Cellular metabolism can sometimes seem overwhelming because of the pathways for respiration (both aerobic and anaerobic), fermentation, and photosynthesis. However, metabolism is the key to life. All cells need energy to function and these are the ways that energy is converted to a useful form. This information is also important to Microbiology beyond the cell itself in the laboratory for identification. Biochemical tests can be used to identify organisms based on the enzymes they produce to metabolize various substrates. There are two videos I am providing just as a resource regarding Aerobic Cellular Respiration for your learning. They focus primarily on eukaryotic cells, but they will be helpful to watch just to have an idea of what we will be talking about for part of Chapter 5.

One is from the Amoeba Sisters:

Cellular Respiration (Links to an external site.)

The other site is from Crash Course:

ATP and Respiration: Crash Course Biology #7 (Links to an external site.)

For this week’s topic, I’d like you to focus on finding a beneficial product produced by a microorganism that impacts our life. There are a wide variety of areas that use microorganisms for the production of products including the food industry, pharmaceutical industry, agriculture, sewage treatment, ecosystem balance, etc. Look for something that you find interesting and share it with the class. I would like for you to include the proper scientific name of the organism, the product, the pathway used to produce that product, and why the product is important.

Requirements:
Use correct Microbiology terminology, add images and explanations to aid learning.
Be sure to include your references.