Microorganism

Cosma / Communication / Knowledge / Realm / Terrestrial / Life / Microorganism
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Introduction1

FuseSchool Global Education (YouTube Channel)
FuseSchool (Facebook)

Dictionary

microorganism : an organism (such as a bacterium or protozoan) of microscopic or ultramicroscopic size — Merriam-Webster   See also   OneLook

Encyclopedia

Microorganism, or microbe, is a microscopic organism, which may be single-celled or multicellular. Microorganisms include all unicellular organisms and so are extremely diverse. Of the three domains of life identified by Carl Woese, all of the Archaea and Bacteria are microorganisms. These were previously grouped together in the two domain system as Prokaryotes, the other being the Eukaryotes. The third domain Eukaryota includes all multicellular organisms and many unicellular protists and protozoans. Some protists are related to animals and some to green plants. Many of the multicellular organisms are microscopic, namely micro-animals, some fungi and some algae, but these are not discussed here. They live in almost every habitat from the poles to the equator, deserts, geysers, rocks and the deep sea. Some are adapted to extremes such as very hot or very cold conditions, others to high pressure and a few such as Deinococcus radiodurans to high radiation environments. Microorganisms also make up the microbiota found in and on all multicellular organisms. — Wikipedia

Microorganism (Encyclopædia Britannica)
Microorganism (Biology Online)

Oirgin of Life (One Zoom)

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Adventures

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Inspiration

Talks about Microorganisms (TED: Ideas Worth Spreading)
Articles about Microorganisms (Big Think)

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Innovation

Science

Microbiology is the scientific study of microorganisms, those being unicellular (single cell), multicellular (cell colony), or acellular (lacking cells). Microbiology encompasses numerous sub-disciplines including virology, bacteriology, protistology, mycology, immunology, and parasitology. Eukaryotic microorganisms possess membrane-bound organelles and include fungi and protists, whereas prokaryotic organisms—all of which are microorganisms—are conventionally classified as lacking membrane-bound organelles and include Bacteria and Archaea. Microbiologists traditionally relied on culture, staining, and microscopy. However, less than 1% of the microorganisms present in common environments can be cultured in isolation using current means. Microbiologists often rely on molecular biology tools such as DNA sequence based identification, for example the 16S rRNA gene sequence used for bacteria identification. — Wikipedia

Microbiology (Encyclopædia Britannica)
Microbiology (Biology Online)

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Preservation

Museum

Microbes (Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History)

Health and Our Microbiome (American Museum of Natural History)

Library

DDC: 579 Microbiology (Library Thing)
Subject: Microbiology (Library Thing)

Subject: Microbiology (Open Library)

LCC: QR Microbiology (UPenn Online Books)
Subject: Microbiology (UPenn Online Books)

LCC: QR Microbiology (Library of Congress)
Subject: Microbiology (Library of Congress)

Subject: Microbiology (WorldCat)

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Participation

Education

Microbiology (Ology, American Museum of Natural History)
The Littlest Organisms (Biology4Kids)

Microbial Life Resources (Science Education Resource Center, Carleton College)
In the Classroom (American Society for Microbiology)
Journal of Microbiology & Biology Education (American Society for Microbiology)

MERLOT: Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning and Online Teaching
OER Commons: Open Educational Resources

Course

Microbiology (MIT OpenCourseWare)
Microbiology (edX)

Community

Occupation

CareerOneStop, YouTube Channel (U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration)
CareerOneStop, Official Website (U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration)

Microbiologists (CareerOneStop, U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration)
Microbiologists (US Occupational Outlook Handbook)

Organization

International Union of Microbiological Societies
Microbiology Society
American Society for Microbiology

News

Microbiology (Microbiology Society)
Clinical Microbiology Reviews (American Society for Microbiology)
Nature Microbiology
Microbiology (Nature)
Microbiology (bioRxiv: Preprint Server for Biology, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
Microorganism (EurekaAlert, American Association for the Advancement of Science)
Microbes and More News (Science Daily)
Microbes (Science News)
Microorganism (Phys.org)

Microorganisms (JSTOR)
Microbiology (JSTOR)

Government

Division of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (National Institutes of Health)
Microbiology Lab (National Science Foundation)


More News …

Phys.org - latest science and technology news stories Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine.

  • Reconstructed ancient protein maps how bacterial...
    on September 7, 2026 at 2:40 pm

    How do related proteins develop different functions? This is the question investigated by a research team involving Kiel University, DESY and the Center for Structural Systems Biology (CSSB). Led by Holger Sondermann, professor at Kiel University and head of the Structural Microbiology group at DESY, the researchers reconstructed the common ancestor of two bacterial enzymes and produced the long-extinct protein in the laboratory.

