Classifications and

Microorganisms
By Dr Vipan Goyal
 Biology

The study of living beings is called biology.

• Father of biology – Aristotle

• Father of botany – Theophrashtus

• Father of zoology – Aristotle

 What is living organisms?
Growth – The increase in number of cells or mass is called growth.

Reproduction- Living organisms produce young ones of the same kind

Metabolism – Chemical reaction occurring inside a living cell.

Development – Maturity in the body

 Types of metabolism reactions
• Anabolism – The process of formation of larger molecules from
smaller molecules are called anabolism. Ex: Photosynthesis
• Catabolism – The process of breaking down of larger molecules into
smaller with the release of energy. Ex: Respiration
• In Linnaeus' time a Two Kingdom system of classification with
Plantae and Animalia kingdoms was developed that included all
plants and animals respectively

 Book: Systema Nature

 Limitations
• Limitations of two kingdom classification:
 Not covered Eukaryotes and Prokaryotes.
 Not covered unicellular and multicellular organisms.
 Not covered photosynthetic and non photosynthetic.
• A new classification came into existence by R.H. whittaker based on
cell structure, thallus structure, thallus organization, mode of
nutrition, reproduction and phylogenetic relationship (based on
evolutionary relationship).
• After 5 kingdom classifications there is another type of classification
was given by Carl Woese who gave 6 kingdom classification. He
separated prokaryotes into Eubacteria and Archaebacteria.
5 kingdom classification by R.H. Whittaker
 5 kingdom classification by R.H. Whittaker
• Monera
 Prokaryotic, unicellular without nucleus.
 e.g. Bacteria, Blue Green Algae.
• Protista
 Eukaryotic, unicellular with nucleus.
 Mainly found in aquatic.
 e.g. Diatoms, Algae and Protozoa.
 5 kingdom classification by R.H. Whittaker
• Fungi
 Multicellular, found on dead and decaying matter.
 e.g. Mushroom : edible
• Taxonomy classification : (Father of Taxonomy is Linneaus)
• Trick: Khoob Padenge Class OF GS
• Kingdom---Phylum---Class---Order---Family---Genus---Species
 Binomial Nomenclature
• In 1730s – Swedish botanist – Carlous Linnaeus – developed two word naming system.
• In binomial nomenclature, each species is assigned a 2 part scientific name, written in
italic.
• The First word begins with capital letter = Genus (group of similar species) to which
organism belongs.
• The Second word is lowercased = unique to each species.
• Genus comprises a group of related species which has more characters in common in
comparison to species of other genera.
• We can say that genera are aggregates of closely related species. For example, Lion
(Panthera leo), leopard ( pardus) and tiger (P. tigris) with several common features, are
all species of the genus Panthera
• A species is a group of individuals capable of interbreeding and producing
fertile offspring.
• Biological names are generally in Latin and written in italics. They are
Latinised or derived from Latin irrespective of their origin.
• The first word in a biological name represents the genus while the second
component denotes the specific epithet.
• Book: species planatarum
 Description of important or habitat
• Banyan – Ficus benghalensis
• Pea plant – Pisum sativum
• Human beings – Homo sapiens
• Mango- Magnifiera indica
• Onion- Allium cepa
• Potato – Solanum tubersum
 Common scientific names
• Cat – Felis catus • Cockroach—Periplanta Americana
• Dog – Cannis familiaris • Buffalo--- Bubalis babalis
• Frog – Rana hexadactyla/Rana tigrina • Cow- Bos Indicus
• Housefly – Musca domestica • Human- Homo Sapiens
• Horse – Eqqus caballus • Wheat—Triticum Aestivum
• Lion – Panthera leo • Rice—Oryza Sativum
• Tiger – Panthera tigris • Neem- Azadirachta Indica
• Honey bee – Apis indica • Imli—Tamarindus Indica
• Rose-- Rosa Centifolia • Turmeric-- Curcuma longa
 Monera
• The organisms in this group are
