CHAPTER 10

MICROBES IN HUMAN WELFARE

1. Make a list of three household products along with the names of

the microorganisms producing them.

Ans. Curd: Lactobacillus

Bread: Saccharomyces cerevisiae (Baker’s yeast)

Swiss cheese: Propionibacterium sharmanii

2. How is lactic acid bacteria beneficial to us other than helping in

curdling the milk?

Ans. Two benefits of LAB are given below:

 They improve the nutrient quality of curd by increasing the vitamin-

B12 content.
 LAB also check the growth of disease causing microbes in the
stomach.

3. Write the scientific name of the microbe used for fermenting

malted cereals and fruit juices.

Ans. Saccharomyces cerevisiae also called as brewer’s yeast, is the

microbe used for fermenting malted cereals and fruit juices.

4. Mention a product of human welfare obtained with the help of

each one of the following microbes.
(i) Acetobacter aceti
(ii) Clostridium butylicum
(iii) Propionibacterium sharmanii
(iv) Aspergillus niger

Ans.
Microbe Product of human welfare
Acetobacter aceti Acetic acid
Clostridium butylicum Butyric acid
Propionibacterium sharmanii Swiss cheese
Aspergillus niger Citric acid

5. List two industrially significant enzymes.

Ans.

(i) Proteases and pectinases are used in making commercial fruit and
vegetable juices as they act as clarifying agents.

(ii)Lipases: They are helpful in removing grease and stains of oil from
the laundry therefore are used in detergent formulations.

6. Name the source of streptokinase, statin, penicillin and

cyclosporin A. How these bioactive molecules function in our
body?

Ans. (a) Streptokinase enzyme is produced by the bacterium

Streptococcus. It is modified by genetic engineering and is used as a
clot buster for removing clots from the blood vessels of patients who
have suffered from myocardial infarction.

(b) Statin is produced by yeast Monascus purpureus. It is used as blood

cholesterol lowering agent. It acts by competitively inhibiting the enzyme
responsible for the synthesis of cholesterol.

(c)Penicillin is obtained from the fungus Penicillium notatum. It is

used as antibiotic against many fungal and bacterial diseases in
humans and animals.
(d) Cyclosporin-A is produced by the fungus Trichoderma
polysporum. It is used as an immunosuppressive agent in organ-
transplant patients as it suppresses the activation of T-cells in body.
7. Explain the different steps involved in Sewage Treatment before
it can be released into natural water bodies.
Ans. The municipal waste water is called sewage. It contains large
amounts of organic matter and microbes. Therefore, it has to be treated
before it can be released into natural water bodies.
The treatment of sewage is carried out in two stages:
(a) Primary treatment or Physical treatment: This involves physical
removal of particles from the sewage through filtration and
sedimentation.
(i) Initially, floating debris is removed by sequential filtration.
(ii)Then the grit (soil and small pebbles) are removed by
sedimentation.
All solids that settle form the primary sludge, and the supernatant
forms the effluent. The effluent from the primary settling tank is
taken for secondary treatment.
(b)Secondary treatment or Biological treatment: The primary effluent
is passed into large aeration tanks where it is constantly agitated
mechanically and air is pumped into it. This allows vigorous growth of
useful aerobic microbes into flocs (masses of bacteria associated with
fungal filaments to form mesh like structures).
While growing, these microbes consume the major part of the organic
matter in the effluent which significantly reduces the BOD
(biochemical oxygen demand) of the effluent. Once the BOD of
sewage or waste water is reduced significantly, the effluent is then
passed into a settling tank where the bacterial ‘flocs’ are allowed to
sediment. This sediment is called activated sludge.
A small part of the activated sludge is pumped back into the aeration
tank to serve as the inoculum. The remaining major part of the
sludge is pumped into large tanks called anaerobic sludge digesters.
Here, other kinds of bacteria, which grow anaerobically, digest the
bacteria and the fungi in the sludge. During this digestion, bacteria
produce a mixture of gases such as methane, hydrogen sulphide and
carbon dioxide that form biogas and can be used as source of energy
as it is inflammable.
The effluent from the secondary treatment plant is then released into
natural water bodies like rivers and streams.
8. Determination of Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD) can help in
suggesting the quality of a water body. Explain. Why is sewage
water treated until the BOD is reduced? Give a reason.

Ans. BOD is the amount of dissolved oxygen required for the microbial
breakdown of biodegradable organic matter. Aerobic organisms use a
lot of oxygen and as a result, there is a sharp decline in Dissolved
Oxygen (DO) in the water body. This can cause death of fishes and other
aquatic species.

