UNIT TWO

TYPE OF MICROORGANISMS
 Unit Objectives

• 1. Describe different types of microorganisms

• 2. Explain in detail the different morphology
or shape of types of microorganisms
• 3. Describe the various growth requirements
of microorganisms
• 4. Outline the main properties that distinguish
viruses from other living microorganism
• A cell is the structural and functional unit of
life. Cells are divided into two different types
according to their structure.
• Prokaryotes
• Eukaryotes
• .
 What are the characteristics of
prokaryotes and eukaryotes?
• 1. Prokaryotes:
• Prokaryotes word is made up of two words
Greek words “pro” meaning before
and “karyon” meaning nucleus.
• They do not have a true nucleus and
membrane-bounded organelles.
• Prokaryotes are divided into two groups i.e.,
bacteria and archaea.
• 2. Eukaryotes:
• In eukaryotes, “Eu” meaning true
and “karyon” meaning nucleus.
• They have a true nucleus and contain
membrane-bounded organelles.
• Eukaryotes includes animal, plants, fungi, and
protists
 Types of Micro-Organisms

• Micro-organisms are classified into two broader groups:

• 1. Non-pathogenic micro-organisms which are normal, do
not produce disease and are beneficial to human beings

• 2. Pathogenic micro-organism which cause disease

• However, there are other types of micro-organisms which
may be non-pathogenic in one part of the body but
become pathogen in another. The best example is e-Coli.
e-Coli is very harmless in the gastrointestinal tract but if
introduced in the urinary tract, they cause infection.
• Micro-organisms can further be sub-divided
into two groups:
• 1. Those that require Oxygen and are called
Aerobic
• 2. Those which do not require oxygen and are
referred to as Anaerobic
• Microorganisms are divided into seven types:
bacteria, archaea, protozoa, algae, fungi, viruses,
and multicellular animal parasites ( helminths ).
• Each type has a characteristic cellular
composition, morphology, mean of locomotion,
and reproduction.
• Microorganisms are beneficial in producing
oxygen, decomposing organic material, providing
nutrients for plants, and maintaining human
health, but some can be pathogenic and cause
diseases in plants and humans.
 BACTERIA
• Bacteria are unicellular organisms. The cells
are described as prokaryotic because they lack
a nucleus.
• Most bacteria have a peptidoglycan cell wall;
they divide by binary fission; and they may
possess flagella for motility. The difference in
their cell wall structure is a major feature used
in classifying these organisms.
• According to the way their cell wall structure stains,
bacteria can be classified as either Gram-positive or Gram-
negative when using the Gram staining. Bacteria can be
further divided based on their response to gaseous oxygen
into the following groups: aerobic (living in the presence of
oxygen), anaerobic (living without oxygen), and facultative
anaerobes (can live in both environments).
• According to the way they obtain energy, bacteria are
classified as heterotrophs or autotrophs. Autotrophs make
their own food by using the energy of sunlight or chemical
reactions, in which case they are called chemoautotrophs.
Heterotrophs obtain their energy by consuming other
organisms. Bacteria that use decaying life forms as a source
of energy are called saprophytes.
 Importance of bacteria
1) play a vital role in many stages of the nutrient cycle by recycling
nutrients and the fixation of nitrogen from the atmosphere
2) provide the nutrients needed to sustain life by converting
dissolved compounds, such as hydrogen sulphide and methane, to
energy
3) Most of the bacteria in and on the body are harmless or rendered
so by the protective effects of the immune system, and many
are beneficial, particularly the ones in the gut.
4) important in sewage treatment and the breakdown of oil spills
5) the production of cheese and yogurt through fermentation, the
recovery of gold, palladium, copper and other metals in the
mining sector, as well as in biotechnology,
6) the manufacture of antibiotics and other chemicals.
 COMPONENTS
• 1. Cell Wall
• It is rigid and surrounds the protoplasm.
• Cell wall protects against osmotic pressure.
• It is porous and permeable to substance of low molecular
weight.
• In Gram staining, it’s either positive or negative depending
on the types of proteins.
• 2. Cell Membrane
• It is a double layer structure comprising lipids and proteins
which act as semipermeable membrane for uptake of
nutrients through passive or active diffusion.
