Lecture 3

Algae
• Photo autotrophic.
• Live in habitats rich in moisture and light.
• May be unicellular or filamentous.
• Classified into:
• Chorophyta, Bacillariophyta, Cyanophyta and
Xanthophyta.
 Ecology
• Some species are heterotrophic, oxidize
organic carbon to replace light.
• Can resist unfavorable conditions.
• In absence of vegetation, algae play a critical
pioneering role and also in flooded paddy
(‫ )االرز‬fields.
• Algae produce nitrogen and oxygen for other
organisms.
 Environmental influences
• Organic carbon (Heterotrophic).
• Light.
• Depth.
• Moisture.
• pH.
• Herbicides.
• Parasites.
 Significance
• Photoautotrophic.
• Pioneer on rocks and badly aerated soils.
• Lichens (fungus+ alga).
• Fix nitrogen.
• Paddy soils nitrogen fertilizer.
• Cause diseases to some plants.
 Protozoa
• Animal kingdom, phylum protozoa, unicellular.
• Life cycle of many protozoa consists of :
1. An active (trophozoid phase).
2. Resting (syst) stage.
3. Reproduce asexually by fission.
Nutrition
4. Photosynthetic protozoa.
5. Saprobic feeders.
 Distribution and abundance
• Every where: virgin soil, cultivated soil.
• 10000 to 300000 cells/g.
• Mass is greater than bacteria.
• Feed on bacteria.
• Flagellates are more abundant than small amoeba.
• Counting procedures estimate the active and cyst
forms.
• To count resting cells, 2% HCl is added to kill
vegetative cells.
 Environmental influences
• Food supply.
• Depth (surface greater).
• Organic matter (increase).
• Moisture (increase).
• O2 (increase).
• pH (6-8).
• Temperature (cool).
• Filamentous fungi feed on amoeba.
 Significance
• Regulate bacterial community.
• Allow different bacteria to coexist.
• Decompose plant remains.
• Enhance certain bacterial transformations
such as utilization of N2, degradation of
phosphorus containing organic matter.
• Some species are pathogenic ex: amoeba
which cause dysentery.
 Non-protozoan fauna
• Higher animals like nematodes, earthworms,
flatworms, snails, centipeds, millipeds require
adequate moisture and aeration.
• Some cause plant diseases.
• Has beneficial role in drainage, aeration and
soil structure, organic matter decomposition.
 Viruses
• Submicroscopic, medical importance.
• Specific to host: plant, animal, bacteria (phage).
• Specificity may be strain specificity.
• Lytic phase, lysoneic (temporary) phase.
• Symptoms
• Role of bacteriophage & Rhizobium (nodule
bacteria).
• Transduction: transfer of genetic characters from
one bacterium to another.
• Cause economic losses when infect amportant
crops.
• Can infect blue-green algae which play a role
in rice field.
• Can over winter (persist( in soil.
• Cause human diseases like hepatitis.
• Can be adsorbed on clay.
 Practical and ecological significance of viruses

• Overwintering, infect plants.

• Cause human diseases.
• Can infect insects, fungi, bacteria, protozoa.
 The carbon cycle
• Most important element.
• 40-50 % of tissues.
• CO2 in atmosphere is important in
photosynthesis.
• Upon death, dead tissues converted to CO2
and carbonaceous materials.
 Some aspects of microbial physiology
• The capacity to grow in a habitat is determined
by the ability to utilize nutrients in surroundings.

• Nutrition
• Nutrients serve 3 separate functions:
1. Provide materials for protoplasm synthesis.
2. Supply energy.
3. Receptors for electrons released.
• Macroelements as N, P, K, Mg are needed.
• Microelements are needed in small amounts.
• Growth factors are needed.
• CO2 is produced by aerobic and anaerobic
organisms.
 Growth
• In optimal condition f a bacterial population of
size (a), bacteria produce by binary fission
• After one generation 2 x a
• After two generations 2 x 2 x a
• After three generations 2 x 2 x 2 x a
• After n generations 2n x a
Growth curve
• In nature, bacteria do not exist in pure culture
and logarithmic phase is not reached.
• Many factors affect microbial growth such as
temp, pH,….
 Biochemical consideration
• Energy released by one reaction nmay be used
to do work or drive another reaction.
• Growth of microorganisms require an energy
input.
• In aerobic: glucose + 6O2…>6CO2+ 6H2O+ energy
• In anaerobic: NH4Cl+ oxidizing agent….>HNO2+H2O+ HCl+ energy
 Enzymatic activity in soil
• It is measured by incubating a sample
containing the enzyme with its substrate.
• After a period, the product is measured.
• Viable cells can affect the assay by two ways:
1. Grow during incubation period on the substrate.
2. Degrade the product.
• Some enzymes are intracellular.
• Enzymes are obtained from animals, roots or
plant remains.
• Toluene is added to the sample of soil as a germicide to
inactivate the cells during the period of the test.
• Soil may be sterilized by radiation.
• To assay the activity of free enzymes in soil:
1. Prevent the biosynthesis of additional enzymes and
degradation of product.
2. Do not lead to rupture of cell surface so the substrate
is accessible to intracellular enzymes.
3. Do not affect the extracellular enzymes in the test
sample.
• Number of environmental factors affect the
enzymes such as: pH, temperature, depth,
season, soil type, kind of vegetation.