Population Evolution And Microbial Life

Through our research we aimed to determine if there were any differences in water quality of both the north and south forks of Strawberry Creek. As time progresses and the environment changes it is important to keep track of how certain species are being impacted by these features, and how they cope with change. We hypothesized that due to the lack of pollution, the south fork will promote a greater diversity of macroinvertebrates. This was due to the fact that there was less runoff and trash that could be introduced to the water in the south fork, than there was in the north fork. We gathered data by analyzing the different organisms living in both forks. We collected a total of fifty vials composed of five organisms from each fork, and inspected them under microscopic view. After gathering data and identifying the different kinds of organisms living in the different forks we assessed whether the organisms from the samples could live in high or low resolution water. We also took a t-test to assess the probability of these differences being due to relevant factors or by chance. Our major findings suggest that organisms in the south fork showed a higher demand to living in cleaner water indicating that our hypothesis was correct.

Adaptations in terrestrial environments involve the structural and functional qualities of the organism, to achieve the adequate intake of oxygen and other essential substances for the animal to survive, the evolution of more complex anatomical structures were required. Gravity is stronger on land than water, which means terrestrial organisms have to be more structural than aquatic organisms. Also, the balance of gas exchange with water loss is a key feature to survive in land. For example plants, when doing photosynthesis require carbon dioxide and water to produce oxygen, at the end of this process a lot of water is lost and terrestrial plants have to compensate the water being lost and the water taken from soil. Furthermore, the dispersal of gametes by wind or other animals have helped plants reproduce in large amounts and create varieties of species of the same kind. Short-term weather patterns as well as long-term climate conditions based on precipitations, temperature, wind, humidity as well as other factors are survival obstacles that organisms in land have to adapt to live; endothermic organisms have to maintain a constant internal

Read "Lab 3: Biodiversity." This lab will allow you to investigate how various organisms alter their environments. Additionally, it will allow you to

The article “Some of My Best Friends are Germs,” by Michael Pollen was a very interesting and informative read. Pollen explains that our bodies house 100s of trillions of microbes. More than 99 percent of our genetic information is microbial. The large number of bacteria that inhabits us weighs many pounds, forming a massive, unexplored world that scientists are just starting to document. These bacteria affect our health as much as if not more than the genes we receive from our parents.

Microorganisms are both beneficial and harmful. These microorganisms are important to humans because they play a role in the ecology of life, by decomposing wastes, both natural and man-made, such as creating nitrogen fertilizer at the root zones of certain crops. Other several pathogens that can cause serious harm, even immediate death due to the diseases or disease causing products they produce. Overall, microorganisms play an important role in life.

6. Richter, Brian D., Baumgartner, Jeffrey V., Powell, Jennifer, and Braun, David P. (1996). A method for assessing hydrologic alteration within ecosystems. Conservation Biology 1996:1163. http://libproxy.txstate.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=edsjsr&AN=edsjsr.2387152&site=eds-live&scope=site

“As biological novelties to the ecosystems, GM crops may potentially affect the fitness of other species, population dynamics, ecological roles, and interactions, promoting local extinctions, population explosions, and changes in community structure and function inside and outside agro-ecosystems” (Gertsberg, 2011).

Before, biologists assumed all microbes are bad for the human body (automatically thought of pathogens), caused many diseases and harm our body fundamental systems. In addition, the biologists think that our body is already built which had all the functions required to maintain our health. However, the attitude has changed over the last decade. The biologists characterized the most prevalent species of microbes in the body, and found out that these collective microbes do not threaten us, and they also are important part of human bodies.

There are major effects in the United States and Europe to help identify the role of microbial communities in the human body. The colon requires a balance of microbial agents that assist with various functions of the body. An imbalance can lead to C.diff., irritable bowel disease (IBD), irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), neurological disorders, and obesity just to list a few. Many of these problems have grown to an epidemic proportion. Both the United States and Europe have started projects aimed at the microbial communities of the body and their roles in our health.

Prokaryotes are ubiquitous, successfully adapting to diverse environments as well as developing symbiotic relationships with host organisms (Lengeler, Drews, & Schlegel, 1999). Prokaryotes may have both autotrophic and heterotrophic characteristics. A cyanobacteria is photosynthetic, commonly called blue-green algae, and may produce toxins (Crayton, 1993). Bacteria are most commonly associated in the general

Microbes are everywhere and anywhere. Microbes can be found from on surfaces of our daily lives to microbes we encounter and spread on. Microbes have been always since life started in this planet. According to a BBC article about Earth, “…an older microbe came to light…to be a remarkable 3.5 million years” (BBC). As stated, microbes may be considered to have been here long before any other living organism, which means these microbes have evolved through time as well. With evolving comes the different types of bacteria that may benefit us and also harm us. Harmful bacteria such as Lyme disease and the Plague which both derive from an infected insect with different bacterium. These two different disease made different approaches to our history

There are trillions of microorganisms living within us, greatly outnumbering our cells and genes. They are found in our skin, hair, membranes, mucous membranes and gastrointestinal tracts. Collectively these microorganisms are called our microbiota. Every individual has a unique microbiota, kind of like a fingerprint, but usually share similar metabolic functions. A vast majority of these are harmless and even beneficial to us, these are referred to as commensals. There are many bacterial commensals, that have co-evolved with us for centuries, making it possible for our bodies to properly function. Commensals benefit us by synthesizing vitamins and minerals, digest foods we alone cannot, regulate immunity, detox the body, protect against infections, and reduce inflammation. While there

Life on this planet began with microorganisms. Through millions of years microorganisms have found ways to successfully adapt and survive. These adaptations have created a wide biodiversity, allowing them to basically populate in all places. Why are these microbes so important? Because they shape the history of our world. Some microbes can be deathly to humans while some others are favorable, for example, bacteria that lives in the gut of both humans and animals and helps during the process of digestion (Alfred Brown & Heidi Smith, 2006). Understanding these interactions help scientists to find ways to protect humans from potential deathly pathogens. In order to observe microbes, microscope proficiency and microorganisms’ identification are crucial skills in a microbiology lab. During this laboratory session, samples of environmental and human organisms were inoculated into two different rich media and incubated to their according temperature. After this, appropriate use and calibration of the microscope was performed. Lastly, morphology and size of different species of bacteria, algae, fungi and protozoan were recorded.

The patterns of biological diversity in rivers and streams among taxa vary on a spatial and temporal scale (Ligeiro et al. 2010; McGarvey and Terra 2015). Variations in stream ecology can be contributed to water quality, habitat, and history of disturbance (Lingeiro et al. 2010). Creeks and streams feed into rivers and other larger bodies of water, which provide food, water, and other commercial and recreational services as well as a home to an array of plants and animals which rely on clean water. The health of these smaller bodies of water can act as indicators for the health of the larger watershed.

Franck and Brownstone define biological diversity as 'the variety and variability of living organisms and the biological communities in which they live' (36). Decades of progress in both the scientific and political arenas have advanced environmental legislation to protect biodiversity at not only the ecosystem level, but for specific species and genetic material as well. Research has shown the importance of every organism and their role in the global ecosystem, and legislation has gradually matured to protect not only species which may become endangered, but the habitats they need to survive as well. Growing consciousness surrounding environmental issues has enabled these protections to be