• Nucleoplasm: It is a single circular
chromosome which contain the bacterial DNA
• Ribosomes: These are formed by invagination
of the cytoplasmic membrane of the cell
membrane.
• . Inclusion Granules: They are mainly fat
globules for storage of energy. These
structures described above are found in all
bacteria.
• Capsule: They are amorphous (irregular) material
which surround many bacterial species on their outer
most layer and are usually polysaccharides occasionally
protein. They often inhibit phagocytic, so their
presence correlates with virulence.
• Spores: Some organisms contain spores. A spore is a
thick cell wall with many layers surrounding the micro-
organism especially the nuclear material. It protects
against adverse environmental conditions which
threaten the bacteria. It can either be terminal
(situated at the end) or sub terminal
• Flagella: These are hair like processes which
propel bacteria. They are organs of
locomotion (movement)
• Fimbriae: These are shorter filament
protruding from the cell membrane. They are
responsible for adhesion and for conjugation
when the genes are transferred from one
bacterium to another.
• .
 Classification of Bacteria
• They exist in four major shapes:
1) bacillus (rod shape) e.g clostridium,
salmonella, pseudomonas, bacillus
2) coccus (spherical or oval shape) eg
staphylococcus, streptococcus
3) spirilla (spiral shape) e.g treponema pallidum
4) vibrio (curved shape). E.g vibrio choleria
 Classification according to oxygen
requirement
1) Strict aerobes/obligate aerobes These can only grow in
the presence of oxygen, i. e such bacteria can only be
found in places with oxygen e.g. mycobacterium tubercle
is found in the lungs. Others are found on the surface of
wounds, skin or mucus membrane
2) Strict anaerobes These are able to grow only in complete
absence of oxygen. They are found in deep wounds e.g.
clostridium tetani, clostridium welchii which causes gas
gangrene.
3) Facultative anaerobes
• These grow or survive in either presence or absence of
oxygen. Majority of microorganisms fall under this grouping
 Classification according to gram
staining reaction
• A stain is a substance/dye used to give color to tissues, cells or
micro-organisms to facilitate microscopic study and identification.
Those organisms retaining the dye are called Gram-positive while
those losing it are Gram-negative
• The Gram stain, developed in 1884 by Hans Christian Gram
characterize bacteria based on the structural characteristics of
their cell walls. The thick layers of peptidoglycan in the "Gram-
positive" cell wall stain purple, while the thin "Gram-negative" cell
wall appears pink
• Gram-positive bacteria possess a thick cell wall containing many
layers of peptidoglycan and teichoic acids.
• Gram-negative bacteria have a relatively thin cell wall consisting
of a few layers of peptidoglycan surrounded by a second lipid
membrane containing lipopolysaccharides and lipoproteins.
• Most bacteria have the Gram-negative cell wall
• These differences in structure can produce
differences in antibiotic susceptibility; for
instance, vancomycin can kill only Gram-positive
bacteria and is ineffective against Gram-
negative pathogens, such as Haemophilus
influenza or Pseudomonas aeruginosa
• Some bacteria have cell wall structures that are
neither classically Gram-positive or Gram-
negative. e.g mycobacteria
 How do bacteria reproduce?
• Most bacteria reproduce by binary fission.
• In this process the bacterium, which is a single cell, divides into two
identical daughter cells. Binary fission begins when the DNA of the
bacterium divides into two (replicates).
• The bacterial cell then elongates and splits into two daughter cells
each with identical DNA to the parent cell. Each daughter cell is a
clone of the parent cell.
• When conditions are favorable such as the right temperature and
nutrients are available, some bacteria like Escherichia coli can divide
every 20 minutes. This means that in just seven hours one
bacterium can generate 2,097,152 bacteria. After one more hour
the number of bacteria will have risen to a colossal 16,777,216.
That’s why we can quickly become ill when pathogenic microbes
invade our bodies.
Examples of Gram positive bacteria
• Cocci:
• Streptococci
• Staphylococci
• Anaerobic cocci
• Micro cocci
• Bacilli
• Clostridia {tetani, Welchi and Botulinum}
• Bacillus
• Corynebacteria
• Listeria
• Lacto bacteria
• Mycobacteria tuberculosis
 Examples of Gram-negative bacteria

