The Microbe Zoo

What is a microbe?
A microbe is a microorganism that causes diseases/bacteria and can not be seen with the naked eye.
List the FOUR MAJOR groups of microbes.
Viruses, Prions, Eukaryotes, and Prokaryotes.
What is microbial ecology?
aka microbiology;biology of microscopic organisms.
Now begin browsing the sites (go back to the main page). As you go, keep a log of what kinds of microbes you find and where you found them.

Record the Zoo Location and What kinds of microbes are there? Include a short description or interesting information.
Include some pictures
1. Dirtland
Ag Acres
- There are plant diseases that are caused by pathogenic fungi:
- Fungal Diseases: rust fungi and rhizoctonia.
- Rust Fungi creates rust-colored patches on leaves.
- Rhizoctonia causes root rot in plants.
- Viral Diseases: Tobacco Mosaic Virus which is a rod-shaped virus that contains RNA for invading tobacco cells.
- Bacterial Diseases: Agrobacterium tumefaciens and Burkholderia cepacia
- Agrobacterium tumefaciens causes tumors called galls on stems
- Burkholderia cepacia rots onion roots.
- Microbial Fertilizers: rhizobium, azotobacter, mycorrhizal fungi, all add nitrogen or nutrients to plants and supply them with phosphorus.
- Bacillus thuringiensis and baculovirus are insect killers.
- mycorrhizal live inside root cells and form structures called arbuscules.
- glomus intaradix is a fungus that forms vesicles inside the root.
- spore of mycorrhizae form in sporghum roots.
- glomus intraradix spores are little sacs that become spores when the root dies.
- vesicular arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi vessicles
- endomycorrhizae are the most common mycorrhizae grown inside the cells of roots.
- rhizobia are bacteria that form a symbiosis with the roots of certain plants called legumes.
2. House of Horrors
- vampirococcus is a sphere shaped bacteria that is very small.
- bdellovibrio attacks other bacterias like e.coli
- Nematodes is a fungi that strangle worms and capture it for food.
3. Snack Bar
- Yeast is a fungus that can be grown with air which is when it produces alcohol.
- yeast can also make bread.
- Lactobacillus produces an acid that helps eat away seed pot of chocolate beans.
- bacillus spore is a resting stage of bacterium like that used to make Natto
- lactobacillus can digest lactose and produces an acid (yogurt)

LACTOBACCILlUS

E.COLI






Sources: book google images and http://4hgarden.msu.edu/kidstour/zoo/zbmain.html