Microbiology: Definition, Role of Microbes in Sewage Treatment, Compost Breakdown, Food Industry, Health and Drug Industry

Running head: MICROBIOLOGY
MICROBIOLOGY
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MICROBIOLOGY
Question 1: Definition of microbiology
The specific study regarding the microorganisms that are invisible with naked eyes
including both the unicellular and cluster of cell is termed as microbiology. Microbiology
includes the in-depth study of eukaryotes like Protista and fungi and prokaryotes like algae and
bacteria. The study includes viruses as well. Study of different organism is termed differently,
for example, virology for viruses, bacteriology for bacteria, mycology for fungi and parasitology
for parasites and others (Murray, Rosenthal &Pfaller, 2015).
Question 2
Role of the microbes in sewage treatment
Sewage is a type of a mixture that contains waste eater, and domestic wastes from the
toilets. The sewage is composed of both organic and the dissolved inorganic matters. After the
removal of the solid materials by filtration, the effluent that remains is rich in pathogenic
microbes and suspended organic substances (Grady et al., 2011). The effluent is fed in the
aeration tanks containing some complex community of microbes. The microbes uses the organic
material in the sewage as a source of carbohydrate for the respiration.
Two type of microbial processes occur in the sewage treatment. After the completion of
the primary treatment, the liquid and the solid phases of the sewage are separated physically. The
two crucial steps in this process is nitrification and removal of phosphorus. The ammonia is
converted to nitrate by Nitrosomonas. The nitrate is further oxidised to nitrite by Nitrobacterspp.
This is the aerobic process that occurs in the sewage treatment (Grady et al., 2011).

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MICROBIOLOGY
In the liquid effluent, the denitrifying bacteria reduces the nitrate to dinitrogen gas that
liberates the nitrate from the sewage. The key microorganisms used in the process are members
of Nitrosomonas, who are responsible for the initial step of nitrification; that is the oxidation of
nitrite to nitrate and Psedomonas in the anaerobic process, helping to reduce the nitrate in to
dinitrogen gas.
Figure: a simplified diagram of a sewage treatment process