Microbiome: the community of microorganisms that live inside and/or on your body.
Probiotic: food or another substance that helps to replenish or replace microorganisms in specific parts of the body.
Bacteria are the most abundant form of life on the planet. They are found in most every environment, from Antarctic ice, to boiling hydrothermal vents, to inside your stomach. Most of these do not hurt us. Actually, many of these organisms are very important to our survival.
Bacteria help many animals to digest food, they help trees grow, and they are important in the recycling of nutrients in the environment. They are also used in biotechnology applications to produce everything from food to energy to clean water.
Steven Hart. (2014, July 24). Beneficial Bacteria. ASU - Ask A Biologist. Retrieved August 28, 2024 from https://askabiologist.asu.edu/beneficial-bacteria
Steven Hart. "Beneficial Bacteria". ASU - Ask A Biologist. 24 July, 2014. https://askabiologist.asu.edu/beneficial-bacteria
Steven Hart. "Beneficial Bacteria". ASU - Ask A Biologist. 24 Jul 2014. ASU - Ask A Biologist, Web. 28 Aug 2024. https://askabiologist.asu.edu/beneficial-bacteria
Many bacteria like this Bacteroides species live in the human gut and aid in digestion of food.
This activity has a companion experiment Let the Germs Begin.
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