Which of the following is/are the possible commercial industrial applications of bacteria?
(A) Fermentation of sugars.
(B) Cleaning of oil spills.
(C) Production of vaccines.
Choose the most appropriate answer from the options given below:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → (A), (B) and (C) only
Bacteria are grown on a large scale in industry because they multiply fast and carry out useful chemical changes.
(A) Fermentation of sugars. Correct. Bacteria ferment sugars into useful products: Lactobacillus turns milk into curd and yoghurt, and other bacteria make lactic acid, acetic acid (vinegar) and butyric acid on a commercial scale.
(B) Cleaning of oil spills. Correct. Oil-eating bacteria such as strains of Pseudomonas break down the hydrocarbons of crude oil; Ananda Mohan Chakrabarty’s “superbug” was the first patented organism made for this.
(C) Production of vaccines. Correct. Many vaccines are made from bacteria grown in large fermenters: the BCG, typhoid and whooping cough vaccines use the bacteria themselves, and the tetanus and diphtheria vaccines use their toxins made harmless.