• Prokaryotes == do not have a defined nucleus or organelles {Prokaryotic Cells vs.
Eukaryotic Cells}.
• Unicellular == do any of them show multi-cellular body designs.
• This group includes all Some well-known bacteria include blue-green
algae or cyanobacteria [have cell walls], and mycoplasma [doesn’t possess a Cell
Wall].
• They are the most abundant micro-organisms and live in extreme habitats.
• The mode of nutrition of organisms in this group can be either by synthesizing
their own food (autotrophic) or getting it from the environment (heterotrophic).
• Many of them live in or on other organisms as parasites.
 BACTERIA
• Father of Bacteriology is Louis Pasteur.
• Ehrenberg used the word bacteria.
• Bacteria are microscopic, single-celled organisms that thrive in diverse
environments.
• These organisms can live in soil, the ocean and inside the human gut.
Humans' relationship with bacteria is complex.
• Sometimes bacteria lend us a helping hand, such as by curdling milk into
yogurt or helping with our digestion.
• Bacteria are prokaryotes . Hence they do not have a well defined nucleus
and have a cell wall composed of peptidoglycan, a protein sugar molecule.
 BACTERIA
• Their genetic material , which consists of circular and double-
stranded DNA , floats freely in the cytoplasm and is not
membranebound.
• The region in the cytoplasm , where the genetic material floats is
known as nucleoid.
• Louis Pasteur discovered the Rabies(hydrophobia) bacteria. He also
discovered the process of Pasteurization of milk.
• Low temp. 62.8 degree Celsius for 30 min
• High temp 71.7 degree Celsius for 15 seconds.
 BACTERIA
• Robert Koch discovered tuberculosis bacteria.
• Vaccine is BCG (Bacillus Calmette Guerin)
• The common structural forms are:-
 Spherical or ovoid (Coccus) Ex: Streptococcus thermophillus
 Rod shaped or cylindrical (Bacillus) Ex: Bacillus bulgaricus
 Spiral or screw (Spirillum) Ex: Borrelia burgdorferi
 Comma shaped (Vibrio) Ex: Vibrio Cholera
 BACTERIA
• Nitrogen Fixation bacteria
• Azotobacter, Azospirillum, Clostridium – living free in the soil and fix
nitrogen
• Anabena and Nostoc fix atmospheric nitrogen.
• Rhizobium in the roots of legume plants examples Beans
• E.coli (Escherichia coli) bacteria in large intestine helps in the formation of
Vit K
• Lactobacillus helps in formation of milk. ( lactose to lactic acid )
• Mycococcus in Tobacco plants
• Bacillus Megatherium present in Tea plants for fragnance.
 Archaebacteria
• Most of them are autotrophs and only a few photosynthesize.
• They derive their energy for metabolic activities, from the oxidation of chemical energy
sources like reduced gases – Ammonia, methane or hydrogen sulphide.
• In the presence of these chemicals it can manufacture their own amino acids acid
proteins.
• These bacteria are special since they live in some of the most harsh habitats such as
extreme salty areas (halophiles), hot springs (thermoacidophiles) and marshy areas
(methanogens) .
• Archaebacteria differ from other bacteria in having a different cell wall structure and
this feature is responsible for their survival in extreme conditions.
• Methanogens are present in the gut of several ruminant animals such as cows and
buffaloes and they are responsible for the production of methane (biogas) from the
dung of these animals.
 Eubacteria
• There are thousands of different eubacteria or ‘true bacteria’.
• They are characterized by the presence of a rigid cell wall,
and if motile, a flagellum.
 Kingdom PROTISTA
• This group includes many kinds of unicellular eukaryotic organisms such as unicellular
algae, protozoans and unicellular fungi.
• Some of these organisms use appendages i.e. hair like structure cilia like in
paramecium or whip-like flagellum e.g euglena.
• Their mode of nutrition can be autotrophic (Unicellular algae, diatoms) or
heterotrophic/protozoans. .
Examples: Unicellular algae, chlorella, Euglena, Trypanosoma (causes sleeping
sickness),Amoeba, Plasmodium, Paramecium, Chlamydomonas etc.

