Why study Microbiology? 5 key reasons

These are compelling reasons why you may be interested in studying Microbiology.

Not everything we see is really what is there. A whole world of microorganisms surrounds us that is not visible to the naked eye and influences the most basic aspects of our existence.

Microbes play important roles in making the world the way we know it.They are involved in phenomena such as the cycles of obtaining substances, the decomposition of organic matter, and even the digestion of food.

They also have a harmful side: the existence of pathogens. Although their proportion is much smaller than the benefits they bring us, they have always had a fundamental impact on history.

For all these reasons, it is not surprising that the scientific community has wanted to study them for centuries, to understand what we cannot see. And this is where microbiology was born.

In this article we will look at several reasons why to study Microbiology as a university pathway..

Why study Microbiology? 5 important advantages

We understand as microorganism any unicellular organism or acellular entity (such as prions or viruses) that we cannot see with the naked eye, since everything that is smaller than 1 millimeter in diameter is difficult to observe with the eyes. This science is in charge of the study of prions, viruses, bacteria, archaea, protozoa, fungi and algae.. It should be mentioned that the latter two also have members that are larger and can be observed with our sight, studied in other branches (botany, in this case).

Many people associate microorganisms with germs that cause diseases in humans and affect health, but the truth is that our body benefits from most of them, and they are even used to produce food products, such as cheese, yogurt or daily bread. Without their study, we would never have generated Antibiotics or vaccines that today have served to improve our health.

Thus, there are many reasons to study microbiology, there are many reasons to study microbiologyMicrobiology is a science that is linked to many others (e.g. medicine or ecology) and is useful for many aspects of life.

1. The need for medical advances

It is clear that studying microbes has been key to understanding, among other things, which ones act as pathogens and what are their mechanisms that cause diseases in humans. There are millions of microorganisms, and although there are only a hundred or so capable of harming us, it is still necessary to do more research to find remedies for many of them that still have no cure or medical prevention.

Apart from that, in the field of medicine, the other side of germs has also been studied, i.e., their health benefits.. We now know that we have an intestinal flora that helps us to digest certain foods or obtain certain components, such as vitamin K.

But even more important was the discovery of antibiotics produced by some species of bacteria and fungi. These are proteins whose function is to attack and eliminate other bacteria by means of various mechanisms, such as not allowing them toFor example, they do not allow the generation of the cell wall, which greatly weakens the bacteria. The bad news is that their massive use has succeeded in selecting bacteria, generating an offspring of pathogens that are resistant to these drugs, making the synthesis and discovery of new drugs an essential task.

It can also be added that studying microbiology can be useful for research into new vaccines for pathogens. After all, a vaccine is a preventive element that serves to favor the proliferation of antibodies, a defense element created by our body to react earlier and better against the pathogenic agent. Thus, if we are infected by the microbe in question, we already have the appropriate defense for a rapid attack.

2. Its application to the food and chemical industry.

Another aspect why you may be interested in studying Microbiology is to be able to control certain processes in the food industry, such as fermentation.such as fermentation. Fermentation is the activity of microorganisms when they transform an organic material into a simpler one. It is of great interest in the production of some commercial products: cheese, yogurt or beer cannot exist without this type of process. The control of fermentation inside large tanks or bioreactors is of vital importance to ensure the quality of the final product.

But it is not the only useful area in food processing. The production of amino acids, the essential component of proteins, is another important aspect of this industry, because of their use as additives.because of their use as additives. For example, we have glutamic acid to generate the flavor enhancer monosodium glutamate (MSG); or aspartic acid, to form the sweetener aspartame, or the production of vitamins as a supplement (for example, B12). Also noteworthy is the production of citric acid, a product with many uses: antioxidant, pH adjuster, flavoring, etc.; as well as the production of citric acid.

It is not only the food industry that takes advantage of the existence of these microorganisms. In the chemical industry they are used as components of household and laundry cleaning products, such as detergents, enzymes that are produced on a large scale by fungi and bacteria. These are proteins that break down other components, such as proteases (break down proteins), amylases (starch) or lipases (fats).

3. Their application to microbial biotechnology

This is one of the areas of work in the microbiologist's professional career that has grown the most in recent years. Biotechnology is the application in technology of utilizing living organisms or their products. Within this, a large part uses microorganisms to make its processes work.

One of its main objectives is to transform a bacterium by inoculating genes of interest into its genome so that they can then be expressed. An example will make it clearer: the case of insulin production.

As we know, diabetics often need to inject insulin because their bodies lack it for various reasons. Although insulin produced by pigs, which was very similar to human insulin, was used in the past, it is now possible to purify human insulin. it is now possible to purify human insulin by producing it using colonies (clusters) of bacteria.. The gene for human insulin has been introduced into these microorganisms, and thus they are able to transcribe the protein and produce it. This method of transgenic production is used with an infinite number of genes.

Another reason for interest in studying microbiology, also linked to biotechnology, is the development of biosensors. Living microorganisms are linked to electrons, and the chemical reactions they carry out can be detected by means of electrical impulses. This makes it possible to detect components in food, e.g. the presence of glucose, toxins, pathogens, etc. A good method for food safety and water control.

4. For its potential in terms of sustainability

With an increasing demand for a more sustainable system, microorganisms are gaining importance. The use of biopesticides makes it possible to create more environmentally friendly crops by using bacteria, viruses and fungi or their components to combat insect pests that attack crops. It is It is a way of avoiding the use of synthetic chemicals that are potentially toxic to a wide variety of life forms..

Another reason related to sustainability is the possibility of obtaining alternative energies, such as the production of ethanol (an 85% ethanol fuel was even used for automobiles) or methane, which originates from the decomposition of organic matter waste. There is also a growing trend towards the synthesis of biopolymers to replace petroleum-derived polymers, i.e. plastic.

5. For knowledge

The truth is that the most important reason to study Microbiology, like anything else, is to have an intellectual interest in it. In this science you have to be curious the idea of knowing the world that we do not see, all those small organisms that escape our gaze.. You want to know how they interact with each other and with the environment.

In short, this academic and professional path is very interesting to learn about the mechanisms of life, because as mentioned at the beginning, microbes are everywhere, and many perform essential tasks for this. It is fascinating how something so small ses so important so that, after so many years of Earth's history, they continue to fulfill their tasks that maintain life on this planet.

Bibliographical references:

• Tortora G. J., Funke B. and Case C. (2007). "Introduction to microbiology" (9th ed.). Editorial Panamericana.
• Murray P., Rosenthal K. and Pfaller M. (2013). "Medical microbiology" (7th ed.). Editorial Elsevier Saunder.
• Prescott L., Harley J. and Klein D. (2002). "Microbiology" (5th ed.). McGraw Hill Publishers.
• Thieman W. and Palladino M. (2010). "Introduction to biotechnology" (2nd ed.). Pearson Publishing House.
• Madigan M., Martinko J. and Parker J.(2003). "Brock, Biology of microorganisms" (10th ed.). Pearson Publishing House.