• Cocci
• Neisseria
• Veillonella
• Branahanella
• Bacilli (small ones)
• Bacteriodes,
• haemophillus, bordetella, yorsima, brucella, pasturella.
• Bigger bacilli
• Pseudomonad
• Salmonella {typhi, paratyphi}
• Shingella {shiga, flexina, boyd, sonnei}
• Proteus
• Enterobacter
• Klebsiella
 Archaea or Archaebacteria
• differ from true bacteria in their cell wall structure and
lack peptidoglycans.
• They are prokaryotic cells with avidity to extreme
environmental conditions.
• Based on their habitat, all Archaeans can be divided
into the following groups:
✓ methanogens (methane-producing organisms)
✓ halophiles (archaeans that live in salty environments)
✓ thermophiles (archaeans that live at extremely hot
temperatures)
✓ psychrophiles (cold-temperature Archaeans).
• Archaeans use different energy sources like
hydrogen gas, carbon dioxide, and sulphur.
Some of them use sunlight to make energy,
but not the same way plants do. They absorb
sunlight using their membrane pigment,
bacteriorhodopsin. This reacts with light,
leading to the formation of the energy
molecule adenosine triphosphate (ATP)
 Survival mechanism

• Some bacteria can form endospores. These

are dormant structures, which are extremely
resistant to hostile physical and chemical
conditions such as heat, UV radiation and
disinfectants. This makes destroying them very
difficult. Many endospore-producing bacteria
are nasty pathogens, for example Bacillus
anthracis, the cause of anthrax.
 Fungi
• Are eukaryotic, non vascular, non motile and
heterotrophic organisms
• Unicellular or multicellular
• Reproduce by means of spores
• Lack chlorophyll
• Cell wall contain chitin
• Nuclei are very small
• Mode of reproduction is sexual or asexual
• Saprophytes: those which live on nutrients from dead
plants or animals (decayed matter)
• Parasites: those which depend on living things or plants.
(Living organisms) for example moulds and yeast.
• They do not contain chlorophyll
• Fungi vary in size.
• The largest being the mushrooms which are visible. It is
taken as food by man.
• Some are only seen under the microscope as network of
bright thread or filaments. The filaments have round bodies
which project into the air. Each bright thread is called hypha
which is used for water and food absorption. Human
infection due to fungi are called mycoses
 Classification
• Based on Mode of nutrition
• On the basis of nutrition, be classified into 3 groups.
• Saprophytic – The fungi obtain their nutrition by feeding on dead organic
substances. Examples: Rhizopus, Penicillium and Aspergillus.
• Parasitic – The fungi obtain their nutrition by living on other living
organisms (plants or animals) and absorb nutrients from their host.
Examples: Taphrina and Puccinia.
• Symbiotic – These fungi live by having an interdependent relationship
with other species in which both are mutually benefited. Examples:
Lichens and mycorrhiza.
• Lichens are the symbiotic association between algae and fungi. Here both
algae and fungi are mutually benefited as fungi provide shelter for algae
and in reverse algae synthesis carbohydrates for fungi.
• Mycorrhiza is the symbiotic association present between fungi and plants.
Fungi improve nutrient uptake by plants, whereas, plants provides organic
molecules like sugar to the fungus.
• Based on Spore Formation
• Zygomycetes – These are formed by the fusion of two different cells. The
sexual spores are known as zygospores, while the asexual spores are
known as sporangiospores. The hyphae are without the septa. Example –
Mucor.
• Ascomycetes – They are also called sac fungi. They can be coprophilous,
decomposers, parasitic or saprophytic. The sexual spores are called
ascospores. Asexual reproduction occurs by conidiospores. Example –
Saccharomyces.
• Basidiomycetes – Mushrooms are the most commonly found
basidiomycetes and mostly live as parasites. Sexual reproduction occurs by
basidiospores. Asexual reproduction occurs by conidia, budding or
fragmentation. Example- Agaricus.
• Deuteromycetes – They are otherwise called imperfect fungi as they do
