The Role of Bacteria in the World
By: Kevin Tang
How do the bacteria fight off viruses?
Coccolithophores is a type of single celled eukaryotic algae. They look like tiny little greenish balls. They are fighting against diamond shaped viruses. The viruses enters inside the Coccolithophores and heads straight for the nucleus. The viruses take over, and uses it to produce more viruses until it explodes. To fight this, the Coccolithophores have developed and modified by sending the signals to other Coccolithophores. The Coccolithophores start developing a new cell wall, instead of a chalk shield to a jagged. When the Coccolithophores get infected by the virus they evolved to start a programmed death, but the viruses have evolved too, to the point where the viruses can delay the programmed death. The way that bacteria fight off viruses is by genetically modifying itself.
Why is this "war" so important?
We would not be here without this war. Coccolithophores produce 50 percent of our oxygen on this planet. When the Coccolithophers die, they leave a chalk layer which sinks to the bottom of the ocean. When the layers build up it could stop phytoplankton from producing oxygen. So we need the Coccolithophers to beat the viruses, and survive.
Importance of Bacteria in Two Other Environments
Gut flora
This bacteria lives in your gut. Gut flora produces enzymes that help aid in breaking down proteins, carbohydrates, and fats. It creates multiple vitamins that are essential to your body. These vitamins include K2, B1, B2, B3 B6, B12, folic acid, pantothenic acid, and various amino acids. In addition, Gut Flora provides nourishment to your cells of your intestinal walls. This increases the amount of nutrients absorbed. If Gut Flora was not in your body, then you have multiple defects; vitamin deficiencies, and variety of food intolerance. This could hurt the ecosystem if Gut Flora was non existent because it helps most of the animals digest their certain foods. Without this, many could suffer large numbers, causing a huge chain reaction.
Cyanobacteria
Cyanobacteria is a type of bacteria that is a photosynthesizer. It is a producer that makes up the bottom of the food chain. It is very important to the environment because it produces oxygen, and many small organisms feed off of it, so if it were destroyed, then many parts of the ecosystem would be affected, especially marine life.