Pick the product of a microbe that fits each need…
Contributed by StemPy LabTry it on paper first. A hint, the key idea and the worked solution are here when you need them.
Pick the product of a microbe that fits each need.
- A laundry wants a detergent that removes oily stains.
- A juice factory wants a clear juice.
- A hospital must dissolve a blood clot in a patient who has had a heart attack.
- A surgeon has transplanted a kidney and wants the body to accept it.
- A doctor wants to lower the blood cholesterol of a patient.
Need a reminder? The key ideaShow
Penicillin was seen by Fleming in 1928 and made a medicine by Chain and Florey. Lipases are used in detergents, pectinases and proteases to clear juices, and streptokinase from Streptococcus as a clot buster. Cyclosporin A (Trichoderma polysporum) suppresses the immune response. Statins (Monascus purpureus) are competitive inhibitors of the enzyme that makes cholesterol. In a row of tubes, each tube has half the dose of the one before. The lowest clear tube is the last one whose dose is at least the least dose that stops the bacterium.
The worked solution
Have you tried it?
Work it out on paper first. It is fine to get stuck or make a mistake: that is how we learn. When you are ready, go through the solution one step at a time, and check each step against your own.
Step 1. (a) Lipases.
Step 2. (b) Pectinases and proteases.
Step 3. (c) Streptokinase, from Streptococcus, the clot buster.
Step 4. (d) Cyclosporin A, from Trichoderma polysporum, an immunosuppressant.
Step 5. (e) A statin, from Monascus purpureus.
Answer: (a) lipases; (b) pectinases and proteases; (c) streptokinase; (d) cyclosporin A; (e) a statin.
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