have an inquisitive mind, and be goal oriented. If all this sounds interesting, then maybe you fit the mold of a scientist. Why not consider pursuing a career in microbiology? Some possibilities are described in other Microbiology Pathways included in this book, but you should also visit with your instructor. Simply stop by the student union, buy two cups of coffee, and you are on your way. 3RD PAGES © Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC. NOT FOR SALE OR DISTRIBUTION 1 CHAPTER PREVIEW 1.1 The Discovery of Microbes Leads Microbiology: to Questioning Their Origins Investigating the Microbial World 1: Can Life Arise Spontaneously? MICROINQUIRY 1: Experimentation and Then and Now Scientific Inquiry 1.2 Disease Transmission Can Be Interrupted Microorganisms account for most of the biomass on the planet and are an essential foundation on which the global ecosystem rests. They play 1.3 The Classical Golden Age of an absolutely essential role in the survival of the human race. Microbiology Reveals the Germ —Carl Woese (Professor of Microbiology, University of Illinois at 1.4 With the Discovery of Other Microbes, Urbana-Champaign) the Microbial World Expands Space. The final frontier! Really?The final frontier? There are an esti- 1.5 A Second Golden Age of Microbiology 23 Involves the Birth of Molecular mated 350 billion large galaxies and more than 10 stars in the visible Biology and Chemotherapy universe. However, the invisible microbial universe consists of more than 1030 microorganisms (or microbes for short) scattered among an esti- 1.6 The Third Golden Age of Microbiology mated 2 to 3 billion species. They may be microscopic in size but they Is Now are magnificent in their evolutionary diversity and astounding in their sheer numbers. Existing in such diversity and numbers in the oceans, the land masses, and the atmosphere means they must possess some amazing powers that contribute to the very survival of other organisms on planet Earth. So, could understanding these microscopic organisms on Earth be as important to us and all earthly creatures as studying stars and galaxies in space? Let’s uncover a few examples of what a “day in the life of a microorganism” is like. A Day in the Life of a Microorganism The oceans and seas cover 70% of planet Earth and are swarming with microbes—some 3 × 1029—and helping regulate life on Earth. Floating near the surface are photosynthetic groups that are part of the marine food chain on which all fish and ocean mammals depend. In addi- tion, they provide up to 50% of the oxygen gas we breathe and other organisms use to stay alive ( FIGURE 1.1A ). Other diverse marine and freshwater microbes are the engines that drive nutrient and mineral recycling needed to provide the building blocks to sustain all life. One particular microbe, called Pelagibacter ubique, accounts for 20% (2.4 × 1028 cells) of marine microbes—and 50% of the microbes in the surface waters of temperate oceans in the summer. What is its daily routine? Image courtesy of Dr. Fred Murphy/CDC. 3 3RD PAGES © Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC. NOT FOR SALE OR DISTRIBUTION 4 CHAPTER 1 Microbiology: Then and Now (A) (D) (B) (C) (E) FIGURE 1.1 Daily Life in the Microbial World. Microbes play many roles. For example, (A) photosynthetic microbes inhabit the upper sunlit layer of almost all oceans and bodies of fresh water where they produce food molecules that sustain the aquatic food web and generate oxygen gas. (Bar = 5 µm.) © D.P. Wilson/FLPA/Photo Researchers, Inc. (B) In the soil, microbes degrade dead plants and animals, form beneficial partnerships with plants, and recycle carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur. (Bar = 5 µm.) © David Scharf/Photo Researchers, Inc. (C) Besides their involvement in the forma- tion of rain drops and snowflakes, microbes in the atmosphere are important for water vapor to condense into clouds that help cool the Earth. © Loskutnikov/Shutterstock, Inc. (D) Large numbers of microbes can be found on and in the body where most play beneficial roles for our health. (Bar= 5 µm.) © Visuals Unlimited/Corbis. (E) A few microbes play disease roles and have affected world health. This 1974 photo of a Bengali boy shows the effects of smallpox, which was responsible for 300–500 million deaths during the 20th century.