Think of something infinitely small, totally invisible to the naked eye, but with which we live every day. Of course, the first answer that will come to your mind is: the infamous Coronavirus. And it is not wrong at all, because even the number one enemy of our last two years is part of that gigantic and complex universe which, without us even realizing it, conditions and determines the course of our lives.
We are talking about microorganisms. They are found everywhere: in the air, in fresh and sea water, in the soil. Some can live in extreme conditions of temperature, in geysers for example, or inside volcanoes, in the presence of ionizing radiation and even in space. Each of us is home to more microorganisms than there are stars in the Milky Way, from 2 to 4 kilos of our body weight. This is the famous microbiome which, as is now known, plays a fundamental role in protecting the organism and ensuring the balance of all functions.
Yet, we all tend to associate “germs” with health problems, environmental contamination, deterioration of food and objects. An even more widespread and rooted approach, precisely following the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic that has caused millions of deaths and has changed, in one way or another, our lives.
Microorganisms actually represent something fundamental, indispensable and also extremely fascinating, so much so that there is a dedicated International Day (17 September) and that on that date the “Extraordinary Microorganisms” exhibition was inaugurated at the Turin Botanical Garden (open until to October 31). On display 44 photos taken at 27 European research centers with sophisticated microscopy techniques, which make it possible to visualize very small organisms, never observed in their shapes and characteristics, if not by experts.
Viruses, bacteria and archaea, microalgae, yeasts, filamentous fungi and symbiosis are the sections in which the exhibition is divided which was organized by the Department of Life Sciences and Systems Biology and by the Mycotheca Universitatis Taurinensis (MUT) of UniTo (a of the most important fungal biodiversity banks in Europe), with the collaboration of the “European Culture Collections” Organization (ECCO) and the support of the CRT Foundation. Several departments involved in the project and the decisive commitment of the Turin University Collection (TUCC) which brings together all the collections of microorganisms of the University and belongs to the European network MIRRI (Microbial Resource Research Infrastructure, consisting of over 50 research centers). of which it could become the Italian hub in the City of Sciences and the Environment planned in Grugliasco.
Microorganisms, we said, are everywhere and are essential for life on Earth. They play key roles in the proper functioning of natural ecosystems, in the health of plants, animals and humans, as well as in bio-based processes. The protection and conservation of microbial biodiversity is one of the essential elements for the sustainable management of the environment and the optimization of production processes. And the exhibition set up in Turin offers the opportunity to closely observe the four great groups of microorganisms, namely bacteria, algae, filamentous fungi, viruses and yeasts; to discover even its beauty from an aesthetic, chromatic and structural point of view. “The exhibition was designed to carry out a microbiological literacy operation – he explains Giovanna Cristina Varese, professor of Systematic Botany at the Department of Life Sciences and Systems Biology of the University of Turin and curator of the exhibition – We wish to involve civil society, to overcome the widespread prejudice on microorganisms and to underline their crucial role for life and for the future of our planet “.
Therefore, science that becomes art and that aims to make this complicated and invisible world known, so that the greatest number of people gradually become aware of its importance.
“Yes, exactly, image after image, the visitor discovers an extraordinary world that amazes for the combination of visual beauty and microbial genius developed over billions of years in the struggle for survival – explains Dr. Varese. – In each panel the photographs are accompanied by a brief description in Italian and English of the role of that microorganism in the environment and in various biotechnological processes. Along the way, insights are offered through a QR-code system. For example, it will be possible to discover which is the largest organism on Earth ”.
We are very curious: what is it, where is it? “Well it is a mushroom – explains the expert – but gigantic. It is called Armillaria Ostoye and covers an area of approximately 8,900,000 square meters, equivalent to 1,665 football fields. It is located in the United States, in Oregon ”.
Beautiful microorganisms and human allies.
This is why it becomes essential to understand its life cycle and also its functions. “We have to fill this knowledge gap through a microbiological literacy process – underlines Dr. Varese. – The lack of awareness of the importance of microorganisms strongly influences the decisions we all make every day (use of medicines, sanitizers, vaccinations, use of chemicals on crops). Only a well-trained and aware civil society will be able to guarantee virtuous behavior and accept and support innovations “.
But while waiting for this progress to occur, is it possible to quantify the microorganisms, understand how many there are? “The number is exorbitant, the latest estimates speak of a million billion species. They are the predominant life form on the planet, both in numerical terms and in total biomass. They show an evolutionary, functional and metabolic diversity that far exceeds that of all other organisms in the tree of life ”.
And where are we to imagine them, since we don’t see them? “They are everywhere and their ubiquity throughout the biosphere, combined with the diversity of their activities, make them fundamental for the functioning of all the ecosystems of our planet – explains the expert – They control biogeochemical cycles and the recycling of organic matter, constitute the main producers and absorbers of greenhouse gases and are therefore crucial for the management of climate change. They play an essential role in the soil, influencing its structure and fertility and therefore its productivity. The same goes for seas, lakes and rivers. And then the microorganisms cover the surfaces of all the other organisms, conditioning their physiology and well-being ”.
The exhibition
Those who visit the exhibition at the Turin Botanical Garden will therefore have the opportunity to appreciate the particularity of the images, but also, perhaps, to modify their innate or acquired conception of microorganisms, eventually re-evaluating their role and importance. “Each of us has his own perception or knowledge of microorganisms based on his experience – explains Dr. Varese -. For most of the human population, knowledge and representation of microorganisms is mediated by the images and stories we have received. In everyday life (for example in advertisements, cartoons, children’s readings) microorganisms are often represented with unreal, anthropomorphized traits and associated with negative aspects of our life. The exhibition, as an open-air scientific dissemination project, will make us discover that only a minority of microorganisms cause health problems (less than 1%). Instead, they have fundamental roles in the environment, in the cycles of matter and in the evolution of other organisms ”.
Magnified millions of times
The University of Turin, which actively contributed to the development of the “Extraordinary microorganisms” exhibition, is a national and European reference center for the study of microorganisms and microbiomes thanks to the activity of 4 departments. The Turin University Culture Collection (TUCC) born in 2016 from the union of the collections of microorganisms present in four departments of the University of Turin, currently conserves more than 25,000 microbial strains. The purpose of the TUCC is therefore to bring together all the microbial resources present at the University, optimizing their management and ensuring greater accessibility to resources and services for the scientific and industrial community. “This is an excellence in the Italian and world panorama – specifies Dr. Varese – thanks to which we have large equipment, microbial resources and human capital available to meet the needs of the different sectors by aggregating skills to develop new know-how and promote technology transfer and a circular bioeconomy in line with the new European strategies “. Incredible shapes, bright colors and a feeling of life in motion. Through images enlarged millions of times, we will be able to let ourselves go to curiosity and the desire for knowledge. Try to establish a new relationship with our travel companions on this Earth. Realize that they exist even if we do not see them, that they are many and that if we manage them correctly, they will hardly turn into new enemies.
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