Microorganism and Species

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Difference between Microorganism and Species

Microorganism vs. Species

A microorganism, or microbe, is a microscopic organism, which may exist in its single-celled form or in a colony of cells. The possible existence of unseen microbial life was suspected from ancient times, such as in Jain scriptures from 6th century BC India and the 1st century BC book On Agriculture by Marcus Terentius Varro. Microbiology, the scientific study of microorganisms, began with their observation under the microscope in the 1670s by Antonie van Leeuwenhoek. In the 1850s, Louis Pasteur found that microorganisms caused food spoilage, debunking the theory of spontaneous generation. In the 1880s Robert Koch discovered that microorganisms caused the diseases tuberculosis, cholera and anthrax. Microorganisms include all unicellular organisms and so are extremely diverse. Of the three domains of life identified by Carl Woese, all of the Archaea and Bacteria are microorganisms. These were previously grouped together in the two domain system as Prokaryotes, the other being the eukaryotes. The third domain Eukaryota includes all multicellular organisms and many unicellular protists and protozoans. Some protists are related to animals and some to green plants. Many of the multicellular organisms are microscopic, namely micro-animals, some fungi and some algae, but these are not discussed here. They live in almost every habitat from the poles to the equator, deserts, geysers, rocks and the deep sea. Some are adapted to extremes such as very hot or very cold conditions, others to high pressure and a few such as Deinococcus radiodurans to high radiation environments. Microorganisms also make up the microbiota found in and on all multicellular organisms. A December 2017 report stated that 3.45 billion year old Australian rocks once contained microorganisms, the earliest direct evidence of life on Earth. Microbes are important in human culture and health in many ways, serving to ferment foods, treat sewage, produce fuel, enzymes and other bioactive compounds. They are essential tools in biology as model organisms and have been put to use in biological warfare and bioterrorism. They are a vital component of fertile soils. In the human body microorganisms make up the human microbiota including the essential gut flora. They are the pathogens responsible for many infectious diseases and as such are the target of hygiene measures. In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank, as well as a unit of biodiversity, but it has proven difficult to find a satisfactory definition.

Archaea

Archaea (or or) constitute a domain of single-celled microorganisms.

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Bacteria

Bacteria (common noun bacteria, singular bacterium) is a type of biological cell.

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Biological life cycle

In biology, a biological life cycle (or just life cycle when the biological context is clear) is a series of changes in form that an organism undergoes, returning to the starting state.

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Biology

Biology is the natural science that studies life and living organisms, including their physical structure, chemical composition, function, development and evolution.

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Chromosome

A chromosome (from Ancient Greek: χρωμόσωμα, chromosoma, chroma means colour, soma means body) is a DNA molecule with part or all of the genetic material (genome) of an organism.

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DNA

Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is a thread-like chain of nucleotides carrying the genetic instructions used in the growth, development, functioning and reproduction of all known living organisms and many viruses.

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Enzyme

Enzymes are macromolecular biological catalysts.

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Eukaryote

Eukaryotes are organisms whose cells have a nucleus enclosed within membranes, unlike Prokaryotes (Bacteria and other Archaea).

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Evolution

Evolution is change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations.

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Fungus

A fungus (plural: fungi or funguses) is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms.

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Genetics

Genetics is the study of genes, genetic variation, and heredity in living organisms.

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Horizontal gene transfer

Horizontal gene transfer (HGT) or lateral gene transfer (LGT) is the movement of genetic material between unicellular and/or multicellular organisms other than by the ("vertical") transmission of DNA from parent to offspring.

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Microbiology

Microbiology (from Greek μῑκρος, mīkros, "small"; βίος, bios, "life"; and -λογία, -logia) is the study of microorganisms, those being unicellular (single cell), multicellular (cell colony), or acellular (lacking cells).

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Morphology (biology)

Morphology is a branch of biology dealing with the study of the form and structure of organisms and their specific structural features.

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Multicellular organism

Multicellular organisms are organisms that consist of more than one cell, in contrast to unicellular organisms.

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Mutation

In biology, a mutation is the permanent alteration of the nucleotide sequence of the genome of an organism, virus, or extrachromosomal DNA or other genetic elements.

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Natural selection

Natural selection is the differential survival and reproduction of individuals due to differences in phenotype.

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Organism

In biology, an organism (from Greek: ὀργανισμός, organismos) is any individual entity that exhibits the properties of life.

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Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (PNAS) is the official scientific journal of the National Academy of Sciences, published since 1915.

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Prokaryote

A prokaryote is a unicellular organism that lacks a membrane-bound nucleus, mitochondria, or any other membrane-bound organelle.

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Sexual reproduction

Sexual reproduction is a form of reproduction where two morphologically distinct types of specialized reproductive cells called gametes fuse together, involving a female's large ovum (or egg) and a male's smaller sperm.

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Three-domain system

The three-domain system is a biological classification introduced by Carl Woese et al. in 1977 that divides cellular life forms into archaea, bacteria, and eukaryote domains.

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Triassic

The Triassic is a geologic period and system which spans 50.6 million years from the end of the Permian Period 251.9 million years ago (Mya), to the beginning of the Jurassic Period Mya.

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Unicellular organism

A unicellular organism, also known as a single-celled organism, is an organism that consists of only one cell, unlike a multicellular organism that consists of more than one cell.

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Virus

A virus is a small infectious agent that replicates only inside the living cells of other organisms.

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