not follow the regular reproduction cycle as the other fungi. They do not
reproduce sexually. Asexual reproduction occurs by conidia. Example –
Trichoderma.
 Classification
• Based on morphology, Pathogenic fungi are
classified into four (4) groups.
• 1. Yeasts: These are oval or round shaped and do
not develop threads. They are used in brewing
and baking industries. They reproduce by
budding, for example, Cryptococcus.
• 2. Yeast like fungi These grow as ovoid cells or as
non-branching filaments (pseudo hyphae). They
extend from the yeast cell .
• 3. Filamentous fungi (Moulds) These grow as branching
filaments or hyphae that interlace to form a tangled mass
(mycelium). They reproduce asexually by means of spores
which are formed on special fertile hyphae and discharged
into the air e.g. microsporium, trichophyton and
epidermophyton.
• Moulds grow in most of the objects in the absence of
sunlight, moisture, warmth and humidity.
• They are found in ordinary soils and are called Actinomytes.
Actinomycete contributes to the breaking down of organic
waste into simple substances to be utilized as food.
• Some moulds are used for drugs, for example,. penicillium
notum which is a source of an antibiotic penicillin.
• 4. Dimorphic fungi
• organisms able to switch between two morphologies during
lifecycle.
• can grow on tissues and in culture at 37 degrees Celsius. They
appear in yeast forms at body temperature and as filamented
forms, for example, histoplasma when cultured and incubated at 22
degrees Celsius. Dimorphic fungi are classified as:
a) Cryptococcus neoformous
• These cells have a gelatinous (glue like) capsule. It is found in the
excreta of birds especially pigeons. It is an opportunistic pathogen
affecting mainly immune suppressed patients. Infection occurs by
inhalation where it causes a subclinical lung infection. It may spread
systematically to meninges causing sub-acute or chronic meningitis.
a) Candida Albicans
It’s an oval budding yeast which produces
pseudo hyphae. It is a normal inhabitant of the
mouth, vagina and intestine. In these sites it
may predominate and cause super infection
especially on prolonged treatment with broad
spectrum antibiotics. It causes oral or vaginal
candidiasis and may cause diarrhoea in children
or immune suppressed
 b) Dermatophytes: these commonly cause
skin disease in humans and animals. These
organisms affect keratinized tissues such as skin,
hair and nails but they do not invade deeper
tissues. They spread peripherally from the
fossae to produce ring like lesions hence the
name ring worm or tinea.
• Acid proteinases, elastase,keratinases and
other proteinases act as virulence factors
• They include three genera:
• 1. Epidermophyton causes superfical and
cuteneous mycoses e.g tinea pedis, tinea
unguium (nail bed) e.g Epidermophyton
floccosum
• 2. Microsporium causes tinea capitis ,tinea
corporis e.g Microsporum canis
• 3. Trichophyton
 Reproduction
• Fungi reproduce sexually and/or asexually. Perfect
fungi reproduce both sexually and asexually, while
imperfect fungi reproduce only asexually (by mitosis).
• fungi produce spores that disperse from the parent
organism by either floating on the wind or hitching a
ride on an animal.
• Fungal spores are smaller and lighter than plant seeds.
The giant puffball mushroom bursts open and releases
trillions of spores. The huge number of spores released
increases the likelihood of landing in an environment
that will support growth
 Asexual Reproduction

• Fungi reproduce asexually by fragmentation,

budding, or producing spores.
• The most common mode of asexual reproduction
is through the formation of asexual spores, which
are produced by one parent only (through
mitosis) and are genetically identical to that
parent. Spores allow fungi to expand their
distribution and colonize new environments.
They may be released from the parent thallus,
either outside or within a special reproductive sac
called a sporangium.
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