The good, the bad, and the ugly! Micro-organisms The good, the bad, and the ugly!

What is a micro-organism? They are living things visible only with the aid of a microscope. They are single to multi-cellular. Most micro-organisms do not cause disease. Most micro-organisms are beneficial. They require food, water, air, ways to get rid of waste, and an environment to live in. Microbes eat up toxic wastes such as battery acid, old paint, oil, pesticides and even radioactive material.

Bacteria: single celled organisms that exist all around you and inside you.

Good Bad Help in digestion of food, crowd out harmful bacteria, produce vitamins Can cause strep throat, botulism, tetanus, and E. Coli Help us make food, such as yogurt, bread, soda, chocolate, pickles, sauerkraut, and cheese Viruses cause illness, like rabies, pneumonia, and meningitis Help plants grow by absorbing nitrogen from the surrounding soil, act as pest killers, turn waste into fertilizer Are decomposers: break down dead organisms Used in medicines to help us get well, such as penicillin (Alexander Fleming, 1928) Help cows break down cellulose in plants Break down oil in water and waste in water plants

Fungi: organisms that are not plants or animals, but have characteristics of both, and absorb food from whatever source they are growing on.

Good Bad Mushrooms: can eat on pizza, in salads, and other recipes Mushrooms: can be poisonous Yeast: a fungi that helps bread to rise and gives it flavor Yeast can also be found in your body and can cause a rash or itchiness if you have too much of it Mushrooms also decompose leaves or rotting bark on the ground in nature Athlete’s foot: a fungus that causes itchy, burning on the feet. Fungi can rot wood in homes.

Protozoan: are microscopic organisms that usually live in water

Good Bad Some are producers like plants Don’t drink stream/pond water. It can contain a protozoa called Giardia that can make you sick Eat smaller things, like bacteria and mold Important food source for many pond creatures Algae (red, brown, yellow, and green) provide food for fish, whales, and other sea animals Phytoplankton are algae that provide over half the oxygen on earth Algae are eaten by people, such as sea weed and ice cream