  • An activity-based probe library for identifying...
    on September 4, 2026 at 2:20 pm

    Proteins are vital to living systems. They build and repair tissues, act as enzymes to speed chemical reactions, regulate hormones and transport nutrients—all of which are important for developing next-generation bioproducts and advancing bioengineering and biotechnology.

  • Researchers test far-ultraviolet light to prevent...
    on September 4, 2026 at 11:40 am

    When a strain of highly pathogenic avian influenza, or HPAI, tore through U.S. poultry farms in early 2025, farmers culled tens of millions of birds, and egg prices soared.

  • Beneficial bacteria support tomato growth and...
    on September 2, 2026 at 1:00 pm

    Bacterial canker, a vascular infection, can wreak havoc on tomato plants, with symptoms ranging from wilted leaves to the collapse of an entire plant. Clavibacter michiganensis, the seedborne pathogen that causes the disease, can be challenging to treat because it spreads easily. "This pathogen is really problematic, especially in greenhouses," said microbiologist Eric Déziel, Ph.D., at the Institut national de la recherche scientifique (INRS) in Quebec, Canada.

  • Even ancient bacteria possessed intercellular...
    on August 31, 2026 at 11:00 pm

    Communication between cells in plants, animals and humans takes place via specialized connecting structures. An international team led by biologists from Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf (HHU) and involving the University of Tübingen has now discovered that the regulation of very similar structures was already present in multicellular bacteria, implying that it must have originated much earlier in the course of evolution. In their paper published in The EMBO Journal, the researchers […]


Microbes and More News -- ScienceDaily Current science articles on microbes and more. Read about viruses, bacteria, fungi and prions and see related videos.

  • Life uses 4 DNA letters. Scientists just made 8...
    on September 5, 2026 at 5:25 am

    Researchers at UC San Diego have demonstrated that a key cellular enzyme can accurately read an eight-letter genetic alphabet, doubling the four letters used by all known life on Earth. Detailed imaging revealed that RNA polymerase handles synthetic DNA letters in surprisingly similar ways to natural ones. The finding brings scientists closer to building expanded genetic systems that could perform entirely new biological functions.

  • MIT turns bacteria into living transistors
    on September 4, 2026 at 11:52 am

    MIT researchers have created bacterial “transistors” that can be wired together into living circuits capable of performing calculations and directing chemical signals. One day, these biological computers could coat plant roots or leaves, detecting environmental threats and automatically triggering defenses.

  • Ancient “living fossils” may reveal how...
    on September 3, 2026 at 1:11 pm

    A newly discovered microbe living inside ancient stromatolite communities may offer a rare look at how complex life first emerged. Researchers captured the first direct images of an Asgard archaeon physically connected to a bacterium, with the two microbes appearing to exchange nutrients and other compounds. Scientists think similar partnerships billions of years ago may have helped produce the first complex cells.

  • Researchers unveil sustainable spirulina solution...
    on August 30, 2026 at 5:17 am

    Researchers have produced a form of Spirulina containing biologically active vitamin B12 at levels comparable to beef. By carefully controlling the light used to grow the algae, they overcame a major problem with conventional Spirulina, which mainly contains a form of B12 the human body cannot use. The carbon-neutral system could provide a more sustainable source of the essential vitamin.

  • 324-million-year-old fossil reveals how insects...
    on August 27, 2026 at 7:22 am

    Ancient fossils suggest insects conquered land through a long amphibious phase rather than making an abrupt jump from water to dry ground. A newly identified 324-million-year-old species still carried paddle-like abdominal limbs, revealing an evolutionary bridge between aquatic ancestors and modern six-legged insects.

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Related

Here are links to pages about closely related subjects.

Knowledge Realm

Terrestrial   (Earth)

Sphere Land, Ice, Water (Ocean), Air, Life (Cell, Gene)
Ecosystem Forest, Grassland, Desert, Arctic, Aquatic

Tree of Life
Microorganism Virus
Prokaryote Archaea, Bacteria
Eukaryote Protist, Fungi, Algae, Protozoa (Tardigrade)
Plant Flower, Tree
Animal
Invertebrate
Cnidaria Coral, Jellyfish
Cephalopod Cuttlefish, Octopus
Crustacean Lobster, Shrimp
Arachnid Spider, Scorpion
Insect Ant, Bee, Beetle, Butterfly
Vertebrate
Fish Seahorse, Ray, Shark
Amphibian Frog, Salamander
Reptile Turtle, Tortoise, Dinosaur
Bird Penguin, Ostrich, Owl, Crow, Parrot
Mammal Platypus, Bat, Mouse, Rabbit, Goat, Giraffe, Camel, Horse, Elephant, Mammoth
Walrus, Seal, Polar Bear, Bear, Panda, Cat, Tiger, Lion, Dog, Wolf
Cetacean Whale, Dolphin
Primate Monkey, Chimpanzee, Human

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Notes

1.   The resources on this page are are organized by a classification scheme developed exclusively for Cosma.