r other organisms and release oxygen for our consumption. In addition, microorganisms are essential players in the food chain since they act as decomposers; break down dead organisms and organic matter and release minerals to be absorbed by living organisms and CO2 returned to the atmosphere for photosynthetic organisms. Microorganisms, called methanogens, influence the carbon cycle by converting CO2 in their cells into methane and releasing it into the atmosphere; thus increasing the concentration of methane as methanotrophs consume methane from the atmosphere, lead...... middle of paper ...... ate minerals from ores containing low levels of minerals (Hofkin , 2010). Microorganisms have also been beneficial to humans in the past – the Weil-Felix test for typhus. A patient infected with Rickettsia will have antibodies against this bacterial species circulating in their blood that can bind to Proteus OX19, a harmless soil bacteria. Doctors used to diagnose typhus by mixing the patient's blood serum with Proteus OX19. The positive test for typhus is confirmed when Proteus OX19 is clustered (Hofkin, 2010). Overall, microorganisms are vital to life on Earth and are more than just pathogens. Few microorganisms are pathogenic, but a much larger number play an important role in various ecological and industrial processes, preserving human health; and every day new discoveries are made that show that microorganisms are essential to scientific progress..

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