SCV0825 - MOLECULAR AND APPLIED MICROBIOLOGY

Microorganisms are fundamental for most biotechnological applications. The invention and develop of new biotechnology fields depend from the increasing knowledge of molecular processes of prokaryotic world. Thus, the aim of the course is to focus the attention on microorganisms and get the molecular basis of representative strategies that permit them to adapt to new and different environmental conditions. These molecular bases are necessary to understand and appreciate the several examples of biotechnological applications that will be described. To this extent, the course will complete the competences of a professional figure ready to use microorganisms as adaptable cell machineries for producing public goods or as part of systems in different industrial contexts (i.e. bioremediation, bioconversion, prebiotic and probiotic, biosensors, tissue and fashion, cosmetics).
The expected learning outcomes, at the end of the course, are the following:
1) Explain the regulatory networks underlying bacterial physiology.
2) Describe at a molecular level the most important strategies used by model microorganisms to face environmental stressors and changing conditions.
3) Link the physiological roles of known microbial products and/or processes with their use in different biotechnological fields.
4) Design the strategies useful to identify, produce and purify the right bacterial compounds for the desired applications.
5) Suggest new and potential uses of microorganisms and/or of their products to respond to specific human needs
6) Evaluate microbiological bibliography in a critical manner and communicate results and personal considerations with appropriate terminology.