MICROBIOLOGY

Course Description
This course is designed to provide basic principles of microbial life for non-biology students. Although relatively simple and primitive, microorganisms are considered the most successful form of life. They are virtually everywhere and they are in tight relationship with other forms of life on earth. Unlike macroorganisms (e.g. vertebrates, trees, insects), microorganisms carry out their life processes such as energy metabolism, growth, and reproduction independently from other cells. This unique feature makes microorganisms a great tool to study the nature of life. The course will cover eukaryotic and prokaryotic microbes and viruses, with major emphasis on bacteria.

Objectives
To provide a comprehensive survey of microbiology with basic information on bacteria, fungi, protozoa, algae and viruses. Topics include macromolecules, structure, metabolism, physiology, ecology, reproduction, genetics, and DNA manipulation. A comprehensive review of the interactions of microorganisms with plants and animals is also presented.

Upon completion of this course students should be able to:
1. Compare and distinguish the basic groups of microbes, especially prokaryotic microbes (archaea, bacteria).
2. Understand the processes needed for bacterial growth and multiplication, and the mechanisms involved.
3. Compare and contrast major pathways of metabolism, list the key products of each pathway, and describe biochemical pathways used for microbial taxonomy.
4. List different types of symbiotic interactions between microbes and other organisms, including commensalism, mutualism, and parasitism, and provide examples of each.
5. Have a good knowledge of common procedures in microbiology laboratories, including bacterial isolation and purification and bacterial identification based on biochemical and molecular tools
6. Have a grasp of microbial biotechnology procedures in order to test and identify bacterial processes
7. Have a solid grasp of the scope of microbial life and its central roles in both human activities and the web of life on Earth.

No prior prerequisites are required for this course, but it is advised that the students have a basic knowledge of organic chemistry and biochemistry.

1. Introduction to Biology
Introduction to Biology
Chemistry of life

2. Introduction to Microbiology
Exploring the microbial world
Microscopy and Evolution of Microbiology
Microbial Cell Structure (Bacteria, Archea and Eukarya)

3. Microbial Metabolism
Introduction to Metabolism
Catabolism: Energy Release and Conservation
Anabolism: The Use of Energy in Biosynthesis

4. Microbial Molecular Biology and Genetics
Bacterial Genome Replication and Expression
Regulation of Bacterial Cellular Processes
Protein synthesis and processing

5. Microbial Nutrition, Growth, and Control
Microbial Growth
Control of Microorganisms in the Environment

6. The Diversity of the Microbial World
Microbial Taxonomy and the Evolution of Diversity
Archaea
Deinococci, Mollicutes, and Nonproteobacterial Gram-Negative Bacteria
Proteobacteria
Firmicutes and Tenericutes: The Low GC Gram-Positive Bacteria
Actinobacteria: The High GC Gram-Positive Bacteria
Protists
Fungi (Eumycota)

8. Applied Microbiology
Biotechnology and Industrial Microbiology
Applied Environmental Microbiology

Madigan M.T., Martinko J.M., Bender K.S., Buckley D.A., Stahl D.A., Brock T. Brock Biology of Microorganisms, 14th Edition. ISBN-13: 9780321897398

The exam will be divided in two parts. The first part (10pts) will consist in a report submitted at the end of the practical laboratory part of the course and will evaluate the student's understanding of what was covered during the laboratory sessions. The second part will consist in a written exam (20pts) that will combine a mixture of multiple choice questions and open questions. The second part will cover all materials (theoretical and laboratory) taught during the course.
Because of the way the laboratory sessions are organised, students are expected to attend all the sessions for their report to be validated.

The teaching is organized in lectures that will cover different aspects of Microbiology. The lectures will be supported by laboratory sessions that will help to illustrate the practical concepts. The cooperative learning technique will be regularly used for this course as well as feedback questioning and discussion. Questions and discussions are encouraged during the lecture time.

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IN ORDER TO PARTICIPATE TO THE EXAMS, THE STUDENTS HAVE TO ATTEND AT LEAST 80% OF THE LECTURES AND LABS (I.E. 16 LECTURES OUT OF 20 AND 4 LABS OUT OF 5)
THE STRUCTURE AND CONTENT OF THE COURSE COULD CHANGE AS A RESULT OF THE COVID-19 EPIDEMIC.

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