What is Heterotrophic Bacteria

As the name implies, a heterotroph is a creature that cannot make its own food and instead obtains nourishment from other sources of organic carbon, most commonly plant or animal matter. 

Heterotrophs are main, secondary, and tertiary consumers in the food chain, but they do not create any food.

Heterotrophic living things include all mammals and fungi, as well as some bacteria and protists, as well as a large number of parasitic plants. 

It was in 1946 that the term heterotroph was first used in microbiology to describe a classification of microbes depending on the type of nutrition they received. 

Currently, the phrase is used in a variety of domains, such as ecology, to describe the food chain.

Heterotrophs can be further categorised based on the source of their energy. 

When a heterotroph makes use of chemical energy, it is referred to as a chemoheterotroph (e.g., humans and mushrooms).

It is a photoheterotroph if it generates energy through the use of light (e.g., green non-sulfur bacteria).

Heterotrophs are one of two methods of nutrition (trophic levels), the other being autotrophs (auto = self, troph = nourishment). 

Heterotrophs are found in both plants and animals. 

In order to transform inorganic carbon dioxide into organic carbon molecules and energy for their survival, autotrophs need energy from sunlight (photoautotrophs) or from the oxidation of inorganic chemicals (lithoautotrophs) in the form of photosynthesis.

In the simplest terms, heterotrophs (such as animals) eat either autotrophs (such as plants) or other heterotrophs (such as other animals), or they can eat both.

Detritivores are heterotrophs that get nutrition from the detritus that they consume (decomposing plant and animal parts as well as faeces).

Bacteria that are heterotrophic

Heterotrophic bacteria are responsible for the majority of the breakdown of organic substances on the planet.

They also exist as parasites on plants, animals, and humans, causing a variety of diseases in all of them.

They are also found in organisms as symbionts, for example, Rhizobium in the root nodules of legumes, among other places.

Bacteria are utilised in the production of curd, medicines, nitrogen fixation, and other processes. 

Heterotrophic bacteria have the ability to break down organic stuff such as cellulose, keratin, lignin, chitin, and other similar materials.

Different varieties of Heterotrophic Bacteria

Heterotrophic bacteria can be categorised into three major types based on their environment, food supply, and connection with other organisms:

  • They are parasitic, which means that they feed on live beings

  • Saprophytic means that they feed on organic stuff that has died or decayed

  • Symbiotic – They coexist with other organisms in a mutually beneficial relationship

Heterotrophic bacteria should be chosen as the odd one out

Methanogens are microorganisms that make methane as a metabolic byproduct when exposed to low oxygen levels. 

They are classified as archaea and are responsible for the production of methane.

They are anaerobic in nature and are unable to function under aerobic conditions.

They are spherical in shape and rod-shaped in shape.

They are well-known for playing a critical function in anaerobic settings, removing excess hydrogen and carbon from other forms of anaerobic respiration and allowing the organism to survive. 

Methagones primarily require carbon dioxide for growth, converting it into organic cell material, which then decomposes to produce methane. 

As a result, they belong to the group of autotrophic bacteria.

The vast majority of naturally occurring heterotrophic bacteria are

Heterotrophic bacteria are the most common type of bacteria found in nature. Bacterial structure is extremely complex, but their behaviour is extremely straightforward.

Archaebacteria are distinct from other bacteria in that they have a different cell wall structure than other bacteria.

Types of Heterotrophic Bacteria and Examples of Each

Bacteria that are parasitic–

Parasitic bacteria can be found in both animals and plants, and they can be a parasite on either. 

In contrast to this, the microbial flora of the human body, which includes bacteria found on the skin, the digestive tract, mucous membranes, and various other organs, can coexist without affecting the host.

Heterotrophic bacteria are known to cause a wide range of diseases in humans and animals. 

There are various forms of infection and transmission among them. Here are a few illustrations:

  • In the case of plants–

Bean blight (Xanthomonas campestris) is a disease that affects beans.

Tobacco is spreading like wildfire. Infection with Pseudomonas syringae (Granville wilt) – Pseudomonas solanacearum (Solanaceae)

  • When it comes to humans–

Typhoid

Tuberculosis

Diphtheria 

Cholera

Gonorrhoea

Diarrhoea

Symbiotic Bacteria 

Rhizobium, which is found in the root nodules of legumes, is an example of a symbiotic bacteria that is commonly encountered.

Food digestion is aided by bacteria found in the guts of humans and ruminants. They also contribute to the production of vitamins.

Saprophytic Bacteria 

They, together with fungi, are the primary decomposers of the food chain. 

They digest complex organic substances by breaking it down into simple components and assimilating them. 

They contribute to the recycling of nutrients. 

They aid in the decomposition of dead and decaying plants and animal remains, as well as in the process of biodegradation.

Conclusion

Biological creatures known as heterotrophs are those that consume organic carbon from other sources in order to make energy and maintain their own existence. 

Heterotrophs are unable to manufacture their own food through photosynthesis, and as a result, they are completely reliant on autotrophs for their nutritional needs. 

Heterotrophs are plant-eating animals such as herbivores, omnivores, and carnivores that consume plants and algae in order to maintain their own survival.

Heterotrophs account for approximately 95% of all living species. 

This includes individuals who are reliant on plants or animals that are autotrophs for their nutrition. 

A photosynthetic mechanism known as photosynthesis is used by plants and other autotrophs to create their own food. 

Heterotrophs are organisms such as fungi and bacteria that feed on other organisms. 

Herbivores are the most important consumers of autotrophs since they receive their food and nutrients directly from the plants they feed upon.

As a result, herbivores occupy the second position in the food chain, with carnivores and omnivores occupying the first and second positions, respectively.