Determination of BOD is thus, an important parameter in determining

the quality of a water body. The presence of more organic waste
increases the microbial activity thus, decreasing the DO. BOD is higher in
polluted water and lesser in clean water.

The higher the BOD of sewage water, more is its polluting potential. So,
the sewage water is treated, till its BOD is reduced which further
indicates the reduction in the organic matter present in it.

9. Write any two places where methanogens can be found.

Ans. Rice fields and alimentary canal of ruminating animals.

10. What are methanogens? Name the animal in which

methanogens occur and the role they play there.

Ans. Methanogens are the groups of anaerobic bacteria, that produce

large amount of methane. Methanogens are found in the rumen of
cattle. The methanogens present in the intestine of animals act on
cellulosic part of food and digest them, thereby releasing methane along
with CO2 and H2.

11. Explain the steps how biogas is produced?

Ans. The sequence of events occurring in a biogas plant are as follows:

  The biogas plant tank is fed with a slurry of dung.
 A floating cover is placed over the slurry, which keeps on rising as
the gas is produced in the tank due to the microbial activity.
 Methanogens like Methanobacterium in cow dung grows
anaerobically on cellulosic plant material to produce large amount
of methane, CO2 and H2.
 The plant has an outlet, which is connected by a pipe to supply
biogas in nearby houses.
 The spent slurry is removed through another outlet and used as bio
fertilisers.

12. Draw a labelled sketch of a typical biogas plant.

A typical biogas plant

13. Discuss the main ideologies crucial in the biological control of

diseases and pests.
Ans. The fundamental idea is it is natural and eco-friendly. It involves the
utilization of entities to monitor the community of pests and pathogens
in an ecosystem. Biological control of diseases and pests is based on the
principle of natural predation. This is a holistic approach in which the
insects that are sometimes called pests are not eradicated, but instead
are kept at manageable levels by a complex system of checks and
balances within a living and vibrant ecosystem.
An example is Trichoderma, it is an antagonist which acts against certain
soil-borne plant pathogens. Likewise, Penicillin from Penicillium
notatum hinders the growth of Staphylococcus and hence has been used
in the penicillin production to check several bacterial pathogens.
Baculovirus in genus Nucleopolyhedrovirus is used as a biological
control agent for the species-specific narrow-spectrum insecticidal
application. Bacillus thuringiensis is used to control insects as it acts as
a biopesticide. The complete biological regulation of pest is recognised
to be much more advantageous in an ecologically sensitive area.
14. (i) Organic farmers prefer biological control of diseases and
pests to the use of chemicals for the same purpose. Justify.
(ii) Give an example of a bacterium, a fungus and an insect that
are used as biocontrol agents.

Ans. (i) Organic farmers do not use any chemical for raising crops. They
simply depend on biological control methods to control insects and
pests. This way they avoid deleterious effects of chemicals on food
products as well as on the environment. These chemicals get
accumulated in food chain and ecosystem whereas biological control
methods are safe as they do not harm any form of life.

(ii) Examples of biological control agents are as follows

 Bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis for the control of cotton

bollworm.
 Fungus Trichoderma species for controlling fungal soil borne
diseases like damping off of vegetables.
 Insects Ladybird beetle for the control of aphids.

15. What are Biofertilizers? Explain the role of the following in

increasing the soil fertility and crop yield.
a. Leguminous Plants
b. Cyanobacteria
c. Mycorrhiza
Ans. Biofertilizers are microorganisms that increase crop productivity by
either of the following methods:

i) By fixing atmospheric nitrogen

ii) By solublising insoluble fertilizers
iii) By stimulating plant growth.
 iv) By increasing phosphorus uptake.
v) By bringing out decomposition of plant residues.

(i) Leguminous plants possess root nodules where nitrogen is fixed by

symbiotic nitrogen fixing bacteria Rhizobium and fertilise the soil.
(ii) Cyanobacteria as bio fertilisers: They fix atmospheric nitrogen
through their photosynthetic activity, e.g., Nostoc, Anabaena,
Oscillatoria, etc. Blue-green algae increase the soil fertility by adding
organic matter to the soil.
(iii) Mycorrhiza shows the following benefits: a. resistance to root-borne
pathogens. b. tolerance to salinity and drought. c. overall increase in
plant growth and development by increasing the phosphorus
absorption.

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