The word microbiology comes from the Greek words micro, which means “small or minute”, and logos, which means “study of”. Hence, broadly, microbiology is the scientific study of microorganisms. Microbiology has numerous sub-fields, and these include phycology (algae), virology (virus), mycology (fungi), bacteriology (bacteria), protozoology (protozoans), and medical microbiology (pathogenic microorganisms)[2].
History of Microbiology
Microbiology History - A Timeline
During the 16th Century
During the 17th Century
- Early 17th century The debate of Spontaneous Generation (a theory that believed that life developed from non-living material) began.
- the 1660s Francesco Redi demonstrated that maggots resulted from flies laying eggs on rotting meat and not by spontaneous generation[3].
- 1665 The very first microscope was invented by Robert Hooke. Because of this, Robert Hooke was the first one to have a close look at a cell appears to be, and he published his description in his However, Hooke’s observations showed no features of the nucleus and other organelles that are usually found in most living cells[4].
- 1674 Using a microscope, Anton van Leeuwenhoek witnessed a live cell.
During the 18th Century
- 1740 to 1776 The debate over Spontaneous Generation continued.John Needham and Lazzaro Spallanzani performed experiments involving spontaneous generation.
During 19th Century
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Source: Wikimedia 1839 Theodor Schwann also examined the idea of spontaneous generation, which eventually led to its disproof. In the course of his experiments, he discovered the organic nature of yeast. Louis Pasteur’s Germ theory and its antiseptic applications by Joseph Lister can be traced back to Schwann’s influence.
- 1861 Louis Pasteur introduced the terms “aerobic” and “anaerobic” in describing the growth of yeast at the outlay of sugar in the presence or absence of oxygen. He observed that more alcohol was produced without oxygen when sugar was fermented. The phenomenon was later termed the Pasteur Effect.
The terms “biogenesis” (life comes only from pre-existing life) and “abiogenesis” (life comes from nonliving materials, and what had previously been called spontaneous generation) as used by Huxley in this speech have become the standard terms for the discussion of how life originated[2].
- 1875 In the publication Ueber Bakterien, Ferdinand Cohn discussed the role of microorganisms in the sequencing of elements in nature. In 1875, Cohn published for the first time an early classification of bacteria, using the genus name Bacillus[2].
- 1885 This is the breakthrough for the establishment of protection against disease by the inoculation of a weakened strain of the causative agent. Louis Pasteur developed the “attenuation” of a virulent pathogen, the agent of chicken cholera. Pasteur used the word “attenuated” to mean “weakened“. As Pasteur recognized, the concept first came from Jenner’s success with the smallpox vaccination.
- 1881 In his book, Methods for the Study of Pathogenic Organisms, Robert Koch described his success with solidified culture media.The dye methylene blue was used in bacteriological staining[2]. The use of agar as a solidifying agent in preparing solid media was done for the first time. Because of its ability to resist digestion by bacterial enzymes and to remain solid at temperatures up to 100 degrees centigrade, it soon replaced gelatin as a solidifying agent for growing bacteria.
- 1882 Robert Koch isolated Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the bacterium which causes tuberculosis. The search for the tubercule bacillus was more difficult than the search for the cause of anthrax. The concept of phagocytosis was discovered when certain body cells go to the areas where they tend to “eat” or “consume” bacteria and other particles[3]. Hans Christian Gram developed the process of staining bacteria (Gram stain) with relevant dyes to reveal their structures for identification purposes. The distinction is correlated with other structural and biochemical differences not long after. For the first time, the term “virus,” which originally meant “poison” was used by Pasteur. Despite this, he had no idea about the mechanism of infection of the organism. It was discovered that antibodies are responsible for immunity.
The 20th Century up to the present
- Early 1900s, Microbial growth factor, or the requirements for bacterial growth, was discovered. Environmental factors that affect growth and sources of metabolic energy are examples of microbial growth factors [5].
- 1915 Bacteriophage was discovered.The process of analyzing water samples from coliforms with the use of the Most Probable Number and Multiple-tube fermentation test was introduced[1]. The difference between bacteria and viruses was established. This resulted in the emergence of virology as a sub-field of microbiology.
