SEMESTER I
MB P101 MICROBIAL DIVERSITY

Unit 1
Introduction to microbial diversity: Distribution-abundance-ecological niche. Oxygenic photosynthetic microbes-anoxygenic photosynthetic microbes- oxidative transformation of elementssulphur oxidation, iron oxidation, ammonia oxidation and hydrogen oxidation. Adaptation to the nutritional and physical environment. 6 hrs

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Unit 2
Bacterial Systematics and nomenclature: Classification-Natural System of Classification. Binomial nomenclature, International code of nomenclature of prokaryotes. Taxon, species, strain, Haeckal’s Three kingdom of classification, Whittaker’s Five kingdom classification, Molecular phylogeny,
Three domain concept of Carl Woese. Criteria used for classification. Classification according to Bergey’s Manual of Systematic Bacteriology (latest Edition). Recent trends in Microbial Taxonomya) Chemotaxonomy cell wall components, lipid composition, isoprenoid-quinones, cytochrome
composition, DNA homology, DNA-RNA homology, G+C ratio, rRNA sequencing etc., b) numerical taxonomy c) genetic methods in taxonomy d) serological methods. Bacterial phylogeny, Phylogenetic Trees- evolutionary models, homology, methods for Tree building, maximum likelihood, organizing data on a tree, evaluating phylogenies. Dichotomous key. 14 hrs

Unit 3
Unculturable and culturable bacteria: Conventional and molecular methods of studying microbial diversity. Culture dependent methods of community analysis-Dilution plating and culturing methods, Culture independent methods of community analysis - phospholipid fatty acid analysis, nucleic acid techniques, phylogenetic analysis, fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) 10 hrs

Unit 4
Microbial diversity in anoxic ecosystem: methanogens- reduction of carbon monoxide- reduction of iron, sulphur, manganese, nitrate and oxygen - microbes and mechanism of metal reductionbioleaching of ore and metal corrosion. Microbial transformations of carbon, phosphorus, sulphur,
nitrogen and mercury. 8 hrs

Unit 5
Extremophiles: The domain Archaea, acidophilic, alkalophilic, thermophilic, barophilic, and osmophilic microbes - mechanisms and adaptation. halophilic - membrane variation - electron transport- application of thermophiles and extremophiles. Extremozymes. 6 hrs

Unit 6
Subterranean microbes: Ground water contamination and microbial transformations. Biomagnification, bioaccumulation and bioremediation. Catabolic pathway of recalcitrant molecule degradation and mineralization. 8 hrs

References:
1. Allsopp, D., Colwell, R.R., and Hawksworth, D.L. (1995). Microbial Diversity and Ecosystem Function. CAB International, Wallingford, UK.
2. De Bruijn et al. Bacterial genomes (1998). Chapman & Hill.
3. Colwd, D. (1999). Microbial Diversity. Academic Press.
4. Dorman, C.J. (1994). Genetics of Bacterial Virulence. Blackwell.
5. Ferry, J.G. (1993). Methanogenesis Chapman and Hall, New York.
6. Magurran A.E.(1998). Ecological Diversity & its Measure Princeton Uni. Press, Princeton, NJ.