The
importance of bacteria to mankind has been well recognized for many years.
Primarily exploited for their ability to produce specific enzymes, bacteria have
also been used to produce secondary metabolites of economic benefit.
In recent years with the advent of genetic engineering organisms such as E.coli
have been utilized for the expression of cloned gene products. This has
particular relevance with respect to the production of specific pharmaceuticals,
such as somostatin, a human growth hormone.
Bacteria have also been investigated as possible producers of fine chemicals
such as acetone, ethanol, and gases (methane), and for the production of Single
Cell Protein (SCP).
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Recent advances arising from the human genome project will provide information
for future control of genetic elements, expression patterns, and solutions to
problems such as systemic infections and antibiotic resistance.
Furthermore, as more becomes known about the structure and immunogenic
properties of polysaccharide fractions in the bacterial cell wall, possibilities
for the development of therapeutics will be enormous. Further bacterial
applications will include the transfection of plants (the insertion of genes
into plants) for the purpose of increasing resistance to disease and pests.
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