Science High Flyer

 

  The maintenance of life on earth depends on the continued recycling of inorganic materials and the decomposition of organic matter. Microorganisms play an important role in these processes. For many elements microorganisms are the only biological agents capable of regenerating key forms of the elements needed by other organisms, particularly by plants. Crop production has increased with the improvement in agricultural practices. Some examples of such practices are cultivation of free-living, nitrogen-fixing, cyanobacteria for increasing rice production in paddy fields, use of nitrogen-fixing microorganisms to inoculate legumes and use of microorganisms to break down waste material and crop debris for re-use by new crop plants. Microorganisms have long been used to produce animal feeds and human food. Examples in this category are single-celled proteins (SCP) (e.g., algae such as Spirulina , Scenedesmus and Chlorella ) used as animal feed; mushrooms and yeasts used for huma...

  Microbiology is a scientific discipline dealing with the study of organisms which cannot be seen with the naked eye and can therefore only be seen with the   aid of a microscope.   This is because human eye cannot resolve any object smaller than 1/10 mm in diameter. Most microscopic organisms are only a few thousandths of a millimetre in size and are collectively referred to as microorganisms. Main groups of organisms generally studied under microbiology are bacteria, fungi, viruses, algae and protozoa. Birth of microbiology Although Robert Hooke describes the fruiting structures of fungi in 1660 the first person to see microorganisms in any detail was Anton van Leeuwenhoek  (1632-1723). He was not a trained scientist but a merchant whose interest was to grind lenses and construct microscopes. The instruments he made were not more powerful than magnifying glasses capable of enlarging objects up to 200 to 300 times. One complete original Leeuwenhoek’s microscope i...

Terpenoids are a class of organic compounds, which are widespread in nature. The mixtures of substances that contain the fragrant compounds of plants are called “essential oils,’’ and the majority of terpenoids occur in the essential oils of many plants and flowers, and some in gums and resins. A few terpenoids have been isolated from animal sources also. They contain the “essence” or the odour of the plant. Practically, you are familiar with distinctly pleasant odours (aromas) produced by many plants. The fragrances of pine and cedar trees, flowers (e.g. rose, jasmine, etc.) peppermint, turpentine, cinnamon, cloves, and camphor (moth balls) are just a few of the examples one can name. All these aromas, of course, are the result of the volatile compounds produced by the plants. Many of them are valuable, because of their use as flavourings, perfumes, spices, incense, medicines, and insect repellents. Classification of terpenoids Number of isoprene units Number of carbo...

Water resources are sources of water that are useful of potentially useful to humans. Uses of water include agricultural, industrial, household, recreational & environmental activities. Virtually all of these human uses require freshwater. 97% of water on the earth is salt water. Remaining 3% exists as fresh water of which slightly over two third is frozen in glaciers and polar ice caps. Unfrozen fresh water is mainly found as groundwater, with only a small fraction present above ground (surface water etc.) or as atmospheric water vapor. Freshwater is a renewable resource, yet the world’s supply of clean, fresh water is steadily decreasing. Water demand already exceeds supply in many parts of the world purely because the world population continues to rise, so too does the water demand. In this context it is important to use water in a wise way =   sustainable use Sustainable use of water The use of   water that   supports the ability of human society to endu...

What is tea? Tea ( Camellia sinensis ) is one of the oldest and most consumed beverage in the whole world. Tea is grown in about 30 countries but is consumed worldwide. Traditionally, tea has been known to have potentially beneficial effects were not documented by laboratory studies until 1970. However, current studies have revealed the chemical composition and biological effects of tea at a molecular level. According to the different ways of processing, tea is usually divided into four basic types; green tea, black tea, oolong tea and white tea. Shoots, young leaves, mature leaves and stems of tea plant are usually used as materials for processing various tea products. Main composition of tea There are approximately 600 traces of aroma compounds in tea leaves, some of which are lost and some that are released during the manufacturing process.  Once plucked, tea leaves begin to wither, their cell walls begin to break down and chemical compounds begin to form new chemical compound...

What is pollination? Pollination is the fertilization step in plants. It is performed by insects and birds in their search for nectar and pollen.     Nectar and pollen The main constituents of nectar are the carbohydrates; glucose, fructose and sucrose (10-70%). Common amino acids and lipids are also present (~0.05%). Pollen (carrier of the male gamete) serves as a nutrient and contains protein (15-30%), carbohydrates (10%) and fats (5%). These values vary considerably according to species. Fragrances Flowering plants emit volatile low molecular weight substances that attract pollinators (e.g. insects) from a distance. Insects and bats that are active at night rely entirely on the fragrances. There are biosynthetically 3 types of pollination stimulants.   Fatty acid derivatives which are products of the polyketide pathway Aromatics from the shikimic acid pathway Mono and sesquiterpenoids    Fatty acid derivatives (a) and (b) occur in Magnolia an...

   What are natural products? Living organisms, such as plants, animals, fungi, or microorganisms, produce a vast array of organic compounds. Indeed, the very word “organic” which we use nowadays to mean “carbon-containing,” originally meant derived from organisms. Organic chemistry began and developed as the study of these naturally occurring organic compounds. During the past one and a half centuries, the scope of organic chemistry has dramatically expanded beyond these origins. Nevertheless, the study of natural occurring organic compounds continues to play a vital role in organic chemistry. These compounds are usually referred to as  natural products . Natural products are chemical compounds or substances isolated  from  living  organism. The chemistry of the natural product include their biosynthesis, extraction, identification, quantification, structural elucidation, physical and chemical properties and reactions.   Natural products are often div...

The term sustainability has a modern ring to it, but its basic idea is very old if not ancient. Human being many have given though to it since early days of civilization and they certainly have considered in their use of natural resources and ways of living in most if not all traditional societies before the rise of industry and technology. The widely cited report of 1972, “limits to Growth” is one of the early warning that showed that unchecked economic growth could not be sustained under the prevailing conventional economic models that depleted nonrenewable resources at a very rapid rate. This rather controversial report examined the results of a computer model called world that examined the trend of five variables:       Population     Food production    Industrial production     Pollution     Consumption of non-renewable resources What is Sustainability? " Sustainability means meeting our own needs without compromising the abili...