What is microbiology?

Microbiology is the study of microscopic forms of life – microorganisms – and is concerned not only with their role in disease, which is so often a cause of immediate concern, but with their many beneficial activities and applications. Microbiology occupies a central position in biotechnology and genetic engineering and many of the recent major advances have been achieved using microorganisms as model systems.
Microorganisms comprise a large and diverse group that includes algae, cyanobacteria, bacteria, fungi, protozoa and viruses. They exhibit an amazing diversity of form and are widely distributed throughout the biosphere, whether it be the polar regions or the deep sea.
Despite their microscopic size and invisibility they play a vitally important role in maintaining, through their metabolic activities, the ecological balance needed for life to exist on earth.
Through their activities they impact on almost every aspect of our daily lives:

• Some cause disease - e.g. cholera, anthrax, typhoid, food poisoning, AIDS, influenza, meningitis, measles - although the majority are beneficial or harmless.
• Some play a vital role in the cycling of nutrients - essential for the efficient functioning of all the earth’s ecosystems.
• Some play an important role in the production of foods such as bread, cheese, yoghurt, beer, wine and Quorn.
• Some produce valuable medical products such as antibiotics, vaccines, hormones and vitamins.
• Some are sources of chemical products such as enzymes, bioplastics, biofuels.
• Some play a key role in the treatment and detoxification of sewage and industrial effluents, and the clean-up of oil-spills.

Our Microbiology degree programme reflects the enormous breadth of the subject, and has a common core structure with options for specialisation, through choice of lecture units and research project, at Level 4. You can specialise in environmental, applied or medically-related aspects of the subject.

What can a microbiology graduate do?

Microbiology overlaps with other areas of the life sciences, such as molecular biology, genetics and chemistry, as well as biochemical engineering. Some microbiologists study microorganisms in order to understand the fundamental chemical and physical principles underpinning all living processes, whereas others are more concerned with the application of this knowledge.
Microbiologists are employed in a wide variety of positions in academic research, diagnostic work in hospital laboratories, environmental health, forensic laboratories, quality control in the food and drink industry, biotechnology, the pharmaceutical industry, health-care, agricultural research, marine microbiology, epidemiology and infection control, and by legislative bodies such as the Environmental Agency and the Food Standards Agency.

Degrees

BSc (Hons) Microbiology

Further information – useful web sites:

• Society for General Microbiology: http://www.sgm.ac.uk
• British Mycological Society: http://www.bms.ac.uk/
• Society for Applied Microbiology: http://sfam.org.uk
• Society for Industrial Microbiology: http://www.simhq.org
• British Society for Immunology: http://immunology.org
• American Society for Microbiology: http://www.asmusa.org/

Course contact:

Dr Peter Rowell