- 1929 Alexander Fleming published the effects of penicillin on Gram-positive organisms[1].
- 1946 The process of conjugation in bacteria was discovered (see PDF here). The proof is based on the generation of daughter cells able to grow in media that cannot support the growth of either parent cell. This type of transfer, however, requires direct contact between bacteria.
- 1993 The process of Polymerase Chain Reaction was introduced by Kary Mullis. This technique produces multiple copies of a segment of DNA in just a short period [6]. See the animation here.
- In the 20th century, microbiology developed from the angle of other disciplines of biological sciences so that problems of cell structure to evolution are solved. Although, more emphasis was laid down on the agents of infectious disease, the immune response, chemotherapeutic agents, and bacterial metabolism[1].
Top 11 Microbiology News In 2017
Microbiology is the branch of biology that studies microorganisms (e.g.,bacteria) which includes unicellular (single cell), multi-cellular (cell colony), and acellular (lacking cells). In this article, we'll glance over all top microbiology news in 2017, which includes current news, events, and advances in microbiology.
Top 15 Latest Microbiology & Virology Discoveries in 2018
Bacteria & viruses influence all areas of our life, from causing diseases to contributing to climate change. Here are the top 15 microbiology news in 2018.
Latest Discoveries In Microbiology 2019
Research performed in 2019 has uncovered a lot of new evidence in several areas of microbiology &virology. Here are top 10 discoveries in microbiology 2019.
Top 10 Microbiology News of 2020
Microbiology News 2020: 2020 was the year of the horrific pandemic that influenced all aspects of our lives. Unfortunately, the scientific community was impacted too. Still, though the whole world scrambled to study the new virus, many scientific teams have made breakthroughs in other areas of microbiology and virology.
Top 15 Microbiology News of 2021
These topics focus on the discoveries and developments in Microbiology in 2021. Research and developments on various topics, such as engineered bacteria, oil-degrading bacteria, and symbiotic relationship between root colonizing bacteria and host plants, have been included here.
Top 15 Microbiology News of 2022
Microbiology News of 2022: Plant-based organic acid kills food-poisoning bacteria, bacteria turned into renewable energy, plastic waste creates antibiotic-producing bacteria, microbes as biofertilizers, antibiotics repurposed, and more.
References
[1] – Microbiology in 20th Century. 2011. Link (accessed July 21, 2016).
[2] – Introduction to Microbiology. 2016. Link (accessed July 21, 2016).
[3] – Microbiology, American Society For. Significant Events in Microbiology 1861-1999. 2006. Link (accessed july 21, 2016).
[4] – Rhoads, Dan. History of Cell Biology. 2007. Link (accessed July 22, 2016).
[5] – genbacteriology. Bacterial Growth. 2015. Link (accessed July 22, 2016).
[6] – Utah.edu. PCR. 2016. Link (accessed July 22, 2016).
- Bisceglia, N. Cell Biology. 2016. www.nature.com/scitable/topic/cell-biology-13906536 (accessed July 22, 2016).
- Innes, Centre John. Microscopy. 2016. https://www.jic.ac.uk/microscopy/intro_EM.html (accessed July 22, 2016).
- Mikell, Meredith. Understanding Cell Biology: History & Theories. 2003. http://study.com/academy/lesson/understanding-cell-biology-history-theories.html (accessed July 22, 2016).
- Pasteur, L. “”Animalcules infusoires vivant sans gaz oxygene libre et determinant des fermentations.”.” Compt. Rend. Acad. Sci., 1861: 344-347.
- Pray, L. “Discovery of DNA Structure and Function: Watson and Crick.” Nature Education, 2009: 100-101
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Microbiology essentially began with the development of the microscope. Although others may have seen microbes before him, it was Antony Van Leeuwenhoek, a Dutch draper whose hobby was lens grinding and making microscopes, who was the first to provide proper documentation of his observations. Antonie van Leeuwenhoek is considered a father of microbiology as he observed and experimented with microscopic organisms in 1676, using simple microscopes of his own design. Scientific microbiology developed in the 19th century through the work of Louis Pasteur and in medical microbiology Robert Koch.