Economic importance of bacteria are used, too, to form organic acids in pickles and vinegar. Biotechnology bacteria the use of microorganisms including bacteria and fungi in the manufacturing and services industries. These include chemical manufacturing such as ethanol, acetone, organic acid, enzymes, and perfumes. In the chemical industry, bacteria are most important in the production of pharmaceuticals. "Escherichia coli" is used for commercial preparation of riboflavin and vitamin K. Genetic engineering is the manipulation of genes. It is also called recombinant DNA technology. In genetic engineering, pieces of DNA (genes) are introduced into a host by a variety of techniques, one of the earliest
Marine life ranging from spheres to rods and spirals. Bacteria were among the first life forms to appear on Earth, and are present in most of its habitats. Bacteria inhabit soil, water, acidic hot springs, radioactive waste, and the deep portions of Earth's crust. Bacteria also live in symbiotic and parasitic relationships with plants and animals. Once regarded as plants constituting the class "Schizomycetes", bacteria are now classified as prokaryotes. Unlike cells of animals and other eukaryotes, bacterial cells do not contain a nucleus and rarely harbour membrane-bound organelles. Although the term "bacteria" traditionally included all prokaryotes, the scientific classification changed after