• Brown algae – The Phaeophyta

• Red algae – The Rhodophyta
• Green algae – The Chlorophyta
• Their mode of nutrition can
be autotrophic or heterotrophic.
• Members of Protista are primarily
aquatic.
• Some have flagella or cilia that helps in
movement.
• Protists,reproduce asexually and sexually
by a process involving cell fusion and
zygote formation.
 Chrysophytes
• This group includes diatoms and golden algae (desmids).
• Most of them are photosynthetic.
• Diatoms are the chief ‘producers’ in the oceans.
• They are found in fresh water as well as in marine
environments.
• They are microscopic and float passively in water currents
(plankton).
• In diatoms the cell walls form two thin overlapping shells.
• The walls are embedded with silica and thus the walls are
indestructible.
• Thus, diatoms have left behind large amount of cell wall
deposits in their habitat; this accumulation over billions of
years is referred to as ‘diatomaceous earth’.
• Dinoflagellates
• Very often, red dinoflagellates (Example: Gonyaulax) undergo such rapid
multiplication that they make the sea appear red (red tides).
• Euglenoids
• Instead of a cell wall, they have a protein rich layer called pellicle which makes
their body flexible.
• Though they are photosynthetic in the presence of sunlight, when deprived of
sunlight they behave like heterotrophs by predating on other smaller organisms.
• Slime Moulds
• Slime moulds are saprophytic protists.
• Under suitable conditions, they form an aggregation called plasmodium which
may grow and spread over several feet.
• During unfavorable conditions, the plasmodium differentiates and forms fruiting
bodies bearing spores at their tips. The spores possess true walls.
• They are extremely resistant and survive for many years, even under adverse
conditions. The spores are dispersed by air currents.
 EUTROPHICATION
• Nitrates and phosphates are nutrients
that plants need to grow.
• In excessive amounts, however,
nutrients cause a type of pollution
called Eutrophication.
• Eutrophication stimulates an
explosive growth of algae (algal
blooms) that depletes the water of
oxygen when the the algae die and
are eaten by bacteria.
 FUNGI
• They are eukaryotic organisms, do not contain chlorophyll. It is a non-photosynthetic
heterotrophs. It releases digestive enzymes to break down organic material or their host.
They store energy as glycogen.
• Most are saprobes - live on other dead organisms.
• Most are multicellular, but some unicellular like yeast.
• Those that depend on living plants and animals are called parasites.
• Some fungal species live in permanent mutually dependent relationships with bluegreen
algae (or cyanobacteria). Such relationships are called symbiotic. These symbiobic life
forms are called lichens. They can also live as symbionts in association with roots of higher
plants as mycorrhiza.
• Fungi + Bluegreen algae (Cyanobacteria) == Lichens.
• They are non-motile, lacks true roots, stems and leaves. The cell wall are made of chitin (a
complex polysaccharide).
 FUNGI
• The body of fungus made of tiny filaments or tubes called hyphae.
• Hyphal networks are called mycelium. Ex: mushroom (Agaricus)
• The classification did not differentiate between the heterotrophic group –
fungi, and the autotrophic green plants, though they also showed a
characteristic difference in their walls composition – the fungi had chitin in
their walls while the green plants had a cellulosic cell wall.
• When such characteristics were considered, the fungi were placed in a
separate kingdom – Kingdom Fungi. All prokaryotic organisms were
grouped together under Kingdom Monera and the unicellular eukaryotic
organisms were placed in Kingdom Protista.
• When your bread develops a mould or your orange rots it is because of
fungi.
• The common mushroom you eat and toadstools are also fungi.
• White spots seen on mustard leaves are due to a parasitic fungus.
• Some unicellular fungi, e.g., yeast are used to make bread and beer.
• Other fungi cause diseases in plants and animals; wheat rust-
causing Puccinia is an important example.
• Some are the source of antibiotics, e.g., Penicillium.
 FUNGI
• Penicillin- discovered by Alexander Fleming (1st antibiotic from Penicillium
Notatum)
• Aspergillus helps in the formation of cheese. (paneer)
• Ergot obtained from Claviceps Purpurea. It grows on Rye and other plants.
• It causes psychological problems.
• LSD (Lysergic Acid Diethylamide)
• Obtained from Claviceps.
• It causes hallucinations.
 Virus
• It can survive only inside another living organism, animal or plant. It is a
connecting link between living and non-living things.
• Virus has genetic material, either deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) OR ribonucleic
acid (RNA). Unlike living cells, viruses can have either DNA or RNA, but not both.
• In virus, a protein coat called a capsid surrounds the nucleic acid. This coat serves
to protect the nucleic acid and aid in its transmission between host cells.
• Some viruses have a third structure that surrounds the capsid. This is called the
envelope and is composed of a bilipid layer and glycoproteins.
• Envelope protects the virus from immune system when host secretes anti- virus
substances called interferons.
 Virus
• Virus was discovered
by Ivanovsky.
• Tobacco Mosaic Virus
was the first virus
discovered.
• Capsid- protein shell
of virus
Bacteriophage: Virus which infect the bacteria.
 PRIONS
• In modern medicine certain infectious
neurological diseases were found to be
transmitted by an agent consisting of
abnormally folded protein.
• The agent was similar in size to viruses.
These agents were called prions.
• The most notable diseases caused by
prions are bovine spongiform
encephalopathy (BSE) commonly called
mad cow disease in cattle and its
analogous variant Cr– Jacob disease (CJD)
in humans.
• Prions, lack DNA, RNA the nucleic acid
found in viruses.
 VIROIDS
• In 1971, T.O. Diener discovered a new
infectious agent mainly a plant
pathogens that was smaller than
viruses and caused potato spindle
tuber disease.
• It was found to be a free RNA;
• it lacked the protein coat that is found
in viruses, hence the name viroid.
• The RNA of the viroid was of low
molecular weight.
 Virion
• Extracellular, which spread the disease. But virus can be found
inside or outside the cell.
Thank You