Aquatic Microbiology Quiz

Freshwater Microbes

• This study will cover general information about freshwater and marine microbes, including their distribution in freshwater environments.
• It will also examine factors influencing microorganism types and numbers.
• Waterborne diseases of humans will be part of the study.

Water Factoids

• The number of people plagued by water shortages is 0.5 x 10⁹.
• An estimated 2.8 x 10⁹ people will face water shortages by 2025.

Essentialness of Water

• Blood composition approximately mirrors that of sea water.
• Key concepts in biology include hydrophilic and hydrophobic aspects of biological molecules.
• Biological molecules' shapes and specific functionalities are determined by their water interactions.
• Water is crucial for all living processes.
• Water covers 70% of the Earth's surface and 97% of that is in the oceans.

Aquifers

• Aquifers are underground layers of rock that hold and transmit groundwater.
• The water table acts as a boundary between the unsaturated zone and the saturated zone where groundwater fills the spaces between sediments and cracks in rocks.
• Groundwater pressure is equal to atmospheric pressure.
• Artesian water flows naturally to the surface.

Importance of Water

• Water is the medium for all life.
• All organisms primarily consist of water.
• Cellular chemical reactions occur in liquid water.
• Water is essential for the survival and growth of organisms.

Explanation of Water in the Human Body

• The human body is more than 60% water.
• Cells contain water and substances like the phospholipid bilayer, which interact with water in hydrophilic (head) and hydrophobic (tail) ways.
• Metabolic reactions in the body depend on water as a crucial component.
• Life is impossible without water, a key element in plant photosynthesis.

Types of Water

• Natural water includes atmospheric water (water in clouds and air), surface water (lakes, streams, rivers, oceans), and groundwater (beneath the Earth's surface).
• Freshwater habitats include lakes, ponds, and rivers.
• Marine habitats include oceans.
• Estuaries are transitional zones between freshwater and saltwater.
• Microorganisms and chemicals are present in all water types.

Differences Between Freshwater and Marine Environments

• Freshwater and marine environments differ based on salinity.
• Marine environments have high salinity, and freshwater environments have low salinity.
• Different environments support different life forms with varying survival capabilities.

Homeostasis of Freshwater Organisms

• Paramecium are an example of a freshwater organism that uses homeostasis to maintain their internal water balance by pumping out excess water through vacuoles.
• Freshwater fish can't thrive in saltwater.
• Macro-organisms and microorganisms coexist in water environments, maintaining their stability

Drinking Water

• Drinking water sources include surface water and groundwater.
• Pollution sources include agriculture fertilizers and other anthropogenic activities.
• Water recycling occurs through natural processes like transpiration and respiration.
• Water safety is jeopardized by pathogenic microorganisms (total coliforms must be zero).
• Different types of water (potable and non-potable) have different qualities.

Water Purification Methods

• Water purification methods include sedimentation, filtration, and chlorination.
• Wastewater treatment is essential to prevent pollution.
• Assessing microbial activity helps in water purification

Microbes in Aqueous Environments

• Aquatic environments have complex ecological structures with many thriving organisms.
• Microbes have adapted to survive in diverse freshwater environments, which may include high salinity conditions (saturated salt solutions).
• Some can even thrive in freezing temperatures.
• Microbes can also adapt to waters with high levels of toxins like copper, cyanide, lead, silver, gasoline, etc.

Terminology

• Potable water (clean water) is free of objectionable material, pathogens, tastes, odors, colors, toxins, radioactive material, and other contaminants.
• Fresh water is non-salt water.
• Pollution makes water non-potable.
• Sewage is community waste.

Water Quality Standards

• Drinking water should be free of coliforms.
• Recreational water should have a maximum of 200 fecal coliforms per 100 ml.
• Fish and wildlife habitats require 5000 fecal coliforms per 100 ml while shellfish should have 14 fecal coliforms per 100 ml.

Safe Drinking Water

• Safe drinking water is free of pathogenic organisms.
• It should be clear, not saline, free from offensive tastes and smells, and free from chemicals that cause corrosion.

Most Probable Number Method

• The MPN method measures microbial abundance by inoculating water samples in lactose broth.
• It identifies coliforms through gas production.
• Results are obtained using tables to determine the range of bacterial counts per unit.
• The method does not measure total bacteria or specific pathogens.

Public Health and Water Supply

• Public health relies on routine water quality monitoring using indicator organisms to detect fecal contamination.
• Fecal coliforms and streptococci testing are crucial to determine if sources of contamination are animal or human-related.

Essential Standards

• Water in distribution systems must have fecal coliforms zero and total coliforms under 10, with no detectible levels in consecutive tests.

Ratios for Fecal Coliforms and Streptococci

• Ratios are different for different animal types (human, duck, sheep, chicken, pig, cow, and turkey).

Water Microbiology Definition

• Water microbiology is a field dedicated to the study of microorganisms and their communities in water systems

Microbes in Water

• Various microbes, including viruses, bacteria, protozoa, helminths, and fungi, live in water.

Viruses

• Viruses are tiny particles that only reproduce inside living host cells.
• Some viruses harm bacteria.

Viruses Pathogens

• Viruses cause specific diseases like gastroenteritis (enteritis, diarrhea, and dysentery), liver damage (hepatitis A, E), or paralysis (polio).

Bacteria

• Bacteria are the most prevalent organisms on Earth, live in various environments, and have diverse shapes.
• They have specific structures and reproduce quickly.
• Bacteria cause diseases like food poisoning by releasing toxins.

Bacteria in Surface Water

• Surface water may contain bacteria that cause diseases, such as enteritis, various forms of diarrhea, urinary tract infections, intestinal diseases, and typhoid fever.

Protozoa

• Protozoa are unicellular organisms with specific structures.
• Important protozoa cause diseases like amoebic dysentery, cryptosporidiosis, giardiasis, toxoplasmosis.

Protozoa in Surface Water

• Protozoa found in surface water can cause various illnesses, including amoebic dysentery, cryptosporidiosis, giardiasis, and toxoplasmosis.

Giardiasis and Cryptosporidiosis

• Giardiasis and cryptosporidiosis are protozoan diseases transmitted primarily through water.
• Protozoa species can cause illness and outbreaks, like the 1993 Milwaukee outbreak of cryptosporidiosis.

Fungi:

• Fungi are a diverse group that cannot perform photosynthesis.
• They serve as decomposers in water and soil environments.
• Some fungi populations are low in water bodies due to competition with bacteria.

Algae

• Algae can produce toxins.
• Some algal toxins, such as domoic acid, can cause illnesses, including amnesic shellfish poisoning, ciguatera poisoning, diarrhetic shellfish poisoning, and neurotoxic shellfish poisoning.
• Toxic algal concentrations cause shellfish beds to close.

Helminths

• Helminths are parasitic worms that can inhabit water.
• There are different types, including roundworms, tapeworms, hookworms, and whipworms.
• Water-based diseases are transmitted through complex life cycles involving an intermediate aquatic host.

Spread and Symptoms of Waterborne Diseases

• Waterborne infections can occur by directly drinking contaminated water or by contact with infected water.
• Common symptoms include abdominal pain, fever, and diarrhea.

Water-related Diseases

• Water-related diseases are frequently carried by insects that live near water.
• Such diseases can be hard to control.
• These may include yellow fever, dengue, malaria, and African trypanosomiasis (sleeping sickness).

Other Important Waterborne Organisms

• Vibrio cholera is a significant waterborne bacterium.