Environmental Microbiology Questions with 100% Complete Solutions

Primary producer - fix CO2 (chemoautotroph or photoautotroph) Photoautotroph - Primary producer! Sunlight is energy source, CO2 is carbon source. Ocean bottom. Prokaryotes or Eukaryotes. Chemoautotroph - Primary producer! Chemical energy source. CO2 is carbon source. Prokaryotes. Decomposer - Degrade or decay organic matter. Chemoautotroph: fungi, decaying microbes. Consumers - Consume producers and fix carbon. Chemoheterotroph: eukaryote or prokaryote. Commensalism - one species benefits and the other is unharmed. What occurs when Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Clostridium sporogenes are incubated both separately and together? - Separate: P is aerobic, and growth will occur at the top where oxygen is. C is anaerobic and forms spores. However, when P and C are together, both will grow. Commensalism. Mutualism - Both species benefit. Lichen - Fungus and algae (or cyanobacterium) What occurs in biogeochemical cycles? - Elements are oxidized and reduced by microorganisms to meet their metabolic needs. Without these cycles, life on Earth would cease to exist. What is the primary biogeochemical cycle? - The Carbon cycle. What is the first step of the C cycle? - Photoautotrophs such as cyanobacteria, green plants, algae, and green & purple sulfur bacteria FIX CO2 into organic matter using energy from sunlight. (fix=incorporate)