Plan - Modules #1, 2, 3 and 4 - Aquatic Microbiology

The section of the course on Aquatic Microbiology includes a large section on the Aquatic Environment and microbial activities in that environment. Specific sections deal with methodologies used in aquatic microbiology such as tests for pathogenic microorganisms in water, biomass determination in water, and measurements of microbial activities. The Module continues with sections on bacteria in aquatic ecosystems, pollution aspects of the aquatic environment and the role of remote sensing technologies such as aerial photography and satellite sensing.

The last section of the first Module deals with the relevant regulations and laws pertaining to the aquatic environment.

Subsequent Modules (#2 and #3) deal with other aspects of similar aquatic ecosystems - the marine and estuarine. They are much shorter and deal primarily with differences between these environments and the freshwater environment dealt with in Module 1.

A final Module (#4) in the Aquatic Microbiology part of the course examines the role of microbial pathogens in water in human disease transmission and the safety of water supplies for various uses. 

Later Modules (#6 and #7) deals with other aquatic environments - deep subsurface and groundwater that are different enough to warrant  larger sections

The Key Points are:

• Morphometric and physicochemical characteristics of lakes and rivers determine the sampling schemes required for adequate sampling
• Zonation of lakes by temperature and oxygen levels: phobic zone, epilimnion hypolimnion, chemocline, thermocline, etc.
• Sampling schemes based on all parameters and repeated at intervals
• Types of methods available for determining microbial presence, activity and distribution
  • Biomass determinations
  • Chlorophyll for algal measurements
  • Most Probable Number method
  • Plate counts
  • ATP measurements
  • Fluorescence methods for bacteria and algal cells
  • Radioisotope tracing methods:
  • Photosynthetic activities in water samples
  • Heterotrophic (dark fixation activity) carbon dioxide uptake
  • Respiration by carbon dioxide evolution
  • Uptake rates of organic molecules (sugars, amino acids, etc) as measure of activity

Key Concepts in Lectures

• Variability of aquatic habitat - rapid change in characteristics and therefore microbial components.
• Use of activity measurements and biomass measurements to follow important microbial functions in water ecosystems.
• Importance of the effects of the choice of methods on the results that are obtained.
• Zonation phenomena and interactions between different layers
• Concepts of biogeochemical cycling of carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus
• Detail of phosphorus cycling in aquatic systems
• Effects of phosphorus on eutrophication progress in lakes.
• "Balance" between N P O H in lake systems, eutrophic systems and marine systems.
• Phosphorus in Lake Erie - amounts, effects and control measures
• Ecosystem control concept.
• General application of Odum's diagram to pollution from any source.
• Applications, problems and exceptions.