CE 573 Biological Principles of Environmental Engineering

CE 573 prepares you to use fundamental biological principles to analyze important biological processes in environmental engineering. The principles will be applied to: biological treatment of municipal and industrial wastes, public health microbiology, and microbial ecology of engineered and natural systems. The course will cover basic microbiology (what is a cell?), survey key microbial groups and their metabolisms (how do they make a living?), cover biodegradation/catabolism of the basic macromolecules (carbohydrates, lipids, proteins), and introduce microbial ecology concepts, including molecular approaches. 3 credit hours.

 
   
   
Prerequisite
  

Background in basic biology or microbiology will be helpful, but not required or consent of instructor. The course will be taught as an introductory course in microbiology, i.e., there is no course prerequisite. However, it is a graduate course, and I expect you to do the required readings and pursue further readings in unfamiliar areas.

 
Course Objectives   At the end of this class, you will be able to:
  • Differentiate microorganisms according to their metabolism (e.g., electron acceptors, electron donors), describe the main characteristics of key or example species within each functional grouping, and describe the environmental reactions mediated by these species.
  • Explain how organisms catabolize the major macromolecules (carbohydrates, lipids, hydrocarbons, and proteins).
  • Describe the relationship between redox, thermodynamics, and microbial growth.
  • List common strategies employed by microorganisms to survive in natural and engineered ecosystems, and in biodegradation pathways.
  • Explain the basics of microbial genetics and molecular phylogeny, particularly comparative rRNA sequence analysis.
  • Describe the operational concepts behind molecular biology tools in environmental microbiology.

Evaluate scientific papers in environmental microbiology. Describe the problem, describe the operational concepts behind the methods used, explain the main findings.


 
Course Requirements  

Homework Assignments: Several problem sets

Examinations: The course requirements include three 1-hour exams and one final exam.

Projects: 10-page paper on any topic on environmental microbiology.

 
Textbooks  

M. T. Madigan, J. M. Martinko, and J. Parker, Brock Biology of Microorganisms, Tenth Ed., Prentice-Hall ISBN 0-13-066271-2

Book website http://www.prenhall.com/brock

There is an old edition of this book (Ninth Ed., ISBN 0-13-081922-0). If you already have the old edition, you won't need to buy the Tenth Ed.

Additional Texts: You may also wish to purchase a good reference book in environmental microbiology.

D. A. Vaccari, P. F. Strom, and J. E. Alleman. Environmental Biology for Engineers and Scientists, First Ed., Wiley ISBN 0-471-72239-1

Maier, R., Pepper, R. L., and C. P. Gerba, Environmental Microbiology, Academic Press

• In addition to the text, several handouts and papers will be used as reading assignments or study material. They will be provided during the semester or will be available in Electronic reserves in the Library (http://www.lib.ncsu.edu/reserves ) or as downloadable pdf files at the course website.



Course Outline  

Introduction to Microbiology

  • Cell structure
  • Nomenclature, taxonomy and phylogeny
  • Key biochemical macromolecules

•   Bacteria and Archaea

  • Chemical composition
  • Cell components
  • Reproduction and genetic recombination
  • Survey of key organisms

•   Eukarya

  • Cell components
  • Algae, fungi, protozoa
  • Waterborne diseases

•   Viruses

  • Overview
  • Bacteriophages
  • Animal viruses

•   Fundamentals of Metabolism

  • Free energy calculations
  • Enzymes, redox reactions, energy conservation and storage, electron transfer

•   Catabolism of Carbohydrates

  • Glycolysis
  • TCA Cycle

•   Aerobic respiration, oxidative phosphorylation, ATP and energy storage

  • Anaerobic respiration
  • Fermentations

•   Catabolism of other organics

  • Lipids
  • Proteins
  • Hydrocarbons
  • Methods in microbial ecology
  • Enrichment and isolation
  • Microscopy
  • Microbial growth
  • Molecular methods

 

 
Computer and Internet Requirements  

NCSU has recommended minimum specifications for computers used for classes. Depending on your computer needs, we recommend your computer meet or exceed the following minimum specifications below.

PCs must have an Intel-compatible 1 GHz processor, 512 MB RAM, 60 GB hard drive with 1 GB free space available, 256 Color Display, CD-ROM drive, 1024x768 (min.) video adapter, sound card, and speakers. The operating system should be Windows XP Pro. Real One Player Basic (available free online) and high speed Internet connection such as cable, DSL, T1 or LAN will be required for EOL courses.

MAC users must have a G4 processor with firewire and USB factory built-in, 512 MB RAM, 60 GB with 1GB free space available, 256 Color Display, CD-ROM drive, 1024x768 (min) video adapter, sound card, and speakers. The operating system must be MacOS 10.4 (minimum) along with the above RealOne and Internet specifications above.

For more detailed information on computer specifications and recommendations, please refer to our website at: http://engineeringonline.ncsu.edu/currentstudents/computeraccess.htm

 

Instructor  

Dr. Francis L. de los Reyes III, Professor
Dept. of Civil, Construction & Environmental Engineering

Associate Faculty, Department of Microbiology
North Carolina State University
319B Mann Hall
Campus Box 7908
Raleigh , NC 27695-7908

Phone: (919) 515-7416
Fax: (919) 515-7908
E-Mail: fldelosr@eos.ncsu.edu
Instructor Website: http://www4.ncsu.edu/~fldelosr